Layers of orange, pink and purple sweep across the sky at sunset over the San Gabriel Mountains, viewed from Canyon Crest near Ransom and Via Loma on April 20. (Bob Sirotnik) Have a photo that captures the spirit of Riverside? Share it with us and help celebrate the beauty of our community!
Sunday Gazette: April 26, 2026
Hello Riverside, and Happy Sunday! This past week marked National Park Week, and with most spring breaks now in the rearview mirror, we're hoping some of you spent time out among the trees, trails, and wide open skies of one of the country's 63 national parks. If you did, we'd love to see it. Send your favorite photo and the story behind it to newsroom@raincrossgazette.com and we'll feature it in an upcoming newsletter and on social media.
See you tomorrow!
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Thank you to the Subscribers who became paid supporters this week: Judy Kanouse, Laura Westafer McGowan, Suzanne Rice, Gregory Smith, David Stuart, and Sandra Woods. Your ongoing financial support is vital to our success in serving Riverside with the news it deserves!
Futrell cites Riverside's economic momentum and June 2 Measure Z campaign as reasons to continue; Pasadena confirms withdrawal.
City Manager Mike Futrell prepares to present revenue measure options to City Council on Jan. 27, 2026, the meeting that set the city on the path to the June 2 Measure Z renewal. (Justin Pardee)
Mike Futrell has reversed course, withdrawing from his Pasadena appointment to remain Riverside's city manager.
Why it matters: Riverside avoids a leadership transition mid-stream on Measure Z, housing policy, and a $4B+ economic development push — all now staying under the same hand that started them.
Driving the news: Futrell announced the decision Saturday in a public letter, citing the city's "significant momentum" and the need to navigate the June 2 Measure Z renewal vote.
He had been set to start as Pasadena's city manager May 13 following his April 15 appointment there.
By the numbers: During Futrell's tenure since 2023, the city credits more than $4 billion in new investment, 100% police staffing for the first time in two decades, and a 35% drop in crime.
What's next: Four neighborhood informational meetings on Measure Z are scheduled through May ahead of the June 2 vote. Pasadena confirmed Interim City Manager Matthew Hawkesworth will continue in that role.
What they're saying: "I am pleased he has decided to stay in Riverside to continue the years-long, successful work he has done," Ward 1 Councilmember Philip Falcone said.
Neighbor of the Week is a series profiling the hidden heroes of Riverside, doing incredible works of service throughout our different neighborhoods.
Natalie Nicole Peralta and fellow artist Gabriel stand before the mural they painted together at Immanuel Lutheran School in Riverside. (Brenda Flowers)
Natalie Nicole Peralta has only lived in Riverside for about a year, but in that time the city left a mark on her — and she left one on it. A former Phoenix Scholar at Norco College, Natalie recently transferred to UC Irvine to pursue her bachelor's degree in art. The Phoenix Scholars Program works to improve educational outcomes for current and former foster youth by increasing access to college and supporting students through the process. It was through the program that Natalie connected with fellow artist Gabriel, and the two soon discovered a shared ambition: to become muralists. Natalie has since completed several murals in the Riverside area, including two indoor pieces for Kindful Restoration, a nonprofit serving justice-impacted residents. This week, she and Gabriel finished a mural together at Immanuel Lutheran School.
Natalie's roots in the foster system have shaped both her life and her art. She has navigated much of adulthood on her own, raising her four-year-old daughter Jalynn while pursuing her education and building a career as an artist. She describes art as the through-line of it all — her way of healing, communicating, and pushing forward. Her involvement in Riverside's art scene has run deep: she has attended figure drawing sessions at Urge Palette, participated in workshops at Division 9 Gallery, and is currently a exhibiting artist in the Riverside Center for Social Justice and Civil Liberties' "Body of Freedom" exhibition. She has also been active in organizations serving foster youth, including serving as a Youth Voice Board Member at Building Resilience Together.
As she prepares to move to Orange County and begin the next chapter of her education, Natalie says Riverside will stay with her. The city's community and art scene, she says, built her as an artist — and she plans to stay connected to both.
Raincross Gazette Hosts First-Ever Candidate Forum for Ward Seat
Four Ward 2 hopefuls square off on homelessness, housing and public safety.
Moderator Dan Bernstein, left, leads a discussion with Ward 2 candidates Aram Ayra, Christen Montero, Gracie Torres and Mike Vahl during the Raincross Gazette's first-ever candidate forum Thursday evening. (Bob Sirotnik)
Four candidates for City Council Ward 2 debated homelessness, housing, economic development and more at the Raincross Gazette's first-ever candidate forum on Thursday evening.
Nonprofit director and Budget Commissioner Aram Ayra, entrepreneur and Planning Commissioner Christen Montero, Western Municipal Water District Director Gracie Torres and financial and IT consultant Mike Vahl are running for the seat soon to be vacated by Councilmember Clarissa Cervantes, who is running for state Assembly.
Ward 2 covers neighborhoods including Eastside, Canyon Crest, Mission Grove, Sycamore Canyon and the University District.
The forum was moderated by former Press Enterprise columnist and longtime Riversider Dan Bernstein, who introduced discussion questions on both citywide issues as well as Ward 2-specific questions.
"The hope is that [after the forum] you have a better idea of who you want to represent you in Ward 2," Bernstein said.
This week’s creative nudge comes from the kitchen drawer, the drying rack, or that cabinet where pots and pans hide between performances: the strainer. I cook a lot; I have a few metal ones, a large plastic one for Sunday pasta dinner, and a fourth one I’m not entirely sure what kind of food to use it on.
A strainer does some of the least glamorous but most important work in a kitchen. It separates, catches, rinses, skims, and clarifies. It helps us finish sauces, rinse produce, pull fat from what we cook without sacrificing flavor, and rescue dinner from becoming a soggy disappointment. Sometimes what we leave out is exactly what lets the rest shine.
And then there’s the part that gets discarded. A strainer reminds us that what gets filtered out isn’t automatically worthless. Anyone who has ever saved a mug of cloudy pasta water to help a sauce come together already knows the so-called waste can be the thing that makes the whole dish work.
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