Local News

San Benito County Public Health officials are reporting the number of new Covid-19 cases are still on the rise in the county, including two more deaths in their latest newsletter. As of Dec. 28, the county reported its 27th and 28th deaths from the novel...

San Benito County residents will not be fined for failing to wear face coverings in public after the board of supervisors failed to agree on a plan that would work for local residents and beyond.   The board on Aug. 18 came to a 2-2 vote...

In 2020, a South Valley dentist launched a donation drive of medical machines to help battle a shortage of ventilators in the Covid-19 fight. Now, Dr. Kusum Atraya is joining volunteers from around the globe to help India, which is undergoing a deadly wave of...

Selecting students for the Hollister Free Lance’s senior spotlights for Anzar High School’s Class of 2020 was no enviable task. That’s why we make the principal and school staff sort it out. These students have navigated the labyrinth of high school hurdles, and we...

The ongoing fight for a mobile food scene in Hollister continues as more than 30 people attended an informal meeting to discuss a new ordinance in the works that will allow vendors to sell food throughout the city. A good cross section of both established...

Three Hollister High School students died in a traffic collision just east of Highway 25 the night of Jan. 14, according to authorities. A recent graduate of HHS was also involved in the accident, and was in critical condition as of Wednesday morning.  School staff...

The Hollister City Council plans to honor former member Marty Richman at its next council meeting on April 6. Richman, who died on March 19, had been hospitalized since March 9 after suffering "two adverse health incidents," city officials said. Richman was elected to the...

San Benito County’s Interim County Administrative Officer, Henie Ring, was recently appointed to the board of directors of the Monterey Bay Economic Partnership.  Ring joins incoming board members that include Hartnell College Superintendent/President Michael Gutierrez, UC Santa Cruz Vice Chancellor for University Advancement Mark Delos...

The San Benito County Arts Council, Arts Council for Monterey County, Arts Council Santa Cruz County, San Luis Obispo County Arts Council, Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture and the Ventura County Arts Council announced that the Central Coast Region has been...

California’s homeless population remains the biggest in the nation, but the crisis is growing more slowly here than in most of the rest of the country, according to new federal data.  The number of homeless Californians increased just over 3% last year compared to the...