The Santa Cruz City Council will vote Nov. 9 to appoint Watsonville City Manager Matt Huffaker to become the next Santa Cruz city manager. If appointed, Huffaker will be tasked with hiring for several vacant leadership positions, preparing the city budget amid the pandemic’s economic fallout and running special projects like the Commission for the Prevention of Violence Against Women.
Watsonville
Posted inCity Life
BOLO Best Bets: Halloween is all around us, with vertical concerts as soundtrack
Your place to go for things to do in Santa Cruz County.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Santa Cruz City Council set to hire Watsonville’s city manager, Matt Huffaker
Following the departure of former Santa Cruz City Manager Martín Bernal earlier this year, the city council began its search for a replacement. On Thursday, the council announced it will vote on Nov. 9 to appoint Watsonville City Manager Matt Huffaker.
Posted inK-12 Education
Half of the new SRO solution in place at Aptos High: Officer hired, mental health clinician still to come
A school resource officer started his second week working at Aptos High School after the Pajaro Valley Unified School District board of trustees voted in September to reinstate the position at two high schools. PVUSD officials didn’t respond to requests for information about Watsonville High’s implementation of the program.
Posted inBusiness & Technology
The supply chain blues: How local grocers are dealing — and why you should get those holiday orders in early
With the holiday season approaching, local grocers like Staff of Life and New Leaf are doing what they can to procure favorite items. However, they anticipate customers are going to have to be flexible about the availability of some of those.
Posted inUncategorized
Watsonville’s Día de los Muertos observance a poignant response to 2020’s trauma and turmoil
“It’s not just an art show. It’s not just a Mexican practice. There are real sadnesses out there, real in our community,” says the curator of Pajaro Valley Arts’ “Mi Casa es Tu Casa exhibit, a community-wide effort to bring the spirit of honoring the dead to bear in the face of COVID, wildfire and more events of the past year.
Posted inHousing & Development
As Project Roomkey comes to an end, work continues to find permanent housing for the most vulnerable
Project Roomkey helped house hundreds of people in Santa Cruz County who were experiencing homelessness during the pandemic, but federal funding is due to run out by year’s end. Those involved say they are working as hard as they can to find stable housing for as many people as possible.
Posted inCOVID Today
Questions about the vaccine for your 5- to 11-year-olds? Tune in to these town halls this week
The Santa Cruz County Office of Education will be hosting two webinars this week to answer questions about COVID-19 vaccination ahead of the expected emergency use authorization of the Pfizer vaccine for children between the ages of 5 and 11. The town hall offered in Spanish is scheduled for Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. and in English for Thursday at 6:30 p.m., via Zoom.
Posted inFood & Drink
Her ‘leap of faith’ in downtown Watsonville looks to become a hub of sustainable ‘food love’
The entrepreneur behind Friend in Cheeses Jam Co. and Terroir in a Jar went looking for more space and ended up leasing a whole building she’s turning into a multi-purpose space. SHEF, a vintage cookware and houseware store, is the first business to open its doors at the Main Street location.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
‘Crying on the way into work’: Watsonville Hospital nurses denounce short-staffing conditions
Watsonville Community Hospital nurses took to the streets Friday to hold an informational picket over short-staffed working conditions. Nurses say Los Angeles-based managing firm Prospect Medical Holdings can do better to fix matters; the hospital says it is doing what it can to increase hiring.