The 18th Annual Festival of Lights is set to begin Friday, Nov. 26 in downtown Riverside, with the official “switch-on” ceremony taking place just after 6:00 p.m. in front of the Mission Inn. This year’s Festival runs from November 26 through January 2, 2011 (excepting Christmas). Each year, thousands of visitors crowd the areas in…
October 2010Retro ‘blade’ signs being added 1930sOriginal ‘blade’ signs The first of two old-style neon signs went up this past week on the Fox Performing Arts Center in downtown Riverside. The signs are replicas of those that adorned the theater in the 1930s and 1940s. According to The Press-Enterprise, the signs are 22 feet tall…
Oct. 2010UCR Culver Center of the Arts Architectural renderingUCR 2008Project info 1906Rouse’s / Chapman Building***(close-up view of awning) 1953Rouse’s Dept. StoreRCC yearbook This past week marked the opening of UC Riverside’s Barbara & Art Culver Center of the Arts, adding another major arts facility to downtown. Located adjacent to the existing UCR/CMP (California Museum of…
20103633 Market Street 20093633 Market Street Forthcoming parking garage While driving down Market Street last month, we stumbled upon a bit of local history. Standing alongside downtown’s Fox Performing Arts Center was an uncovered facade revealing what once was the former home of long-time Riverside car dealer De Anza Chevrolet (one | two). City permits…
Sept. 2010Filming of ‘Undercovers’at the Mission Inn Sept. 2010Filming outside theMission Inn’s Alhambra suite This past week, Riverside’s Mission Inn became a South American backdrop for a new television series called ‘Undercovers’ on NBC. For several days, film crews shot in and around the historic hotel in downtown Riverside, lining nearby streets with production vehicles…
Main Street pedestrian mall Slideshow: Out & About This past weekend saw us out and about downtown on both Friday and Saturday. On Friday evening, downtown was relatively busy as a special screening of “Gone With the Wind” brought a sold-out audience to the newly-restored Fox Performing Arts Center. The showing included appearances from 4…
Metro Museum 001 by Van K. Varbel Flickr – Raincross Square photo pool Got a great photo of downtown Riverside or the city in general? Add it to the Raincross Square photo pool. Or view what others have uploaded.
20101908 Seth Thomas clock Earlier this month, the 102-year-old Seth Thomas pedestal clock, which was damaged last year during the refurbishing of the pedestrian mall, made its way back to downtown Riverside. Though the clock itself dates back to 1908, it didn’t appear in Riverside until the 1920s when it was planted outside a jeweler’s…
2010Simple Simon’s Bakery & Bistro 2010Closed Simple Simon’s, one of downtown’s most popular eateries, caught fire around 2 a.m. this past Friday, causing what the owners hope will be only a temporary closure. Initial reports point to an electrical fire as the possible cause, with damage estimates of roughly $175,000. No major damage was reported…
2010Main lobby 2010Balcony Flash: Fox: May 2007 – Jan. 2010 Crowds flocked to the new Fox Performing Arts Center in downtown Riverside this past weekend to catch an inside look at the newly-renovated facility following a 3-year, $32 million renovation. Friday night was the grand opening, fund-raising gala while Saturday and Sunday were open house…
