Mayor Loveridge, an advocate for building a community respectful of our
rich cultural heritage and diversity, announces the June 2008 opening of the
Grier Pavilion, named for Riverside civil-rights activists Barnett and
Eleanor Jean Grier, located on the seventh floor patio of City Hall.
The Grier Pavilion is a community venue that supports the concept of
inclusiveness and the acceptance, dignity and respect that every member of
the Riverside community deserves and should expect.
“Through gatherings at the Pavilion, the message to all will ring loud and
clear; we are diverse, we are committed, we are inclusive and we are proud,”
Mayor Loveridge commented.
A
featured element of the Pavilion is the Center Circle of Inclusion, designed
by international artist Dominic Panziera and sponsored by the James Irvine
Foundation. Centered on the main floor of the Pavilion, the circular mosaic,
which is ten feet in diameter, reflects multiple cultures through images and
brightly colored tiles.
The Pavilion also features “clean and green” technologies as it is shaded by
energy producing solar panels.
Rooted
in the rich history of the civil rights, guests will recognize quotes from
such leaders as Cesar Chavez, Chief Joseph, John F. Kennedy, Jr.; Rosa
Parks; Mahatma Gandhi; Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King; and Ahn
Chang-Ho.
Under the leadership of long-time Riverside resident Sylvia Martin James,
$151,000 was raised toward the project the City of Riverside developed.
Major donors to the project include: The James Irvine Foundation; Altura
Credit Union Foundation; Henry W. Coil, Jr.; Riverside Public Utilities; The
Grier Family; Martin Luther King Visionaries; The Riverside African-
American Historical Society; and the Tavaglione Brothers: Dominick,
Leonardo, Jim, Joe, Louis, and Nick.
A
featured element of the Pavilion is the Center Circle of Inclusion, designed
by international artist Dominic Panziera and sponsored by the James Irvine
Foundation. Centered on the main floor of the Pavilion, the circular mosaic,
which is ten feet in diameter, reflects multiple cultures through images and
brightly colored tiles.
