News

Two men remain at large following a string of robberies Wednesday evening in Santa Cruz and Aptos.

SALINAS—A Salinas Police Department officer was shot and killed on Feb. 25 during a traffic stop, and a suspect has been arrested. Salinas Chief of Police Roberto Filice said that around 10:45pm Officer Jorge David Alvarado, Jr. made a traffic stop on Griffin Street at...

WATSONVILLE—The Watsonville Film Festival (WFF) returns March 11-20, with virtual and in-person events to celebrate its 10th anniversary.  Consuelo Alba, executive director of WFF, said it felt “unreal” to be reaching such a milestone. “We are incredibly happy to be celebrating 10 years because when we...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Students throughout Santa Cruz County will no longer be required to wear masks while at school after March 11. The announcement, signed by the County’s 11 school superintendents, came Monday after California Gov. Gavin Newsom, along with Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and Washington...

SANTA CRUZ—Gabriela Cruz has been named executive director of Santa Cruz-based nonprofit Senderos, making her the first hired staff member after 20 years of being an all-volunteer-based organization.  Senderos, founded in 2001 by indigenous Oaxacan sisters Fe Silva-Robles and Dr. Nereida Robles Vasquez, was an...

APTOS—A lawsuit against Pajaro Valley Unified School District by the family of a 17-year-old Aptos High School student who was stabbed to death in August is proceeding, and will likely be filed in the coming weeks. Charles “Tony” Piccuta, the attorney representing the family, declined...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Students in Santa Cruz County are once again invited to submit entries into a regional writing contest headed by the Palo Alto Humane Society (PAHS). The Ambassadors of Compassion Story Writing Contest is open to seventh and eighth graders in Santa Cruz, Santa...

WATSONVILLE—The second edition of a literature and arts journal created by Cabrillo College English students will soon be published, and the public is invited to celebrate with students and contributors this Friday. Xinachtli Journal, or Journal X, features poetry, short stories, essays and art. It...

A crew from Bogard Construction use an excavator to demolish the Aptos Branch Library Wednesday on Soquel Drive at State Park. A new library is in the works and expected to be completed by Summer 2023. The $14 million project was funded by voter-approved...

WATSONVILLE—A group of local skateboarders is asking for an apology from the City of Watsonville after a set of skate ramps they purchased were unintentionally destroyed while being removed from the old Ramsay Park skatepark. Yuridia Alexa Cebada-Martell and other skaters say that on Oct....