Opinion

25 years ago on Aug. 12, 1996 Thousands of farm workers and their families marched through Watsonville, waving flags and banners to protest the United Farm Workers organizing efforts. In March, the UFW announced plans to organize the 15,000 berry workers in the Pajaro and...

As the winter season approaches, ensuring the safety and well-being of our community becomes our paramount concern. Navigating the uncertainties of changing weather patterns demands unity and vigilance.  In preparation for the winter season and to foster community resilience, my office collaborates with regional partners...

Save our irreplaceable farmland Our farm, Lakeside Organic Gardens, now in our 26th year, creates hundreds of jobs and supports local businesses that rely on the strength of our local agriculture. Growing food provides employment at all skill levels, from the newest technologies to business...

By Dennis Osmer, former Watsonville Mayor Hardly anybody likes to work with somebody looking over their shoulder. And of those, nobody likes getting advice from somebody outside the circle. But for City Council and the City Manager, that’s the job they sought and got. According...

Evidence shows that teachers are stressed. A 2017 survey in British Columbia found that two-thirds of teachers felt “stressed and emotionally exhausted all, or most of the time.”

My fellow property owners in portions of Watsonville, Pajaro and surrounding agricultural areas are being offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to end our region’s long, heartbreaking history of catastrophic flooding. We would be crazy to turn it down. Our area has suffered eight floods in the...

All around the world this weekend, Christians are celebrating Good Friday and Easter.  Good Friday is sorrow remembered. Easter is joy experienced.  Several years ago while travelling through Israel I had a chance to go inside a first-century tomb that had been discovered when road crews...

An updated version of Measure G—the half-cent public safety sales tax passed by voters in 2014—will be on Watsonville residents’ ballots next year. The new measure, which is still unnamed at the moment, has the same spirit as Measure G. Its goal is to provide...