State audit clears RUSD's Measure O spending, faults it on transparency
The Riverside Record: A state auditor reviewing the shelved STEM Academy expansion found Riverside Unified spent its $392 million bond legally but never clearly told voters the money could fund new construction — the gap between what a 2016 ballot measure promised and how a district spends it nearly a decade later.
Riverside utility board sends 5.7% electric and water fee increase to council
The Raincross Gazette: After the council rejected tying future fees automatically to inflation, staff brought the same 5.7% bump back as a one-time, standalone action — pegged to two years of regional CPI.
Redlands holds budget vote until June 16 over fire and police staffing
Community Forward Redlands: The council won't approve its two-year spending plan until staff comes back with a firefighter-staffing timeline — including a possible fifth fire station — and a clearer read on how nine open labor contracts will hit the General Fund.
The IE's in-demand jobs are the ones short-term Pell was built to screen out
Citrus Belt Review: Starting July 1, federal Pell grants extend for the first time to short-term job training — but only for programs whose graduates land "above the poverty line in an in-demand career." Statewide, that gate is meant to weed out low-wage truck-driving and nursing-assistant mills. In the Inland Empire, those are the in-demand jobs.
Inland Empire apartment rents turn back up as the supply wave eases
Citrus Belt Review: The IE average rent rose 1.0% to $2,320 in Q1, reversing two quarters of declines — the gains landing in older, cheaper units as new Class A product still gets absorbed. The national market, by contrast, has stalled.
LLUMC-Murrieta performs its first robotic-assisted Whipple
Loma Linda University Health: The Whipple is one of the most complex operations in abdominal surgery — removing parts of the stomach, duodenum, pancreas, and bile duct to treat tumors in those organs. Moving it to a robotic platform is a capability marker for a community hospital, not a routine service-line add.
Bloomington trucking firm changes hands with $2.8M approval
Citrus Belt Review: An ownership change in local freight, part of a quarter where buyout loans doubled their share.
IE small business borrowing: fewer loans, bigger checks
Citrus Belt Review: SBA lenders approved 230 loans for IE businesses in the first quarter — down 23% from a year ago — but the dollars held flat at $128 million. The average loan jumped 30%.
Hernandez leads Riverside's Ward 6 race as the seat sits empty
The Raincross Gazette: Riverside's Ward 6 has no councilmember right now, and the special election to fill it won't be official until July — leaving a city council seat vacant for weeks while ballots are still being counted.
Ontario Reign rebrand swaps black-and-silver for Inland blue and gold
Pro Hockey News: The Kings' AHL affiliate built its new identity around Ontario rather than its parent club — five pistons for the city's industrial roots, a crest mark drawn from the old Ontario Motor Speedway.
Euclid Avenue bridge environmental report open for public comment through July 23
Champion Newspapers: The environmental impact report for the Euclid Avenue bridge is open for written public comment through Thursday, July 23 — the public's window to weigh in before the project's review closes.
Indio breaks ground this summer on $45 million police headquarters
IE Business Daily: Indio's $45 million police headquarters anchors the final phase of a Public Safety Campus that already holds a fire station, dispatch center, and a 22,000-square-foot services building — a multi-year municipal build with ground breaking this summer and completion set for spring 2028.
Raising Cane's opens third Ontario location June 15
IE Business Daily: The chicken chain keeps treating the Inland Empire as a growth market — about 100 jobs at the new Ontario Ranch store, its third in the city.
Redlands homeless count falls a third straight year as unsheltered numbers tick up
Community Forward Redlands: The Jan. 22 count found 134 people, down 8% from 146 — but the unsheltered figure rose from 104 to 107, moving against the countywide trend.
DOJ finds Redlands Unified compliant on all but complaint timelines
Community Forward Redlands: In year two of a five-year oversight period, the district met every provision but one — about 21% of resolved harassment and abuse cases closed late without required extension paperwork.
Riverside weighs 24-hour notice rule for outside groups dropping off homeless
Raincross Gazette: Council considers an ordinance forcing outside agencies to give the city a day's warning before transferring homeless individuals into Riverside — staff says uncoordinated drop-offs strain local shelters.
Jim Perry resigns Riverside's Ward 6 seat before a successor is certified
The Raincross Gazette: Perry has held the seat since 2013 and leaves within weeks — and the council now faces a vacancy that could run from a few weeks to several months, depending on when the June election results certify.
Perris council votes unanimously to start a citywide data center ban
The Riverside Record: Staff offered four paths, from a full prohibition to by-right industrial zoning — the council took the ban before public comment even opened, and all 27 speakers backed it.
HYDN Coffee files for a beer-and-wine license on Temecula Parkway
Citrus Belt Review: New coffee concept seeks an on-sale beer & wine eating-place license at 31333 Temecula Pkwy; no public presence yet.
Loma Linda makes AI use a job requirement for its 400-person IT staff
Becker's Hospital Review: LLU Health moved from encouraging AI to requiring it across enterprise IT — with automation projects in revenue cycle, capacity planning and financial operations queued for the next 18 months.