News

WATSONVILLE—Local author Jaime Cortez always had nicknames, and now one of them has become his first book. “Gordo,” a paperback collection of stories, is quickly gathering praise after its release by a national publisher in August. And while “Gordo” is Cortez’s first widely distributed work,...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville native Lou Arbanas was considered by many to be a living encyclopedia for his knowledge of the history of the Pajaro Valley. A longtime fixture at the Pajaro Valley Historical Association, Arbanas died Nov. 14 after a brief illness. He was 78. “He was...

Following several tunes on bagpipes, scores of firefighters, garbed in their cumbersome turnouts, boots and helmets, climbed up and down a lengthy wood staircase at Seacliff State Beach — a symbolic gesture of the emergency crews that rushed into the World Trade Towers and raced up the stairs to rescue victims.

Todd McFarren, who sat on the Watsonville City Council from 1989–98—including two stints as Mayor—who served as a U.S. Marine sergeant in the Vietnam War, and who as an attorney was known to fight fiercely for the “little guy” during his career spanning three...

Michael Rozen said Aug. 1 he would rather be playing sports with his friends than attending the weeklong Bruce W. Woolpert Algebra Academy offered by Graniterock.  While Michael stopped short of admitting an affinity for math, the 13-year-old admits the experience will prepare him for...

A program of Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, the day worker center tasks itself with helping workers find work, and with improving their job skills.

Dozens of customers on April 6 were browsing the aisles of Harbor Freight, Watsonville’s newest hardware store.

By JAKE PIERCE, Good Times APTOS—The site of the old SeaBreeze Tavern caught fire Sunday night after 9pm, and the blaze quickly grew out of control. Watsonville Fire Battalion Chief Corey Schaefer said units responded to a reported fire on the Esplanade in Aptos. When they...

WATSONVILLE—Ballots have now been mailed out to roughly 3,000 people who own property in the Pajaro River floodplain, and the fate of a $400 million levee restoration project is in their hands. They must decide whether they support a property tax assessment that will pay...

WATSONVILLE—In the days after California began to offer Covid-19 vaccines for children 12 and older, thousands across the state lined up for their turn. In Santa Cruz County, a total of 1,200 young people got their vaccines at Scotts Valley High School, Dominican Hospital’s Employee...