Local News

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz County will dip into its budgetary reserves to cover an estimated $20 million deficit in this year’s budget, which stems from revenue losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the request by County Administrative Officer Carlos...

APTOS—Jon Scoville has always been eager to open his mind to new music. Growing up as a minister’s son in Connecticut, Scoville learned the craft by singing in church choirs and around his family’s home piano. But in secret he was also listening to genres...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a plan to require all of 2,400 County employees to either take the Covid-19 vaccine or submit to weekly testing. Employees who refuse both risk termination, or being put on leave without...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Deep cleaning is now routine at Santa Cruz METRO to not only keep their fleet on the road, but to assure riders that busses are squeaky clean. Every day since early March, before the first person in Santa Cruz County was diagnosed with...

Arthur Carson, 31, was charged with burglary, vehicle theft and carrying a concealed knife. Tracy Blundell, 43, faces burglary charges. Additionally, both face charges for possession of drug paraphernalia.

WATSONVILLE—The Pajaronian this year has jumped on the growing digital giving movement Santa Cruz Gives, the first crowdsourcing website for multiple Santa Cruz County nonprofits. The campaign, which launched for its fifth holiday season Wednesday, raises funds for 37 selected nonprofits via SantaCruzGives.org, where donors...

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...

SOQUEL—The Santa Cruz County Deputy Sheriffs' Association (DSA) has offered a $100,000 “challenge” grant to help fund a memorial for Sheriff’s Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller, who was killed on duty on June 6, 2020. The grant is the largest donation in the organization’s history. The DSA now...

WATSONVILLE—Five years after Michel Escobar gunned down a rival gang member, and killed a young girl when one of his bullets went astray, a jury convicted him of two counts of first-degree murder and several special allegations. Escobar, now 36, will likely be sentenced to...

APTOS — Aptos High School rang in its 50th anniversary on Sept. 20, with musical performances, a cheerleading demonstration and the christening of the new quad area. The celebration was attended by PVUSD Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez, Trustees Kim DeSerpa and Jennifer Holm, County Supervisor Zach Friend,...