Community

Return Chromebooks and hotspots The San Benito County Free Library this week informed users that the Wi-Fi  service for the Chromebooks distributed in 2023 ended on June 30, 2024.  Anyone who checked out a Chromebook and Wi-Fi hotspot last year, is asked to return them to...

Austin Curtis, who has worked at the San Benito County Free Library for about 18 months, was named this week as the library’s new librarian.  Before starting his work with the local library, located at 470 Fifth Street in Hollister, Curtis worked about 18 months...

A 31-year-old Hollister resident died in a July 9 traffic accident on Highway 25, according to authorities.  About 9:10pm July 9, the Hollister Police dispatch center received multiple calls reporting that a vehicle had crashed into a light pole on Pinnacles National Park Highway (Highway...

Police are asking for help from the public to identify the suspect or suspects who “severely damaged” a Hollister apartment complex by setting off an illegal fireworks explosion on Independence Day, authorities said.  The Hollister Police Department announced on July 13 that the city is...

In two separate Santa Clara County workers’ compensation insurance fraud cases, a child therapist and San Jose father and son business owners will face serious sentences for committing felony fraud, according to authorities.  Mark Anthony Ramos, 50, of Escondido, owner of Stars Bay Area Therapy...

The Hollister School District held a groundbreaking ceremony July 1 for three new CUUBE modular buildings at Sunnyslope, Ladd Lane and Calaveras Elementary Schools.  The Board of Trustees allocated $5.17 million in Extended Learning Opportunity Program (ELOP) funding for the permanent buildings that will accommodate...

A major rule change involving usage of electronic devices in high school softball has been approved by the National Federation of High Schools’ Softball Rules Committee. The change will go into effect with the upcoming 2024-25 school year softball season, which will take place...

A South Bay man has been charged with sexually molesting teenage children during church trips at his house on a Morgan Hill lake, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. The case against 54-year-old Norlan Macias, of San Jose, was launched several years...

Cool in the parks Water features at Valley View and McCarthy Parks in Hollister are now operational every day from 11am-7pm, through Sept. 29.  San Benito County’s 150th Celebrate San Benito County’s sesquicentennial, or 150th anniversary on July 27 at the San Benito Historical park. The party...

A political controversy has been swirling around the Hollister fire contract and triggering of a termination clause in the contract between Hollister, the County and San Juan Bautista. Two elected officials are at the center of this political drama.  Supervisor Kollin Kosmicki and Hollister Councilmember...