News

WATSONVILLE—Scores of kids were treated to a free visit from Mr. and Mrs. Claus Wednesday during the first of a three-day Santa Tour. “It felt so good to see Santa,” said Maria Navarro of Watsonville who showed up with her son, Christian Ramos. “This is...

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...

The children of Darryl and Glenda Welty are pleased to announce the 70th wedding anniversary of their parents. Darryl and Glenda were married Aug. 24, 1950 at Glad Tidings Church in Hanford. Both attended Hanford High School where they met and fell in love. Darryl...

The former owners of Watsonville Community Hospital are facing a lawsuit alleging that they took more than $3.9 million for their own use, and that their mismanagement led the hospital  to bankruptcy and to the brink of financial ruin. Halsen Healthcare was removed from its...

WATSONVILLE—Dozens of City of Watsonville employees, Watsonville residents, community organizers, elected leaders and nonprofit chiefs cycled through the Community Room at the Civic Plaza to welcome new city manager Rene Mendez on Wednesday evening. Mendez, who took over as the city’s chief executive on July...

WATSONVILLE—It has been two decades since terrorists crashed two hijacked passenger planes into the Twin Towers in Manhattan, one into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia and a fourth into a field in Pennsylvania. The coordinated attacks by Al-Qaeda terrorists left 2,977 people dead, and sparked...

St. John’s Helpful Shop found a new home this month at 246A Center Ave., just around the corner from the Episcopal Church in Aptos.

AROMAS—A 75-year-old Aptos man died Sept. 24 in a two-vehicle crash on Highway 129, or Riverside Road, at Rogge Lane near Aromas. Ashley Keehn of the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office identified the victim as Dean Peppas. Alyssa Gutierrez of the California Highway Patrol said Peppas...

ARMED ROBBERY: Watsonville Police search a shopping center on the 1800 block of Freedom Blvd. Sunday after a man reportedly robbed the pharmacy at the Walgreens store. Police got an emergency call from the store around 12:15pm about a man wearing a ski...

After a year of ups and downs, things are looking good for wineries in the Pajaro Valley. That is according to two long-standing wineries, both nestled in the Pleasant Valley area between Watsonville and Aptos. Alfaro Family Vineyard-Winery was first established in 1997 by Richard...