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Hector Sosa Newsletter — October 26, 2026
📬 Councilmember Hector Sosa | District 2, Downey | October 27, 2026
Good Morning, Downey,
A rock legend walked into a Downey middle school last week, and I got to be there for it. Billy Idol, just weeks away from his Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, visited Griffiths Middle School to meet with students and champion music education, and meeting him was a genuine thrill. He has this positive, generous energy that you do not always expect from a punk rock icon. But here is the part that stayed with me: the announcement that $55,000 is headed to the Doty Middle School music program, and the sight of the Warren High Marching Band performing at full volume. For a kid who once walked those same Griffiths hallways, watching a Hall of Famer cheer on Downey students was something special. And our schools were not done making news last week, as you will read below. Here is the full rundown.
🚨 Public Safety
🔹 Halloween Lands on a Saturday Night: This Saturday, October 31, is Halloween, and a weekend Halloween means more trick-or-treaters, out earlier and staying out later. If you are behind the wheel Saturday evening, slow down on every residential block, stop fully at crosswalks, and assume a costumed kid in a dark mask cannot see you coming. Parents, add a glow stick or flashlight to the costume and cross at corners, not mid-block.
→ 🎯 My ask of you: Identifying ways to reduce speeding citywide is one of the initiatives I ran on, and no evening puts that commitment to the test like Halloween. One careful, patient drive on Saturday is the cheapest safety investment any of us will make all year. Please take it seriously, and thank a Downey police officer if you see one out keeping watch.
👉 Visit the Downey Police Department page
🔹 We Fall Back Next Sunday, November 1: Daylight saving time ends at 2:00 AM on Sunday, November 1, so set your clocks back one hour before bed Saturday night.
→ 💡 What this means: Starting next week, evening commutes will happen in the dark, and the weeks right after the time change are consistently harder on pedestrians. Headlights on early, extra patience at crosswalks. And while you are already resetting clocks, give your smoke alarms a quick test. Ten minutes, every time the clocks change, is a habit worth keeping.
💰 Budget & Finance
🔹 A $1 Million Boost for Project Inspiration: Last Tuesday, Mayor Claudia M. Frometa and our City Council welcomed Assemblywoman Blanca Pacheco for a check presentation celebrating the $1 million in state funding she secured for the Columbia Memorial Space Center expansion. The money supports the second building of Project Inspiration, a learning complex of more than 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space that will showcase the historic Inspiration space shuttle mock-up.
→ 💡 What this means: Big projects do not have to mean big burdens on local taxpayers. Every dollar our partners secure in Sacramento is a dollar Downey's general fund does not have to carry, and that is exactly how a city maintains more than a dozen consecutive balanced budgets while still building for the next generation.
→ 🎯 My take: This city built the Apollo capsules. Project Inspiration gives Downey kids a front-row seat to that legacy and a launchpad toward careers in science and engineering. My sincere thanks to Assemblywoman Pacheco for delivering for Downey.
👉 View the check presentation post (Instagram)
💼 Economic Development & Local Business
🔹 A Week Spent Connecting Residents to Work: On Tuesday I joined the SELACO Workforce Development Policy Board for our bi-monthly meeting, where the main topic was strategy for upcoming job fairs that pair young adult applicants with firms ready to hire across a range of industries. That strategy showed up in real life almost immediately: a Job Fest took over Stonewood Center on Thursday, and on Friday a job fair in Artesia brought together more than 30 local hiring partners with openings in healthcare, retail, and hospitality.
→ ⚡ Why this matters: A paycheck is the most direct form of economic development there is. Programs, corridors, and incentives all matter, but nothing changes a household faster than a good job. If you or someone you love is searching, SELACO's services are free, local, and built for exactly this.
👉 Explore SELACO job seeker resources
🔹 My Week in Local Eats: I also did some economic development of the delicious kind: a great slice at Brooklyn Square Pizza, and a rainy SoCal night solved by a hot bowl at Pho Gyu. Creating support for small businesses is one of my core initiatives, and the most enjoyable version of that work is simply choosing Downey first when you are hungry. I highly recommend both stops.
👉 See my pizza stop (Instagram)
🤝 Community
🔹 Billy Idol, Save The Music, and $55,000 for Downey Kids: As I shared up top, last week's visit to Griffiths Middle School was about far more than a celebrity sighting. The event came through a partnership between the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and Save The Music that will fund new school music programs across the country, and Downey made the list: the Foundation announced a $55,000 donation to the Doty Middle School music program. Students performed, got a question-and-answer session with a legend, the Warren High Marching Band delivered, and Downey Unified put on a first-class welcome. Idol will be formally inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on November 14 in Los Angeles.
