Rail-trail study gets RTC nod
SANTA CRUZ—The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission on Thursday unanimously agreed to release a request for proposals (RFP) for an engineering study of the county’s rail line, the first step in what will be a multiple-year project to establish a passenger rail system.
The...
PHOTO: Community lights up menorah for Hanukkah
Leila Veitch lights up the first candle of a menorah Thursday evening at the town clock in downtown Santa Cruz in honor of her friend Ziva Mitnick on the first night of Hanukkah. The gathering, headed up by Temple Beth El of Aptos, included...
Cooper family buys two dealerships
WATSONVILLE—The family that owns Chevrolet Watsonville has purchased two new neighboring dealerships, giving it the lion’s share of the sales on Auto Center Drive.
The Cooper family closed the deal on Wednesday for Monterey Bay Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram and Mid Bay Ford Lincoln.
The family...
Photos: Lee Road Hampton hotel project shaping up
Work is moving ahead on a new Arco AM/PM business on Lee Road beside the massive Hampton Inn & Suites project. In its framing and siding stage, beside the behemoth 112-room, four-story Hampton Inn & Suites, the business will feature a drive-thru car wash...
Study shows ‘heavy concentrations’ of heavy metals in soil after Moss Landing Fire
One day after a group of Santa Cruz County residents collected soil samples from the areas impacted by the Jan. 16 battery storage facility fire at the Moss Landing Power Plant to test for heavy metals, a San Jose State University Professor released the...
Two reportedly stolen vehicles recovered in an hour
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Police recovered two stolen vehicles inside of an hour Thursday.
Watsonville Police Service Specialist Marilyn Lopez noticed the first vehicle, a 2000 Honda CRV, on Hill Avenue at Tuttle Street at 12:10pm. Lopez said she had spotted the green SUV parked in the same...
Watsonville redistricting committee probes draft maps, incumbency rules
WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Community Redistricting Advisory Committee is closing in on its final recommendations to the Watsonville City Council for how the city’s district lines should be redrawn.
Every decade following the release of census data, jurisdictions must adjust their district lines to account for possible...
Watsonville man dies in solo-vehicle crash
WATSONVILLE—A Watsonville man died early Friday morning in a solo-vehicle crash on Amesti Road.
California Highway Patrol officer Sam Courtney said the 33-year-old victim was driving a blue 1998 Volkswagen Beetle eastbound on Amesti Road east of Cypress Lane, at an unknown speed at 12:28am....
Large Watsonville housing development seeks extension
WATSONVILLE—The developer behind a 150-unit housing project off Ohlone Parkway is asking the Watsonville City Council for a one-year extension on the project’s approval.
First approved by the council in 2018 as Sunshine Vista, Hillcrest Estates was set to transform an 11-acre junkyard at 511...
Suspect with machete, explosive arrested in Boulder Creek
BOULDER CREEK — A man who refused to drop a machete when confronted by deputies, after reportedly breaking into a trailer in Boulder Creek, was arrested Tuesday.
Santa Cruz County spokeswoman Ashley Keehn said deputies received a report of a man walking into a tent...
Supervisors greenlight SHIELD to protect immigrants
Santa Cruz County’s immigrant community got a measure of protection Tuesday after the Board of Supervisors approved an ad hoc subcommittee that will address potential...
