From pothole repairs to a new Mission Boulevard Bridge and a long-awaited Third Street railroad solution, the city is making major investments in its transportation infrastructure.
Calm waters reflect the sky and surrounding trees at Lake Evans during a Saturday morning walk through Fairmount Park. (Kathi Pryor) Have a photo that captures the spirit of Riverside? Share it with us and help celebrate the beauty of our community!
Monday Gazette: March 2, 2026
Hello Riverside, and Happy Monday! March is hitting the ground running, and we've got everything you need to make the most of it. Our Raincross Rundown: The Best of Riverside in March is live and packed with can't-miss happenings — Women's History Month events, gallery openings, live music, hands-on workshops, and a one-year anniversary concert at Farmhouse Collective that's not to be missed.
City Council weighs revenue options for fire staffing, while boards take up speed limits and ethics rules.
Welcome to our weekly digest of public meetings and agenda items worth your attention for this coming week. This guide is part of our mission to provide everyday Riversiders like you with the information to speak up on the issues you care about.
City Council
On Tuesday, March 3, City Council will skip its typical 1 p.m. session this week, but will keep its sessions at 3 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. (agenda). During the evening session, the council will consider which – if any – of several revenue options to place before voters on the June ballot to fund fire department staffing and other city needs. Options include extending Measure Z beyond its current 2036 sunset, adding a quarter-cent sales tax, raising the hotel tax from 13 to 14 percent, doing some combination of these options or choosing none.
Measure Z, the city’s existing one-cent general sales tax approved in 2016, currently generates more than $80 million per year – nearly twice its initial projections – and is primarily used for boosting fire, police and other key city services. However, Measure Z funds are already fully committed through 2028, which is why city leaders say an extra sales tax could be necessary to address additional city needs.
Transportation Board
The Transportation Board meets on Wednesday, March 4, at 5:30 p.m. (agenda) to discuss a program that would lower speed limits citywide and to consider a request to add speed humps on Lurin Avenue between Taft Street and Wood Road.
Board of Ethics
The Board of Ethics meets on Thursday, March 5, at 6 p.m. (agenda) to discuss the formation of an ad hoc committee to review and evaluate the Board of Ethics’ standing rules.
Opinion: Fixing the Roads Beneath Your Feet and the Bridges and Crossings That Connect Us
From pothole repairs to a new Mission Boulevard Bridge and a long-awaited Third Street railroad solution, the city is making major investments in its transportation infrastructure.
Riverside's Public Works Department paved approximately 50 miles of road in 2025 as part of the city's ongoing commitment to street maintenance and improvement. (Courtesy of the Office of Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson)
All around Riverside new businesses are opening, parks are being renovated, and construction for more homes, retail, and office space is underway. Those are the visible signs of progress, but there is another indicator of growth that often gets overlooked: STREET PAVING!
The road beneath our tires and the sidewalks under our feet are literally the foundation of our city. While we celebrate growth, we can't lose sight of the essential work local government must do to keep a city moving. In 2025, our Public Works Department paved approximately 50 miles of road and filled over 1,700 potholes.
Driving on uneven streets or hitting a pothole the wrong way is irritating, unsafe, and can even cost you hundreds of dollars in car repairs. So we're doing our job: fixing existing potholes and preventing new ones from developing. Earlier this month, the City Council approved a $1.9M contract to complete preventative maintenance on 11.6 miles of roadway across all seven wards. Taking this preventative approach is a potential savings of over $14M for the city and for you, the taxpayer, when compared to the cost of waiting until the road has significantly deteriorated to fix it.
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