Riverside’s Chavez Center to get Much Needed Renovations: $25M Structural Upgradation Project Announced

By: Sharjeel Sohaib

• 

Jul 13, 2022

 • 

Riverside Chaven Center

Utilize Our Platform

A newly rebuilt arts complex will benefit the youthful talent at the Riverside Arts Academy on the city’s Eastside. Legislators and community leaders from the Inland Empire announced on Friday, July 1, that the California budget for 2022–2023 contains $25 million for the renovation of the Cesar Chavez Community Center inside Bobby Bonds Park.

We Covered this in our Weekly Wire Roundup

About the Chavez Center

The city of Riverside manages the Spanish colonial-style structure, which was built more than a century ago and is currently home to many students and is in desperate need of renovations. University Heights Junior High School originally occupied the building on University Avenue.

The old structure was formerly a school and is now a community center. According to a news release, it is utilized mainly by the academy, which has provided kids with free art classes and music instruction for almost ten years.

According to Collette Lee, president of Riverside Arts Institution, the objective is to transform a “beautiful historic structure” into a “high-tech arts academy.”

“The place is like a dungeon… when we first started at the Cesar Chavez Center in 2014, we didn’t even have doors on the boys’ restrooms,” she said. “At our spring concert, we had a full-capacity crowd, and the plumbing could not accommodate the building. We had an overflow in the bathroom.”

According to Lee, the air conditioning does operate in the summer, causing academy students to abandon their classes and seek out more excellent areas of the facility.

Funding for the Chavez Center

The institution has always “thrived” with brilliance, but she said that structural improvements need finance. At least 89 percent of the participants in the program are young people from low-income families who are eligible for free music lessons and equipment.

On Friday, she was at the Chávez Center to announce funding for the project from the state budget alongside Riverside City Council members Jose Medina and Sabrina Cervantes, Democrats from the Inland Assembly.

The previous school building “had not received any repairs since 1938,” according to Medina, who represents the 61st District, needed “much-needed renovations” when she approached the academy and local officials in 2019.

“I am proud that our cultural and educational priorities are receiving much-needed investments after years of advocacy by our community,”

Jose Medina | Chair of the Assembly Committee on Higher Education.

Medina met with representatives from the city and the school to establish a committee, gather funds, and draft a budget plan for the legislature.

Lee expressed her “joy and honor” at the assembly members’ success in obtaining money for the project. With the funds, the school can plan improvements like constructing a Wi-Fi hub and purchasing a ceramics kiln for its expanding visual arts department.

Although a timetable for the renovation and construction has not yet been established, Lee expressed hope that the restored arts academy will open “between two and three years.”

The facility will remain open for most repairs and will begin providing summer music lessons this month.

“Our passion is social justice and equal access to the arts,” Lee said. “I hope we can have an art academy in Riverside that is not only award-winning, from a theater arts standpoint, but (that would) maintain a level of excellence in the arts. This is going to transform the Eastside without question. And it already has.”

Other Funding and Investments in the Riverside

Mayor Lock Dawson announced four other funding and investment projects for the City of Riverside. These investments will improve the quality of life and provide better access to different facilities in the county.

Related to this story, Startemprie wire also reported about The Mark Downtown Riverside apartments A regional property of a 7-story building known as Mark is being built up in Riverside, California. The facility will serve as a mixed-use community and support the multifamily properties initiative in California.

Wrap Up!

The city of Riverside will receive $25 million in public funding to help fund a major overhaul of the Chavez Center. The center is a multi-purpose facility with a convention center, theater, and event space.

As Riverside is the heart of the Inland Empire, funds and investment projects will help strengthen its economy.

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Connecting you with the best startups, people & events in the Inland Empire.

Support Startup News & Media!


Enjoying the startup news & media? Support us!

We have big plans, and we need your help!

Startempire Wire is a community of people working together to promote innovation, entrepreneurship, and investment in the Inland Empire. We provide resources and connect people with the startup culture.

We believe that the Inland Empire has all of the ingredients for success. This region just needs a platform to show the world what it can do – And this is exactly what Startempirewire.com is doing. Our goal is to act as a megaphone to connect the dots between the best startups, events, and people in the Inland Empire.

We have big plans, and we need your help! If you are passionate about creating a thriving local startup ecosystem, then we would like to invite you to join in contributing to the community by supporting us. You can do that by supporting us financially or by being an active contributor. In return, we will give you (depending on sponsorship level) free access to our content, other level based perks &  the opportunity to connect with a network of passionate people working to build a better future for all of us.

We cover the good and the bad of entrepreneurship, startups & business events; we do it with passion and purpose. If you like what we do, support us & please consider becoming a patron. Your support is essential for independent local startup media to survive & thrive.

You can make a regular one time donation to become a sponsor at any level, or you can choose to become a monthly or event sponsor.  Every little bit counts! Thank You

Verious B. Smith III

Founder, Startempire Wire

Related Articles

OASIS Challenge: Showcasing Innovation in Sustainability

OASIS Challenge: Showcasing Innovation in Sustainability

RIVERSIDE, CA – The Southern California OASIS™ Challenge Pitch Finals, a much-anticipated event in the sustainability sector, is set to take place, spotlighting six innovative Inland Empire companies. These finalists, vying for $100,000 in grants and invaluable...

Riverside’s Ambitious Project: Building a Comprehensive Dat . . .

Riverside’s Ambitious Project: Building a Comprehensive Dat . . .

RIVERSIDE, CA – The City of Riverside, nestled in the heart of Riverside County, has embarked on an innovative environmental project. With a $1 million grant from the Forest Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Community Forestry Reduction Act,...

Stay Up On Startempire News

Access Premium Content

Startempire Wire premium content access is free during the beta period of our  website.  Join during beta and get a grandfathered discount when we launch.

$5 for first month then $15 per month

Get Every Update

Would you like to receive Startempire Wire updates in your inbox? Subscribe below!

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

Follow Startempire Wire on other social media channels.

0
My cart
Your cart is empty.

Looks like you haven't made a choice yet.