News

WATSONVILLE—About a dozen nonprofit leaders and community advocates asked the Watsonville City Council at its Tuesday meeting to address the city’s mounting homelessness issues that have been further compounded by a recent rainstorm. Among the concerns brought forth to the elected leaders: an increase in...

Two weeks ago, Amelia Loftus, owner of Hidden Fortress Coffee Roasting, was on the brink of closing her cafe in Watsonville just shy of its five-year anniversary. The shop, located at the end of a sleepy business complex on Hangar Way, had been struggling to...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Health officials from eight Bay Area counties on Monday issued a set of guidelines created to keep families safe from Covid-19 during the holidays. The recommendations cover travel and gatherings. The health officers from the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco,...

Editor’s note This is the second of three stories featuring the challengers running for seats on the Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees. ••• Gabriel Medina graduated from Watsonville High school in 2010 and went to UC Los Angeles to study filmmaking. He returned to...

APTOS—More than 50 firefighters from agencies across Santa Cruz County gathered in Aptos Friday morning to commemorate the 19th year since the 9/11 attacks. Using two ladder trucks, the firefighters hoisted a giant flag into the air, and then read the names of their 343...

Children gasped and called out excitedly as the Santa Cruz Symphony played the first notes of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 at the Henry J. Mello Center on Tuesday morning.

WATSONVILLE—The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees has convened Friday afternoon for a special meeting to discuss appointing an interim superintendent. The board is meeting tonight to select a replacement for Michelle Rodriguez, who was abruptly fired Wednesday. But the board has broken into...

A painting crew has been busy adding a fresh coat of paint and a new look Thursday and Friday to the long-standing Beach Street Cafe on West Beach Street. Help is on the way for small businesses hit by sweeping closures, layoffs, and downsizing because...

SANTA CRUZ—A woman was killed Wednesday afternoon when she was struck by a semi near the intersection of River and Water streets, the Santa Cruz Police Department announced. Witnesses said the woman was walking a dog around 3:15pm when she was struck. The driver stopped...

WATSONVILLE—After two summers of canceled, postponed and altered activities, the City of Watsonville will be bringing back its seasonal offerings in full force this year. From annual events such as the Watsonville Strawberry Festival and the Spirit of Watsonville Fourth of July Parade, to new...