Storm clouds hang low over the Riverside cityscape in this view from the summit of Mount Rubidoux, with the mountains to the east partially obscured by overcast skies. (Luke López) Have a photo that captures the spirit of Riverside? Share it with us and help celebrate the beauty of our community!
Friday Gazette: May 8, 2026
Hello Riverside, and Happy Friday! Reward Yourself Day falls on a Friday, how perfect. Whether this week handed you a win worth celebrating or a few bumps worth surviving, you made it to Friday, and that counts for something.
Not every week wraps up neatly. Sometimes the reward isn't for crushing it, it's for showing up anyway, for the email you finally sent, the errand you crossed off, the hard conversation you had, or just the fact that you kept going. All of it is worth a little something today.
So we're curious: where do you go in Riverside when it's time to treat yourself? A corner table at your favorite spot Downtown? A walk through a park? Something sweet from a local bakery? Hit reply and tell us your go-to. We might just have to share the answers.
From all of us at the Gazette: good job this week. Really. Now go enjoy it!
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Corrections & Clarifications: Yesterday's newsletter overstated the per-purchase cost of the proposed Measure Z increase. The extra quarter-cent on the June 2 ballot would cost an additional 25 cents on a $100 purchase, not $1.25. The full corrected explainer is here.
'We Have a Spending Problem': Candidates Debate Cuts, Taxes at Ward 2, 4 and 6 Forums
Candidates for three open council seats answered the same question: If the money runs out, what do you protect and what do you cut?
The Raincross Gazette hosted candidate forums for Wards 2, 4 and 6 last month, asking all candidates the same questions on the city's budget and fiscal services. Measure Z, the city's existing sales tax, was a recurring subject throughout all three forums.
Moderator Dan Bernstein, a former Press-Enterprise columnist and longtime Riversider, posed this question to candidates at all three forums:
You've been elected to the council. You get the budget and, sure enough, there's not enough money to pay for everything the city needs. What do you protect? What do you cut or eliminate? How do you make those decisions?
Vintage Home Tour Frames America 250 Through Five Houses
Five private homes built between 1924 and 1955 open for one Saturday — three decades of American life, told through the houses Riversiders lived in.
The living room of the 1931 Robert and Ruth Boulden Home, with open-truss wood ceilings and painted-beam accents. (Andrew Villalobos)
Five private historic homes — built 1924 to 1955 — open for self-guided tours as the Old Riverside Foundation marks America's 250th birthday with its 33rd annual Vintage Home Tour.
Why it matters: If you love Riverside's historic architecture, this is a rare chance to step inside Spanish Colonial Revivals, a Herman Ruhnau original, and a midcentury Ranch — homes that are almost never open to the public.
Driving the news: The Old Riverside Foundation chose the theme "Age is a Work of Art," tying this year's tour to the semiquincentennial — a natural fit for a preservation group whose entire mission is arguing that what endures has value.
The backstory: ORF formed in 1979, in the wake of downtown demolitions that nearly claimed the Mission Inn. Its landmark advocacy began with the Peter J. Weber House — now tour basecamp — which a hotel chain once sought to demolish for a parking lot. The Cultural Heritage Board made the hotel build around it instead.
By the numbers: About $15,000 in annual tour revenue funds ORF's Restoration Grant program, which awards up to $2,500 to members for street-visible historic home repairs.
What's next: The tour runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 16, starting at the Peter J. Weber House, 1510 University Ave. Tickets are $30 in advance at vintagehometour.com or $35 day-of. The Restoration Faire & Vintage Mercantile at the Weber House is free — no ticket required.
Three OB-GYNs on the Conditions Women Often Live With Quietly
Menopause, endometriosis, infertility: inside the Riverside Medical Clinic OB-GYN team's approach to conditions often misdiagnosed or undertreated
Drs. Thuan Le, Jenny Jean and Mohamedali Ismailjee (pictured with the Riverside Medical Clinic OB-GYN team) discuss conditions women often live with quietly.
Mother's Day arrives Sunday, and for the obstetrics and gynecology team at Riverside Medical Clinic (RMC), the holiday is also a reminder that women's health care extends well beyond pregnancy and delivery.
