Local News

County clerk certified Empower Voters on May 21

The OptumServe Covid-19 testing site in Hollister will no longer accept walk-in appointments, until further notice, according to San Benito County staff. The site is located at the Hazel Hawkins Community Health Center building, 930 Sunset Drive in Hollister. Due to limited staffing and testing supplies,...

Dr. Gabriel Gutiérrez brings a wealth of experience to his new role this year as Interim Director of Special Education for the Hollister School District.  Gutiérrez was a school psychologist in the district last year. In August, he was appointed to the interim director role. Prior...

Kathryn Benton was a privileged young student with every advantage money could buy, but when she suddenly becomes the target of a massive nationwide manhunt, her comfortable world crumbles in an instant in “Dead by Monday,” the debut thriller from Morgan Hill author Chuck...

The Hollister City Council earlier this month unanimously voted to rescind the city’s 2040 General Plan, which was the subject of a referendum petition that was signed by more than 3,500 local voters.  A group of Hollister voters and activists submitted 3,562 signatures on Jan....

This story was published Dec. 17 by CalMatters. For three years, the fate of poor people accused of crimes in San Benito County lay in the hands of attorneys who barely spoke with their clients and seldom filed legal motions on their behalf.  While defendants...

The San Benito County Sheriff’s Office has charged a motorist with vehicular manslaughter after his passenger died while they tried to cross a flooded river.  On Feb. 17, emergency dispatchers received a call for an emergency involving two people who were attempting to traverse a...

Local ballots include two county supervisors’ seats, Hollister Mayor and two City Council seats, two seats on the San Juan Bautista City Council, Monterey County Board of Education Trustee Area 5, San Benito County Board of Education District 1, Cabrillo Community College Trustee Area 7, South Monterey County Joint Union High School District and Hollister School District Trustee Areas 2 and 4.

Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital will install a new roof thanks to a $2 million low-interest loan from the California State Treasurer’s Office. The loan will help the hospital replace its 50,000-square-foot roof, a portion of which failed in recent years resulting in disruptions of service...

Applications for the 2026 Hazel Hawkins Hospital Auxiliary Scholarship Awards are now available, hospital staff announced on Jan. 14.  Each year the auxiliary awards scholarships to students pursuing a medical or medically oriented career. The total amount awarded to each recipient will be at the...