Santa Cruz community remembers visionary photographer Ron ‘R.R.’ Jones

Whether capturing the vibrancy of Santa Cruz’s local art scene or the customs of different cultures abroad, Ron “R.R.” Jones used his camera to bring a light to the human experience. In early October,...

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Angel Zuniga focused on housing, economic development in Watsonville City Council campaign

As operations manager for Americold Logistics, a cold storage company with branches in Watsonville and Salinas, Angel Zuniga feels he can be an effective leader for Watsonville.

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Daniel Dodge Jr. aims to address infrastructure, declining enrollment in new PVUSD board term

A lifelong Watsonville resident and current Vallarta Supermarkets employee, Dodge attended Mintie White, E.A. Hall and Watsonville High. He said these are some of the oldest campuses in the district a...

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Calendar of Events | Hardcore punk legends Black Flag to play Felton

This week’s events include hardcore punk legends Black Flag at Felton, multi-instrumentalist and producer Todd Rundgren at the Rio, Led Zeppelin tribute band Zepparella at Moe’s Alley and Americana le...

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Watsonville sets date for reopening of Ramsay Park

After two and a half years of construction, the chain-linked fences surrounding Ramsay Park are set to come down and people will once again be able to enjoy Watsonville’s largest park.

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Watsonville puppy Bowie wins national contest, raises $10K for Santa Cruz Animal Shelter

The 6-month-old Dalmatian won the puppy division in Purina’s national Chief Snuggle Officer contest, which awards cash prizes to one puppy and one kitten who embody cuteness and lovability. With this ...

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Santa Cruz County offers plenty of treats for Halloween

When it comes to Halloween, Santa Cruz County knows how to get into the spirit — pun definitely intended. All one has to do is look into people’s yards where, as early as September, 12-foot skeletons,...

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Watsonville Councilmember Casey Clark wants to continue momentum with new term

Casey Clark, first elected to the Watsonville City Council in 2022, is seeking an additional term. His priorities include staff stability and addressing the coming El Niño winter.

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Watsonville provides look at draft General Plan 2050 in open house

The city recently released the draft of its General Plan 2050, a state-required document intended to outline Watsonville’s vision for growth, development, conservation and other matters over the next ...

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Calendar of Events | Young Dubliners bring Celtic spirit to Moe’s Alley

This week’s events include a screening of “Frankenstein” at the Rio with a live score by Sleepbomb, Celtic rockers The Young Dubliners at Moe’s Alley, a screening of the 1991 coming-of-age film “Young...

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Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History tests its might with ‘High Score’ exhibit

One other place people can relive those memories of pumping quarters into arcade cabinets, tossing beanbags into a plywood clown’s mouth and seeing their own distorted images in a funhouse mirror is a...

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Misty Navarro seeks to continue work in full term on PVUSD board

Misty Navarro was appointed to the PVUSD Board of Trustees in 2024. Her priorities include addressing the budget, fiscal solvency and promoting critical thinking in curricula.

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Applications open for Santa Cruz County poet laureate, Watsonville youth laureate

Watsonville has already begun accepting applications for its next youth poet laureate, while Santa Cruz County will accept applications for its next poet laureate starting Thursday.

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UC Santa Cruz Festival of Monsters offers deeper look into ghoulish lore

When these monsters come out of hiding, UC Santa Cruz’s Center for Monster Studies steps out to showcase that these ghouls and apparitions are more than just cartoony villains but ones with deep histo...

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Mads Realmuto’s Pajaro Valley school board campaign centered around budget, special education advocacy

Mads Realmuto said serving on the Community Advisory Committee and Sustainable Schools Advisory has made him aware of the challenges the district is facing, which became apparent as he attended board ...

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Sentinel reporter wins California School Board Association’s Golden Quill Award for PVUSD coverage

The California School Boards Association has announced Sentinel reporter Nick Sestanovich as a recipient of its annual Golden Quill Award in recognition of his fair, insightful and accurate reporting ...

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Santa Cruz Comedy Festival returns for lucky 13th installment

Following a smaller, temporarily rebranded installment last year, the Santa Cruz Comedy Festival is back in full force Oct. 12 to 17 with 75 comics and eight venues producing an immeasurable amount of...

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Pajaro Valley school board approves agreement with teachers union

The Pajaro Valley Unified Board of Trustees voted 5-0-1 to approve a three-year tentative agreement with the union that included salary increases, restoration of a $250 per classroom teacher supply st...

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Pajaro Valley Unified Superintendent Heather Contreras takes job in San Luis Obispo County

The San Luis Coastal Board of Trustees unanimously approved Contreras as the new superintendent where she will start her new role July 1, 2027, and remain at Pajaro Valley Unified in the meantime.

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Calendar of Events | Rickie Lee Jones brings pieces of treasure to Rio; Bonnie Raitt returns to the Civic

Rickie Lee Jones has worked with everyone from Randy Newman to Dr. John to Tori Amos, so she will have a lot of ground to cover when she plays the Rio Theatre Thursday. BEAT will be playing the music ...

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Santa Cruz Film Festival offers nearly 100 films screened over 5 days

This year, the Santa Cruz Film Festival has 95 films, documentaries, shorts and special presentations at multiple venues over the course of five days. The festivities run Oct. 14 to 18.

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Pajaro Valley school board to consider tentative agreement with teachers union

After nearly a year of tense negotiations between the Pajaro Valley Unified School District and its teachers union, the Pajaro Valley Federation of Teachers, a contract between the two parties will fi...

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Recent graduate Eriberto Estrada seeks return to Pajaro Valley school district as board trustee

Eriberto Estrada, a recent Pajaro Valley High School graduate and California State University Monterey Bay student, is running for a school board seat in Trustee Area 4.

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Berry steam treatment pilot program gets underway in Santa Cruz County

The county Agricultural Commissioner’s Office has partnered with Salinas company High Degree to test out the use of soil steaming — in which specialized equipment is used to inject high-temperature st...

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Watsonville City Council candidates discuss issues in forum

The four candidates vying for two Watsonville City Council seats discussed their thoughts on a host of issues in a forum held in the Community Room of the Watsonville Civic Plaza Wednesday evening.

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Calendar of Events | Creed Bratton brings music, humor to Felton

This week’s events include Creed Bratton of “The Office” fame sharing stories and playing music at Felton Music Hall, the Santa Cruz Symphony playing American symphonic classics, and indie rockers Fru...

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Pajaro Valley | Pinto Lake skate park construction is right on track

The new skate park at Pinto Lake County Park on the outskirts of Watsonville is already two months into construction and is anticipated to be completed by the end of the year.

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Santa Cruz High teens organize benefit screening in recognition of Banned Books Week

Locally, three Santa Cruz High School seniors are recognizing Banned Books Week with a screening of “The Librarians,” a documentary chronicling the issues librarians face in a climate where organizati...

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Santa Cruz County Fair sees 11% increase in attendance

Over the course of its five days, an estimated 53,000 people attended the fair which marked an 11% increase over the previous year.

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Santa Cruz Symphony to open 2026-27 season with United Sounds of America concert

The Santa Cruz Symphony will open its season with a concert celebrating America’s 250th anniversary, with compositions ranging from Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” to selections from”West Side Story” an...

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