News

As of mid-December, the City of Scotts Valley had caught up on its HR backlog and was fully staffed. This followed years of headaches in the police department and Public Works, as employees left for greener pastures elsewhere. But, after a sustained campaign to recruit...

San Lorenzo Valley Water District (SLVWD) has been awarded a $100,000 grant to update hundreds of water meters in Ben Lomond. The funding from the Federal Bureau of Reclamation will replace 443 water meters. The new meters will help customers “detect water leaks faster, which...

The minor sex assault case for a former San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District assistant principal and administrator—who signed up as an event volunteer at a Santa Cruz school in December—is back on. Ned Hearn’s trial, relating to his time as a teacher and swim...

Coastal trail projects receive federal investment Rep. Jimmy Panetta announced a new federal investment in coastal trail projects in California’s 19th Congressional District. The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $19.5 million to the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) to support the segments of...

A major maintenance paving project continues on Highway 9 between El Solyo Heights Drive in Felton and California Drive in Ben Lomond. Travelers on Highway 9 between Felton and Ben Lomond will encounter one-way reversing traffic control on Thursday, Jan. 9, and Friday, Jan. 10,...

Caltrans will host a public meeting next week in Felton to hear project details and provide input regarding the upcoming South Santa Cruz Highway 9 capital preventative maintenance project. The meeting will take place Wednesday, Jan. 15, from 5-7pm at the Felton Community Hall, 6191...

California lawmakers in 2024 introduced 4,821 bills, but most of them were tossed or otherwise rejected during the months-long legislative process, during which most never saw the light of day. Just 1,206 made it to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk, with 1,017 getting signed into...

Santa Cruz County Behavioral Health has announced that Mobile Crisis Response Teams (MCRT) are now available 24/7 year-round to respond to behavioral health crises for youth and adults across Santa Cruz County, including the cities of Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Scotts Valley, Capitola and all...

*Updated at 6:59pm Dec. 14, 2024 At least five people were injured in Scotts Valley's first-ever tornado on record, authorities said. Capt. Jayson Rutherford, of the Scotts Valley Police Department, said six cars were overturned and another 10 or so were damaged by the twister. "Looking at...

A man and two children were hospitalized after a fire spread through a second story residential area above the Brookdale Post Office in the early hours of Friday the 13th. Jon Bowles, 52, said he was in his downstairs unit when he heard a rumbling...