Coronavirus

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...

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...

SANTA CRUZ—Santa Cruz County on Tuesday moved back to the more restrictive red tier of the state's Covid-19 reopening plan, meaning that many businesses and services must once again take a step back in their services, and in the customers they can allow in. According...

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...

Frightened of a blank calendar this Halloween? Never fear. There are many fun and Covid-19-safe opportunities this year.  According to a 1,000-parent survey conducted by See’s Candies, a little over 50 percent of families plan to stay in this Halloween, with a movie. However, for...

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...

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...

SACRAMENTO—New stay-at-home orders issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday will be based on intensive care unit capacity in five regions in California. Newsom said that much of the state will likely be under the stay-at-home orders within the next few days if ICU capacity...

By Todd Guild, Katie Evans and Christina Wise California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Dec. 30 released a plan under which schools could reopen as early as February. The plan, which streamlines the process of applying for a waiver to bring students back for in-person instruction, is...

At least four concertgoers have tested positive for the novel coronavirus after attending a Grateful Dead-themed performance in Felton, although none had to be hospitalized, Santa Cruz County health officials said Tuesday. “That meets the definition of an outbreak,” said Santa Cruz County spokesperson Jason...