Vibrant detail from the mural at Ramiro’s Mexican Food on Magnolia—capturing color, culture, and community just in time for Cinco de Mayo. (Ken Crawford)
Monday Gazette: May 5, 2025
Hello Riverside, and Happy Monday!
I’m sure many of you are fighting the same battle I am today: Do you celebrate Taco Tuesday when it’s the day after Cinco de Mayo? I don’t have the answer, but I can offer some possibilities that might work for you.
No, you don’t need to put that kind of pressure on yourself.
Yes, it’s not Taco Tuesday’s fault, and we shouldn’t punish the innocent.
Fusion tacos! Korean BBQ, pulled pork, or smashburger tacos. I think you might even get a waiver for lettuce wraps due to special circumstances.
However you solve this dilemma, don’t feel bad. There truly is no guiding authority or consequential mechanism to hold you accountable. Enjoy your dinner—whatever it might be.
I can tell you, for certain, that the Janet Goeske Center is an authority on helping the most experienced Riversiders connect with a wide range of services that meet the full spectrum of needs that emerge as we age—from billiards hall to barbershop, from breakfast to BINGO. The Goeske is there to help.
On Wednesday, May 7, you can visit the Goeske Center at 5257 Sierra Street from 9 a.m. to noon for their Senior Conference. Vendors will be on-site to help connect seniors with financial, health care, and other community resources.
A $6.6 million street maintenance contract, potential updates to the City's historic district signage program, and revising crossing guard cost-sharing arrangements with school districts are on this week's agendas.
Welcome to our weekly digest of public meetings and agenda items worth your attention in the week ahead. This guide is part of our mission to equip everyday Riversiders with the information they need to speak up on the issues that matter most.
A public hearing on extending the city’s revolving credit agreement with U.S. Bank for three years and three months at a cost of $413,500. The agreement provides $60 million in emergency liquidity for the Water and Electric utilities.
Amendments to the city’s crossing guard program agreement to add three guard locations at Casa Blanca Elementary School and revise the cost-sharing arrangement with local school districts, reducing the city’s financial contribution from 50% to 25% over five years.
Human Resources Board
The Human Resources Board meets Monday, May 5, at 5 p.m. (agenda) for regular business.
Governmental Processes Committee
The Governmental Processes Committee (Councilmembers Falcone, Perry and Conder) meets Wednesday, May 7, at 9 a.m. (agenda) to review the city’s Telecommute Program, which currently allows 21% of employees to work remotely up to two days a week. The committee will also review the structure of Riverside’s 16 boards and commissions to address quorum issues, fill 31 vacancies, and consider consolidating overlapping bodies such as the Commission on Disabilities and the Commission of the Deaf.
Riverside Native Receives $3 Million Breakthrough Prize for Gene Editing Revolution
From Poly High valedictorian to medical breakthrough, David Liu's technologies offer hope for thousands of genetic diseases.
David Liu’s work in genetic modification gives hope to thousands with diseases once though incurable. (Courtesy of Casey Atkins/Broad Institute)
David R. Liu, a Riverside-born scientist, has been awarded the 2025 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for developing revolutionary gene-editing technologies that are transforming medicine.
Driving the news: Liu's base editing and prime editing technologies can correct disease-causing genetic mutations without cutting DNA, resulting in fewer unwanted outcomes.
These technologies have already been used in at least 15 clinical trials.
Why it matters: Liu's work has led to real-world medical breakthroughs, including the successful treatment of a teenager with an aggressive form of leukemia deemed incurable by conventional methods.
16-year-old Alyssa Tapley, treated using Liu's base editing technology, made a surprise appearance at the award ceremony.
The backstory: Liu, the son of Taiwanese immigrants, showed scientific promise early, graduating as valedictorian from Poly High School in 1990 and finishing first in his class at Harvard University in 1994.
What's next: Liu plans to donate his $3 million prize money to fund research in other laboratories struggling with federal funding cuts.
The Breakthrough Prize, often called the "Oscars of Science," was founded in 2013 by tech industry leaders including Mark Zuckerberg and Sergey Brin.
Opinion: New Appointee to California Air Resources Board
Mayor Lock Dawson shares exciting news about her recent appointment to the California Air Resources Board, a pivotal role in shaping clean air policies and driving Riverside's green tech initiatives forward.
I have some great news to share this month — I have recently been appointed to the California Air Resources Board (CARB). This appointment brings representation for our city back to this statewide agency that writes and enforces regulations to reduce air pollution, fight climate change, and support the transition to clean energy — often leading the way for the rest of the country. It’s a board whose Southern California headquarters we welcomed to Riverside in 2021, bringing with it a research and vehicle emissions testing facility that has helped us recruit green tech companies to the city like Ohmio, Voltu, Hyundai Rotem, and GreenPower.
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