For years, the patient who eventually arrived at Dr. Jenny Jean's office in Jurupa Valley had attributed her pain to ordinary menstrual cramps. By the time she came to Riverside Medical Clinic for a second opinion — after care outside California had brought no relief — the underlying condition, endometriosis, had progressed far enough that blood clots had fused her bowels to her pelvic organs. She had not even thought to mention her bowel symptoms. She did not know they could be related.
It is a pattern Dr. Jean and her colleagues at RMC see often. Roughly 1 in 10 American women of reproductive age has endometriosis, and the World Economic Forum estimates women spend 25% more of their lives in poor health than men — a gap that often comes down to conditions diagnosed late, undertreated or never raised at all.
Riverside Moves Closer to Turning Sewage Waste into Renewable Natural Gas
The council voted Tuesday to assign existing SoCalGas agreements to Riverside Bioenergy Facility LLC, a private partner that will build and fund the biogas upgrading system.
Riverside's sewage plant will feed organic waste into a renewable natural gas system under a utility agreement the City Council transferred Tuesday to Riverside Bioenergy Facility LLC.
Why it matters: The project converts material that would otherwise be discarded into usable energy — and shifts construction costs to the private company, not ratepayers.
The backstory: The city has worked toward this since a $192 million treatment plant expansion completed in 2017. A SoCalGas engineering partnership began in 2020; the public-private deal with Riverside Bioenergy Facility followed in 2023.
What's next: Tuesday's transfer gives Riverside Bioenergy Facility control of the gas interconnection rights needed to move construction forward.
Council Adopts Ward Event Policy, Bans Councilmember Branding
Policy approved Tuesday sets consistent rules for ward events and bans the use of a councilmember's name or logo in event branding.
Councilmembers can no longer brand taxpayer-funded ward events with their names or logos under a policy the City Council approved Tuesday.
Why it matters: Ward events — funded through $725,000 in the city's community engagement budget — will now run under consistent citywide rules instead of varying by who represents your district.
What's new: The policy also bars councilmembers from involvement in planning ward events within 90 days of an election, though annually recurring events with at least a three-year track record are exempt.
What they're saying: "I kind of feel like our name shouldn't be on it ever, period," said Councilmember Philip Falcone, who chairs the Governmental Processes Committee.
Devereaux House is Reimagining Riverside Nightlife
What started as a birthday party experiment has grown into one of Riverside's most distinctive new venues, one glass at a time.
The patio at Devereaux House fills with guests on a recent evening. At right, the bar's intimate interior. (Courtesy of Devereaux House)
Devereaux House, a natural wine bar and pizza spot born from a birthday party experiment, has quietly become one of Riverside's more distinctive nightlife additions.
Why it matters: If you've wanted somewhere to go in Riverside that isn't a nightclub, this is it — wine, experimental Neapolitan pizza, live music Fridays, and chess nights on Nelson Street.
The backstory: Co-owners Shane Levario (of Arcade Coffee) and Jonathan Turner spent years driving to L.A. and Orange County for natural wine before converting an unused back space at their Backstreet sandwich shop into a bar. It grew from a one-time birthday party into a three-nights-a-week operation.
What's new: A cocktail menu launched in early May — espresso martini, lo-pro Negroni, Paloma and a few spritz options — rounding out the wine-forward lineup.
What's next: Devereaux House is open 6–10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday at 3739 Nelson St.
Meet this week’s featured furry friend from the Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center. Dedicated to eliminating pet homelessness, the center provides compassionate care and facilitates adoptions for animals in need of loving homes. Find your new companion and help support their mission of humane care and responsible pet ownership.
Hugo is a 7 month old kitten who’s still learning to feel comfortable in the world around him. While his siblings were quickly adopted, Hugo has taken a little more time to come out of his shell and build confidence with new people. He can be a little cautious or hesitant at first, but underneath his shy exterior is a young cat who’s slowly starting to show his curious and gentle side. Hugo is looking for a patient home that will give him the time and understanding he needs to continue blossoming at his own pace. Come meet Hugo and all the adoptable pets at the Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center in person. Stop by any day except Tuesdays, from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m., or learn more at petsadoption.org. Alumni update: Raya and Joey were adopted! 🥳
Noteworthy
Riverside invites residents to help shape the South Main Complete Street Project at a community workshop on May 21 at 6 p.m., where federal grant funding will support safety upgrades, wider sidewalks, and bike lanes between Third Street and Highway 60.
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