Thursday Gazette: October 20, 2026
Hello Riverside, and Happy Tuesday! Today is International Day of the Nacho! Crunchy chips, melted cheese and every topping you can fit on the plate. Where do you go in town for a pile of cheesy, loaded goodness? Reply and tell us your go-to spot, plus your must-have topping.
Here's what else is happening around town:
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CITY HALL
Chavez Center Could Become Eastside Community Center After Commission Vote
Parks commissioners voted 5-2 in favor of Eastside Community Center, rejecting staff's pick of University Heights for the renamed facility.
The Cesar Chavez Center would become the Eastside Community Center under a recommendation now headed to the City Council.
Why it matters: The vote moves Riverside closer to dropping Chávez’s name from the center at 2060 University Ave., following sexual abuse allegations against him. The new name goes up when the renovated building reopens in spring 2027.
Driving the news: The Parks and Recreation Commission voted 5-2 Monday for Eastside over staff’s pick, University Heights.
- Staff cited the site’s history — it opened in 1928 as University Heights Junior High School.
The backstory: Riverside pulled a planned César Chávez Day proclamation in March, and Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson called for community input on sites bearing his name.
- In a voluntary survey, about 75% of respondents backed exploring a new name — but no single replacement emerged as a clear favorite.
Yes, but: Commissioner Kevin Dawson voted no, saying he’d rather have residents choose between the two names first.
- Staff said a recommendation won’t stop the council from seeking more community input.
What’s next: The council has final say. Staff wants a decision by January or February so new signage fits the reopening.
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HISTORY
Remembering the Legacy of Rupert Costo
Historian, author, publisher and advocate, Rupert Costo championed Native voices in historical discourse.
Hemet, California, is the birthplace of Rupert Costo of the Kostakik clan in 1906. However, there is no birth certificate to account for, so the exact year may be between 1906 and 1911. At this time, Riverside, only 36 years old and still undergoing transition, was quickly becoming a desirable place for wealthy people to invest and live. Native people had been pushed to areas surrounding the rapidly growing city. They stuck around only to work, as their homelands could no longer sustain their traditional ways due to encroachment for development, the citrus industry and commerce. Costo, the great-great-great-grandson of in-the-line of hereditary chiefs, Cahuilla leader, and a signer of the Treaty of Temecula of 1852 Juan Antonio (Kostakik clan), grew up on the Cahuilla reservation surrounded by culture and tradition despite these circumstances.
In the 1920s, Costo attended Riverside City College. Then, in the 1930s, he continued his studies at Whittier College, where he met future California governor and later U.S. President Richard Nixon. The two played football under Luiseño coach Wallace Newman. Although they chose different career paths, their worlds often intertwined as Costo, along with others from groups such as the American Indian Federation, represented Native voices in Washington, D.C., to influence national policies. He continued his education at the University of Nevada, and through this pathway he developed a foundation that he later applied to historical writing, publishing, and public and tribal advocacy. In the early 1950s, he married Jeannette Henry, and the two would embark on an extraordinary life that sought to counter stereotypes and replace them with more accurate representations of Native history, culture and lived experiences. In this way, they ensured readers did not receive secondhand information. Who better to help normalize Native perspectives than those who inherited them and had the authority to interpret them? This idea may not seem radical by today's standards; however, for Costo, it became the force behind his life's work.
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COMMUNITY
Riverside Neighborhood Partnership Celebrates Community Heroes at Good Neighbor Awards
The nonprofit's 14th annual gala recognized volunteers with four distinct honors, including one named for environmental steward Erin Snyder.
The Riverside Neighborhood Partnership honored four winners Saturday for giving their time and energy to help neighbors.
Why it matters: The awards spotlight neighborhood work that often goes unrecognized. The night’s raffle and silent auction also funded the partnership’s outreach, advocacy and neighborhood programs.
Driving the news: The partnership held its 14th annual Good Neighbor Awards on Oct. 17 at the Old Spaghetti Factory downtown.
The winners:
- Margie Tadwilliams: Jack B. Clarke Sr. Good Neighbor Award
- Celia Reed: Neighborhood Hero Award
- Goldware Goldfish: Neighborhood Spirit Award
- Janis Binam: Erin Snyder Environmental Steward Award
Spotlight: Tadwilliams coordinates weekly food deliveries to seniors, low-income families and unhoused neighbors through Casa Blanca Home of Neighborly Service.
