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Watsonville
November 17, 2025

Returning to class

PVUSD
By Jennifer Holm & Jennifer Schacher, PVUSD Board President & Vice-President  Like so many others in education, the Pajaro Valley Unified School District community has had a rough year. We are approaching the one-year mark of schools closing to in-person instruction. That feels significant. In...

Movie Review: Slow-burning ‘Blade Runner 2049’ stays true to what it is

“Blade Runner 2049” is not “John Wick” and that’s a good thing. Villeneuve stays true to the universe, themes and feel that now producer Ridley Scott created decades ago with the first.

Guest view: Cries of racism are misguided

letters to the editor
By Geraldine Ridgway Watsonville has long been a racially diverse community. It is insulting for anyone to call any Watsonville resident a racist. Watsonville has an amazing history. We once had a huge whaling industry, sardine factories stretched from Watsonville to Monterey, employing all races and...

Holiday hopes, gratitude from Mayor Jimmy Dutra

Jimmy Dutra
By Jimmy Dutra, Watsonville Mayor The holidays are typically the happiest time of the year. However, this has not been a typical year. Our businesses have taken a financial hit. Food insecurity is at an all-time high. Stimulus checks are not cutting it. Restless nights...

Letters to the Editor, Oct. 16

Alyssa Wall for County Office of Education After eight years on the Santa Cruz County Office of Education board, I am stepping down. I am very pleased that Alyssa Wall filed to run. She grew up in San Jose, fell in love with Santa Cruz...

Why I support renewing Watsonville’s Measure U

Felipe Hernandez
As a longtime elected official representing the people of Watsonville and the Pajaro Valley, I know how essential and important the agricultural industry is to the region and the rest of Santa Cruz County. In two elections, the voters of Watsonville have overwhelmingly affirmed...

Sandy Lydon: The false myth that Watsonville drove its Chinese community across the river in 1888

I first heard the story in the 1970s when beginning my research on the history of the Chinese in the region. I read it in community histories, newspaper history columns, and both Chinese and non-Chinese old-timers told me the story with conviction.  It was true...

Letters to the Editor, March 12

letter to the editor pajaronian
Standing up for Asian Americans The Watsonville-Santa Cruz chapter of the National Japanese American Citizens League (W-SC JACL) is sincerely grateful for the support expressed in Theo Wierdsma’s column entitled, “Xenophobia erupting,” and to the Pajaronian for publishing it on Feb. 26. We thank Theo Wierdsma...

Don’t wait, act

letter to the editor pajaronian
By Christian Garcia Like many other communities, Watsonville has significant challenges. We have an ailing local economy, affordable housing needs, needs for better access to healthcare and education, aging infrastructure, funding needs for local parks and youth programs, and the list goes on.  Inspiring people to...

Letters to the Editor, May 27

letter to the editor pajaronian
Hospital rating is unacceptable This is the type of news that does us no good. This is not the only article that has placed Watsonville Community Hospital in a less than positive view for the general public. What is to be done about this current...
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Man and daughter die at Garrapata State Beach

The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that a man and his 7-year old daughter died at Garrapata State Beach Nov. 14 after being swept...

Let them eat cake

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