Monday Gazette: June 8, 2026

Hello Riverside, and Happy Monday! If you're looking to start your week with some movement, free Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga classes are running all month long at the Community Yoga Center on Adams Street. Led by Kristin and Kim, the classes meet Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays from 8:00 to 9:20 a.m. The practice honors the intelligent sequencing and breath-centered movement of Primary Series Ashtanga Vinyasa while leaving behind any rigidity or performance-based expectations. All bodies, backgrounds, and experience levels are welcome, and the class is offered free of charge as a community practice supported by voluntary giving.

See you tomorrow!

Advertisement (Become an advertiser)

OPINION

Two Former Mayors, Two Parties: What Makes a Great Councilmember

To launch a new monthly column on disagreeing better, we asked Dr. Ron Loveridge and Rusty Bailey what they look for in a councilmember.

A new monthly Braver Angels column, produced with the Braver Angels Riverside Alliance and launching this August, is built around a simple idea: that Riversiders can disagree about politics and still reason together toward a better city.

With three City Council seats in play after Tuesday's election, we saw a chance to preview it early, putting a single question to two people who understand the job from the inside far better than most of us: As a former mayor, now a citizen voter, what are you looking for in a councilmember?

We put that question to former mayors Dr. Ron Loveridge and Rusty Bailey, asking each to write independently before we shared what the other wrote and invited a response. Dr. Loveridge answers from the blue side of the aisle, Mayor Bailey from the red. The point isn't to settle who's right. It's to bridge the distance between two people who see Riverside differently but love it the same.

Read and share the complete story...

Advertisement (Become an advertiser)

GOVERNMENT

This Week in City Hall: June 8, 2026

City Council takes up a homeless transfer notice ordinance, a police body camera contract, and proposed utility rate changes as six boards and commissions hold their regular meetings June 8–11.

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

City Council will meet in closed and open sessions on Tuesday, June 9, in an afternoon session at 3 p.m. (agenda). The agenda includes:

• Considering an ordinance that would require outside agencies and organizations to give the City 24-hour advance notice before dropping off homeless individuals within Riverside's boundaries, in response to what City staff describes as uncoordinated transfers that strain local shelter and service resources. (item 13)
• Considering a five-year, $1.65 million contract with Motorola Solutions to replace all police body-worn cameras and upgrade software and storage for the department's growing fleet of body and in-car cameras, replacing a contract that expired in September 2025. (item 17)
• Considering a two-year, $1.6 million agreement with Southern California Gas Company to continue providing free energy efficiency upgrades to Riverside mobile-home and multi-family residents, with the program's staff report noting that most eligible homes in both categories have not yet been served. (item 18)
• Adopting Riverside Public Utilities' updated physical security plan for electric distribution substations as required by state law, with plan details withheld from public disclosure due to the sensitivity of infrastructure information. (item 19)

Board of Library Trustees

The Board of Library Trustees meets on Monday, June 8, at 5 p.m. (agenda) to review routine monthly business — including approval of approximately $3,952 in trust fund spending on new books and materials and an annual ethics code review.

Board of Public Utilities

The Board of Public Utilities meets on Mon, June 8, at 6:30 p.m. (agenda) to review proposed updates to water shortage emergency rules (item 3) and long-range water supply planning (item 4), a pipeline replacement project on California Avenue and Sherman Drive (item 8), and proposed changes to electric and water rates that would be subject to a public hearing before City Council (item 18).

Finance Committee

The Finance Committee (Councilmembers Hemenway, Robillard, and Falcone) meets on Wednesday, June 10, at 3 p.m. (agenda) to review the City's investment portfolio performance (item 2) and an assessment of overall financial health indicators (item 3).

Mobility and Infrastructure Committee

The Mobility and Infrastructure Committee (Councilmembers Conder, Hemenway, and Perry) meets on Thursday, June 11, at 1 p.m. (agenda) to disuss signage designs for Riverside's Clean California Community designation as part of the committee's review of the state program's local implementation (item 2).

Airport Commission

The Airport Commission meets on Thursday, June 11, at 3 p.m. (agenda) to receive the Airport Commission's monthly operations and activity report (item 7) and conducting an annual ethics code review (item 6).

Budget Engagement Commission

The Budget Engagement Commission meets on Thursday, June 11, at 5 p.m. (agenda) to conduct routine business including an annual ethics code review (item 4) and a Deputy Finance Director update (item 5).

Read and share the complete story...

Advertisement (Become an advertiser)

This Week in Riverside

Today

• Volunteer Interest Hour at Riverside Meals on Wheels
• Interfaith Prayer Meeting at Riverside Baha'i Center
• Academic Boot Camp at My Learning Studio ($357)
• Animal Kids Camp - Summer Sessions at Mary S. Roberts pet Adoption Center ($240)
• Mat Pilates at Student Recreation Center (SRC), MPR E
• Vacation Bible School: Snowball Mountain Challenge at First United Methodist Church ($15- $25)
• Wild about Animals Camp at Ameal Moore Nature Center
• Board of Public Utilities at Riverside City Hall

Tomorrow

• City Council at Riverside City Hall
• Seed to Scale: Explore Controlled Environment Agriculture at UCR at University of California, Riverside
• Earl Sweatshirt & MIKE: Home on the Range Tour 2026 at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
• Karaoke Tuesday Competition at the Hideaway at The Hideaway

Save the Date

• June 10: FREE ASHTANGA VINYASA YOGA at Community Yoga Center
• June 10: Vacation Bible School: Snowball Mountain Challenge at First United Methodist Church ($15- $25) 
• June 12: Riverside Sunrise Rotary Club Meeting at Zacatecas Café 
• June 15: Wildlife Encounters- IE Kids Outdoors summer camp at California State Citrus Historic Park ($175) 
• July 13: River Camp with IE Kids Outdoors at Martha McLean Park ($235) 
• July 20: Camp Riverside with IE Kids Outdoorsat California State Citrus Heritage Park ($200)

🗓️ See More Events     📝 Submit Your Event

📸 Submit a photo to be featured in our newsletters and social media accounts.

🏆 Nominate a remarkable Riversider as Neighbor of the Week.