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Hollister city council members arrived at Tuesday’s meeting ready for combat. Most of a standing-room-only crowd of 200 showed up to plead with their elected representatives for peace. As the council considered a proposal to formally censure Councilmember Rolan Resendiz for repeated negative social media posts,...

Hollister police are investigating what Mayor Ignacio Velazquez calls a “hate crime” against a council member by prominent local lobbyist and former mayor Victor Gomez. Velazquez announced the investigation in a written statement to the Free Lance before the Jan. 21 city council meeting and...

San Benito Stage Company is holding its annual Members Choice Awards on Jan. 25 at San Benito High School. The event, which is open to the public, will honor performers and productions from the company’s 2019 season. Last year’s season lineup included Sylvia, Madagascar: A...

Some hemp growers are telling San Benito County officials that a proposed ordinance puts unreasonable restrictions on the burgeoning industry. Most recently, at a Jan. 15 county planning commission meeting, hemp growers pointed to language in the proposed ordinance that prohibits hemp operations within the...

First 5 San Benito celebrated the opening of its Family Impact Center Jan. 14, the same day the San Benito County Board of Supervisors declared January as Positive Parenting Awareness Month. The center, located at 351 Tres Pinos Road, Suite 103A in Hollister, is a...

Local artists, art groups and art and cultural organizations are encouraged to apply for mini-grants of up to $2,500.  The San Benito County Arts Council’s Arts Express! Grant Program aims to support cultural and artistic growth, foster arts accessibility and equity and promote cultural diversity...

The San Benito County Board of Supervisors voted to extend its hemp moratorium Jan. 14 with the goal of lifting it in February. Hearing concerns from the public about possible odors and theft, the supervisors on Dec. 10 enacted a 45-day moratorium on operations to...

Sheriff’s deputies responding to a reported assault uncovered an illegal marijuana garden and more than an ounce of methamphetamine at the suspect’s southeast San Benito County residence, according to authorities.

A mild earthquake may have awakened some light sleepers in a rural area between Aromas and San Juan Bautista early Monday morning. The U.S. Geological Survey reported the 3.3-magnitude temblor at 2:58 am Jan. 13, less than two miles southeast of Aromas and about 3...

Authorities are offering a cash reward for information leading to the prosecution of the person or people who throughout 2019 have thrown objects at dozens of moving cars along Highways 156 and 101 through San Benito and Monterey counties.