News

A Watsonville man with an extensive criminal record was arrested Monday after he allegedly exposed himself to several women in a laundromat. Joel Navarro, 27, was charged with assault with intent to commit mayhem, rape, sodomy, oral copulation, sexual battery, attempted sexual battery and indecent...

Michael Rozen said Aug. 1 he would rather be playing sports with his friends than attending the weeklong Bruce W. Woolpert Algebra Academy offered by Graniterock.  While Michael stopped short of admitting an affinity for math, the 13-year-old admits the experience will prepare him for...

The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk plans on bringing back an iconic attraction, but it first must seek approval from the city’s planning commission. Five years after the park removed its Ferris wheel due to age, plans are in the works to construct a new, 68-foot...

Neighborhoods throughout Watsonville celebrated National Night Out on Tuesday, an event meant to allow the public and law enforcement to interact in a positive environment. 

María Olvide Lozano’s 2-year-old daughter stomps around as her mother sits in the lobby of the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program at Community Bridges in Watsonville. It's 5pm on a Tuesday and the pair are the only clients here as staff wraps up...

With a theme of “Hometown USA,” the Pajaro Valley Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture held its 61st annual Awards Dinner and Auction on Saturday at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds. This year’s honorees were Woman of the Year Trina Coffman-Gomez, Man of the Year...

Every year, as the fleeting summer days pass, staff and volunteers at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds prepare for the coming fair, which is at once a community celebration of the region’s agricultural bounty and an embrace of autumn. The first step in the Herculean...

Plans to bring Watsonville Community Hospital—and the property on which it sits—into public ownership took a giant step forward Wednesday. The Pajaro Valley Health Care District (PVHD) Board of Directors approved a proposal to hire Isom Advisors, a municipal bond advisory firm that will help...

The National Association of Counties (NACo) on July 21 voted unanimously to urge the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) to change the way it funds flood control projects for economically disadvantaged communities. Currently, the ACOE uses a 1:1 benefit-cost ratio when figuring the feasibility...

Since June, the Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees has been considering a plan to retool its Visual and Performing Arts program at its 16 elementary schools, a proposal that includes splitting art teachers between most schools. The shift would be part of...