Published: 26 April 2012 09:50 PM

The only punches thrown were verbal, but seven candidates hoping to be Riverside’s next mayor traded jabs Thursday over the city’s policy on ambulance service, the lack of action on the downtown library, and other city issues.

They met at a forum held at California Baptist University and sponsored by the Raincross Group, Charter Communications, The Press-Enterprise and La Prensa.

Whichever candidate wins will replace five-term Mayor Ron Loveridge. The candidates are former councilman Ed Adkison, Councilman William “Rusty” Bailey, nonprofit CEO Peter Benavidez, retired school accounts clerk Aurora Chavez, Councilman Mike Gardner, Councilman Andy Melendrez, and teacher Dvonne Pitruzzello.

The event was the third forum where all seven candidates got the chance to explain their platforms and answer questions on city issues; three more forums are planned by different civic groups before the June 5 election.

At earlier events, questions covered dealing with the homeless population, including everyone in an ethnically and economically diverse city and government transparency.

Some of those themes came up Thursday, but candidates took more direct swings at each other than previously. In one exchange, Adkison blamed Gardner for the fact that the downtown library hasn’t been fixed up, saying there had been a design and funding for the project, but then Gardner won election and changed directions.

Gardner fired back, noting the funding sources for the library and the Fox theater renovation had been switched so the library dollars became less certain.

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