🗞️ Riverside News- March 16, 2026
Council races set, public meetings roundup, Mission Inn award created...
This Week in City Hall March 16, 2026
Public meetings this week cover senior housing, parks improvements, historic preservation and a new clean-energy partnership.
Packed and Gone: The Rise and Fall of Strachan Fruit Company
Alexander Strachan arrived in Riverside with little history and left behind a packing house that outlasted his company by more than a century.
Neighbor of the Week: The Riverside Mission Belles
Neighbor of the Week is a series profiling the hidden heroes of Riverside, doing incredible works of service throughout our different neighborhoods.
The 2026 City Council Races Are Set. Here's Who's Running.
Ten certified candidates across three wards will face voters in the June 2 General Municipal Election.
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Latest
Remotely Possible
A prompt to encourage your practice of creativity this week from Riversider and local author Larry Burns.
Council Creates Award Honoring Mission Inn Visionaries
Councilmember Chuck Conder proposed the honor to preserve the legacies of residents who shaped Riverside, naming the couple who restored the Mission Inn as its first recipients.
City Falls Far Short of State Housing Mandate, Report Shows
Five years into an eight-year housing plan, the City has permitted no new very low-income housing since 2021 and faces a state investigation over a rejected grant.
Firefighters' Pipe & Drum Hits Downtown for 6th Annual St. Paddy's Pub Crawl
The Riverside City Firefighters Association Pipe & Drum Band marks St. Patrick's Day with a three-stop Downtown tour, raising funds for firefighter memorials and band operations.
The Night Isn't Over for Downtown Experiment
Community support and commissioner skepticism of outright closure bought the nightclub three more months to work out a deal with the city.
City Council Clears Path for Railroad Quiet Zone Near Magnolia Center
The unanimous vote authorizes land acquisition at two Union Pacific crossings on Brockton and Palm avenues, where 31 trains pass daily.
City Celebrates Two Decades of Honoring Its Most Remarkable Teens
The Riverside Youth Council's annual recognition ceremony returns May 12, spotlighting 25 students from across the city.
Blue Zones Project Names City Hall its First Approved Government Worksite in Riverside
The milestone is part of a broader effort to bring Blue Zones worksite certification to major employers across the city.
Government
Council Creates Award Honoring Mission Inn Visionaries
Councilmember Chuck Conder proposed the honor to preserve the legacies of residents who shaped Riverside, naming the couple who restored the Mission Inn as its first recipients.
City Falls Far Short of State Housing Mandate, Report Shows
Five years into an eight-year housing plan, the City has permitted no new very low-income housing since 2021 and faces a state investigation over a rejected grant.
City Council Clears Path for Railroad Quiet Zone Near Magnolia Center
The unanimous vote authorizes land acquisition at two Union Pacific crossings on Brockton and Palm avenues, where 31 trains pass daily.
This Week in City Hall March 9, 2026
City Council, the Planning Commission and five other bodies hold public meetings this week, covering topics from a railroad quiet zone project to a Downtown bar's permit revocation.
Events
Firefighters' Pipe & Drum Hits Downtown for 6th Annual St. Paddy's Pub Crawl
The Riverside City Firefighters Association Pipe & Drum Band marks St. Patrick's Day with a three-stop Downtown tour, raising funds for firefighter memorials and band operations.
Citrus Festival Returns to California Citrus State Historic Park on March 28
The free-admission event features live music, citrus tastings, cooking demos, and activities for kids at the 247-acre Arlington park.
Downtown Farmers Market Moves to New Main Street Location This Saturday
The weekly market relocates four blocks south to a larger space with more free parking, beginning March 7 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Riverside Art Museum Celebrates Legacy of Leaders Who Shaped RAM and The Cheech
Seven leaders recognized for roles in building RAM and The Cheech, including four posthumous honorees.
History
The Writer Who Told Frank Miller's Story
Zona Gale won the Pulitzer Prize, planted a tree in Riverside, and became the first to chronicle the life of Mission Inn founder Frank Miller.
A Peace Tower Built of Oranges
How Riverside honored Frank A. Miller's legacy with a citrus-covered replica at the 1926 National Orange Show.
A Voice from the Mission Inn: Ormonde Wilson's Journey from Watchman to War Hero
The tenor soloist who sang at Booker T. Washington's memorial service traded his Mission Inn post for the battlefields of World War I, earning a place on Frank Miller's banner of heroes.
Joseph Schneider Rode Into Flames for 46 Years
Riverside's longest-serving fire chief modernized the department, survived smoke inhalation and a bicycle crash, and never asked his men to face dangers he wouldn't confront himself.
Art & Entertainment
Kadir Nelson Finds Joy, History and Inclusion Through Basketball
The award-winning author and illustrator explores basketball's history and its power to bring people together in his new book "Basket Ball: The Story of the All-American Game"
Community Musicians Join Students in UCR Orchestra Concerts
The 70-member ensemble features Mozart, Bizet and Mexican folk traditions with tickets starting at $6.
Riverside Art Museum's Fourth Fridays Celebrates Underground Music History
Jan. 23 event includes DJ, new additions to '60 Miles East' exhibit, food and beverages.
RUSD Honors Musical Brings Students Together Under the Spotlight
High schoolers from across the district transform from strangers to collaborators through months of rehearsals, gaining professional theater experience and life skills that extend far beyond the stage.