→ ⚡ Why this matters: Music education builds focus, confidence, and teamwork in kids who may never set foot on a stage again, and that is precisely the point. Building strong strategic partnerships with Downey Unified is one of my council initiatives, and weeks like this show why: when our district shines, the whole region notices.
👉 View my Billy Idol post (Instagram)
🔹 Downey Unified and 15 Schools Named to the California Honor Roll: Last week, Educational Results Partnership announced that Downey Unified and 15 of its campuses earned a spot on the 2026 California Honor Roll, which recognizes academic achievement, improvement over time, and progress in closing achievement gaps. Eleven elementary schools made the list, along with Doty, Griffiths, and Stauffer middle schools and Warren High School. Only about 22 percent of California districts were selected.
→ 🎯 My take: I am a proud product of this district, and I will admit to an extra smile seeing both of my alma maters, Griffiths and Warren, on that list. This recognition belongs to teachers, staff, parents, and students who do the unglamorous daily work that data like this eventually catches up to. Congratulations, Downey Unified.
🔹 The Downey Symphony Opens Its Season with Free Music and Local Art: On Saturday, the Downey Symphony launched its 2026-27 season with a free Viva La Musica concert at the Downey Theatre, a Spanish-inspired program that included the Downey Overture, a piece written for our city's own orchestra, and marked the start of Music Director Sharon Lavery's 20th anniversary season. Alongside it, the Downey Arts Coalition's Thrive exhibit showcased nearly 100 works by local artists, curated by Andrew Hernandez. A city of 113,000 with its own symphony and a gallery's worth of homegrown art is not an accident. It is a choice this community keeps making, and I am grateful to everyone who makes it.
📅 Coming Up
🔹 🏛️ Next Regular City Council Meeting: Tomorrow, Tuesday, October 27, 6:30 PM, Council Chambers, Downey City Hall, 11111 Brookshire Avenue. The agenda posts ahead of time, in English and Spanish, so give it a look and weigh in on anything that matters to you.
👉 View agendas and city documents
🔹 🏢 Downey Chamber of Commerce Open House: Tuesday, October 27, 12:00 to 1:30 PM at the Chamber office, 11131 Brookshire Avenue. A good hour for business owners to connect.
🔹 💊 B7 Pharmacy Ribbon Cutting: Thursday, October 29, 12:00 to 1:00 PM. Every ribbon cutting is a family betting on Downey, and showing up is how we bet back.
👉 View the ribbon cutting details
🔹 🥕 Downey Farmers Market: Saturday, October 31, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM at La Reina Avenue and 2nd Street. Stock up before the costumes come out.
🔹 🎃 Halloween and the Downey Adult School Pumpkin Patch: Saturday, October 31. The pumpkin patch runs 5:00 to 8:30 PM at 12340 Woodruff Avenue. Drivers, please revisit the Public Safety section above before you head out.
👉 View the pumpkin patch details
🔹 💀 13th Annual Downey Día de los Muertos Art Festival: Sunday, November 1, 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM at the Downey Theatre, 8435 Firestone Boulevard. Folklorico dances, live performances, an art gallery, community altars, and face painting. One of the most beautiful days on the Downey calendar.
🔹 🕐 Daylight Saving Time Ends: Sunday, November 1. Details above in the Public Safety section.
📱 Stay Connected
Got a pothole to report, graffiti to flag, or a service request to submit? The Downey Connect App is the fastest, most direct path to getting things done. Available for both Apple and Android.
👉 Download the Downey Connect App
Follow me on Instagram and Facebook for more real-time updates, event highlights, and a look at what I am working on between newsletters.
A Hall of Fame rocker came to town last week, and somehow the students still stole the show. That sounds exactly right for Downey. The week ahead gives all of us easy ways to keep that spirit going: a council meeting Tuesday night, a new pharmacy opening its doors Thursday, trick-or-treaters on Saturday, and folklorico, altars, and face paint at the theatre on Sunday. Pick a moment or two and be part of it. Our kids are watching how we show up, and lately they have been setting a very high bar.
Questions, concerns, or ideas? Hit reply. I read every message.
Together, we're building a community that works for everyone. Thank you for staying connected!
Hector Sosa
Councilmember, City of Downey
