Local News

WATSONVILLE—Cal Fire on Tuesday night ordered more than 22,000 residents in Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties to evacuate as the CZU August Lightning Complex fires began to spread throughout the Santa Cruz Mountains. Temporary shelters have been set up across the region to house...

SCOTTS VALLEY—Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s detectives on Wednesday arrested a Live Oak man suspected of using credit and bank cards stolen from a firefighter’s truck to make thousands of dollars in purchases. Brian Lee Johnson, 34, has been charged with using stolen credit cards, receiving...

WATSONVILLE—The future of Santa Cruz County’s syringe services program was in the community’s hands this week. In two meetings held by the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency in Santa Cruz on Nov. 14 and Watsonville on Tuesday, officials asked attendees to outline what questions...

CAPITOLA — The third annual Santa Cruz County History Fair unfolded in Jade Street Park at the Capitola Community Center on May 18. Twenty-two organizations had displays at the free event that was hosted by the Capitola Historical Museum, said Board President Niels Kisling.

By Jake Pierce, Good Times OAKLAND—The Ben Lomond man charged with killing a Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputy on June 6 was also the gunman in the shooting of two law enforcement officers in Oakland last month, U.S. Attorney Dave Anderson alleged Tuesday. Millbrae resident Robert...

Construction work is marching ahead on the new Capitola Branch Library at the corner of Clares Street and Wharf Road. After the previous library was demolished at the start of the year, the new structure is moving skyward.

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Since COVID-19 was first identified in Wuhan, China in late December, healthcare professionals, elected leaders and everyday citizens around the world have been looking for answers and trying to unsnarl the constantly-changing situation. There are now more than 118,000 cases in 114 countries,...

SANTA CRUZ—The man accused of killing a Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputy and trying to kill three other law enforcement officials and a civilian during a June 6 crime spree made his first court appearance Friday, but put off entering a plea until July...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Santa Cruz METRO has increased its passenger capacity by 50% in an effort to accommodate more riders, but that decision has raised concerns within the union representing the bus operators still working during the Covid-19 pandemic. METRO CEO Alex Clifford announced on June...

LOS GATOS—A 22-year-old man died early Tuesday morning in a two-vehicle crash on Highway 17 in Los Gatos.  The 2:55 a.m. crash, south of The Cats restaurant, forced the California Highway Patrol to close both southbound lanes for 45 minutes to allow for an investigation,...