Coronavirus

SCOTTS VALLEY—After declaring a fiscal emergency in January and facing unanticipated difficulties due to the pandemic, City of Scotts Valley officials made several budgetary decisions seeking momentary relief. They implemented a hiring freeze, reduced supplies and services and trimmed community services funding, among other...

In alignment with the state, 11 Bay Area counties, including Santa Cruz County, and the City of Berkeley will lift universal mask requirements for most indoor public settings on Feb. 16. Unvaccinated individuals over the age of 2 will continue to be required to wear...

The evening sun shone golden on a jovial outdoor gathering at Kings Village Shopping Center on June 24, as the Scotts Valley Chamber of Commerce declared the city open for business. The symbolic gesture, representing progress made by the U.S. government in rolling vaccines out...

Growing strain on the health care system has triggered a stricter stay-at-home order for Santa Cruz County and the rest of the Bay Area region identified in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recently issued regional order. Intensive care unit (ICU) capacity in the Bay Area region, which...

At a time when residents of the San Lorenzo Valley and Scotts Valley are struggling with losses experienced in multiple crises, gifts of food or financial support can make all the difference to a local family. Enter Valley Churches United (VCU), a highly-regarded and essential...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—California health officials on Tuesday moved Santa Cruz County into the less restrictive “Moderate” or Orange tier, meaning that several businesses can reopen and welcome in more customers. The move means that the county is seeing 1-3.9 new cases per 100,00 in population....

On Oct. 27 Santa Cruz County entered the Orange Tier of the state’s Covid-19 reopening plan. The lowered rate of positive tests has enabled many more businesses to open with precautions, such as indoor waxing and bookstores, and increased capacity at restaurants, movie theaters...

After a greatly stressful year, 2021 will begin with many economic opportunities for small business owners in Scotts Valley.  The newest federal stimulus package, passed by Congress on Dec. 21, will begin to benefit small business owners and many others this January. The state has...

The Scotts Valley Chamber of Commerce put on a Holiday Passport Event on Small Business Saturday, Nov. 28. More than 100 families traveled throughout commercial Scotts Valley to 36 local businesses in a safe and spirited fashion. At each business, households received a stamp, children...

The effort to Vax the Valley, spearheaded by the Rotary Club of San Lorenzo Valley, is closing in on its 2,000th vaccination since the start of the program in July of 2021, and its members are prickling with pride. Justin Acton, a member of the...