Riverside parks proposes $2.7M in cuts and would scrap the Latin Festival

The Raincross Gazette: Riverside's Parks, Recreation and Community Services department is proposing $2.7 million in cuts across the next two budget years, presented Monday to the Park and Recreation Commission. The reductions tie to the city's effort to close projected deficits in the General Fund and Measure Z. The clearest single cut is the Latin Festival — a planned event meant to build on the city's old Mariachi Festival — which gets eliminated. Other reductions thin arts advertising and local-artist programs, community-center security, recreation programming, and part-time staffing, and the department will leave two management posts vacant.

The plan mirrors the city's wider strategy — trim spending, tap reserves, phase in cuts. Staff pointed to recreation revenue that still hasn't returned to pre-pandemic levels and lower participation as fees rise with inflation. Some lines are protected: Measure Z keeps funding senior and adaptive recreation, tree trimming holds at $250,000 a year, and $400,000 covers the handoff of the Festival of Lights to the Riverside Arts Council. The budget goes to the City Council in June.