- She also partners with Casa Blanca Elementary on free backpacks, shoes and supplies, plus Thanksgiving turkey giveaways and Christmas drives.
What they’re saying: “You don’t need a title to be a leader,” said Jessica Qattawi, the partnership’s president.
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Noteworthy
Meet candidates for Wards 2 and 4, RUSD trustee, Superior Court, and Eastern Municipal Water District at Latino Network’s Pan con Cafecito TONIGHT, Oct. 21, 7:30–8:45 a.m. at Zacatecas Cafe, a meet-and-greet, not a debate.
Downtown’s revitalization is drawing new businesses, jobs and foot traffic, according to an NBC4 segment on the “Riverside renaissance” by reporter Christian Cazares that aired Monday.
Employee-owned engineering firm TKDA will open a Lemon Street office more than double the size of its current regional space on Oct. 27, starting with 10 employees and hiring for several Southern California positions.
Twenty University Heights Middle School girls met women mentors in law, science, sports and the arts, including state Sen. Sabrina Cervantes, at a Boys & Girls Clubs Day of the Girl event at the Fairmount Park boathouse on Oct. 14.
What's Happening in Riverside
Today
- Riverside East Rotary Club at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
- Stretch & Dance Class at Janet Goeske Senior Center
- About Writing at Janet Goeske Center
- Adult Ballet Class at Riverside Ballet Arts LLC
- Five Nights at Freddy's Movie & Craft | Teens at Marcy Library
- FREE Reading Assistance Program (RAP) at My Learning Studio
- FREE YOGA - Seated Yoga with Kristin Varner at All Saints Episcopal Church
- History on the Rocks - Round Two! Presented by The Mission Inn Foundation at Mission Inn Foundation ($71.21)
- Riverside Jams at Carbon Nation Brewery
- Riverside Mission Belles at Victoria Presbyterian Church ($25)
- Safety, Wellness, and Youth Committee at Riverside City Hall
- Women's Soccer vs. CSUN at UCR Soccer Stadium
Tomorrow
- Economic Development Committee at Riverside City Hall
- "American Agitators" Documentary Screening (Nights with the Museum) at Riverside Main Museum (Community Room)
- Experience RUSD, Riverside Unified State of the District at Riverside Municipal Airport
- First Star Lunch & Learn at Alumni & Visitors Center
- History on the Rocks! Presented by The Mission Inn Foundation at Mission Inn Foundation ($71.21)
Save the Date
- Oct 23: FREE YOGA - The Evolution of Ashtanga with Kristin Varner at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 23: Riverside Sunrise Rotary Club Meeting at Zacatecas Café
- Oct 24: Fall Festival at the R'Garden! at R'Garden
- Oct 24: FREE YOGA - The Art of Vinyasa with Catherine Murray at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 24: FREE YOGA - Yin Yoga with Kristin Varner at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 24: Magic Underground at Back to the Grind ($30- $45)
- Oct 24: Skeleton Keys at First United Methodist Church of Riverside
- Oct 24: Vintage Car and Warbird Show at Riverside Airport - Commemorative Air Force Hanger and Museum
- Oct 25: A Glorious Celebration of America at 250 at Calvary Presbyterian Church ($15- $25)
- Oct 26: FREE YOGA - Moody Mondays with Cherie Amour at Community Yoga Center
- Oct 28: FREE YOGA - Seated Yoga with Kristin Varner at All Saints Episcopal Church
- Nov 1: BIG BROADWAY BINGO at Avila’s Historic 1929 ($125- $150)
- Nov 4: Medicare EXPO at Janet Goeske Center
- Nov 5: KindnessWORKS Summit at Riverside Community College | BLCIS Multipurpose Room ($50)
- Nov 5: LEAC Comedy and Magic Show at The Box Theater ($60)
- Nov 5: Les Miserables at Woodcrest Christian School ($15- $20)
- Nov 7: Art in the Gardens at UCR Botanic Gardens
- Nov 7: The Art of Celebration! at Riverside Art Museum
- Nov 14: Riverside Veterans Parade - Downtown Riverside/Market St.
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