Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Members of the Carson Neighborhood Action Council attend the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks with emcee Marla Tellez at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Residents, business and city representatives gather for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks with emcee Marla Tellez at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes poses with City Councilmembers Cedric Hicks, Arleen Bocatija Rojas and Jawane Hilton before the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes is featured in a video presentation at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes arrives for the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks with emcee Marla Tellez at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
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Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes speaks at the annual State of the City luncheon at the Carson Event Center on Thursday March 19, 2026. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)
Carson spent the last year increasing services for seniors, coming up with local branding for 2028 Olympics events happening in the city, working to bridge the digital divide and create more affordable housing, Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes said during her 2026 State of the City address on Thursday, March 19.
Davis-Holmes’s State of the City highlighted Carson’s recent accomplishments and plans for the future, while entertaining the audience with multiple video presentations and even a Carson-themed “Jeopardy” hosted by the mayor herself.
To conclude the event, Davis-Holmes sat down with Fox 11 anchor Marla Telez to discuss the state of Carson.
To begin, Davis-Holmes highlighted the work the city has done to support the senior population, including their partnership with Yellow Cab and Uber to provide $2 rides for seniors in the community. The service is offered seven days a week and seniors are eligible for up to 20 rides per month.
“What’s important to me is that they will remain active and involved in this community,” she said. “I saw a difference in our community during COVID; many of our seniors were locked in and they had nothing to do. So we put together some programs.”
The city also increased programming and events specifically for seniors and made them more accessible by offering virtual options, Davis-Holmes said.
“It’s not always about building buildings,” she said. “It’s about investing in the people that have been here before.”
Tellez then asked Davis-Holmes to talk about what the city is doing to prepare for the 2028 Summer Olympics, since Carson is already slated to host six events.
During its most recent meeting, Davis-Holmes said, the City Council unanimously voted to dub what will happen within the city during the Olympics as “The Carson Experience.”
“That’s what I’m all about is rebranding this city – making sure that it is truly the jewel of the South Bay,” she said. “And in order to do that, you must put your time, your talent and your money where your mouth is.”
Davis-Holmes also took the opportunity to address the 800-person crowd and ask them for their input on what they want to see in Carson during the Olympics.
“This is your event,” she said. “It’s not my event; it’s not the City Council’s event. We want to hear from you and what you want, and we want you involved (in) making decisions and we want to just show up and show out.”
The city is also working to bridge the “digital divide” before the Olympics, she said, emphasizing the $27 million fiber optic network that is currently under construction.
The network will provide free Wi-Fi to all 12 of Carson’s parks, as well as internet and cable access to all Carson residents, businesses and public facilities.
Another reason she is working to improve connectivity throughout the city is to attract the younger generation, Davis-Holmes said.
“They’re going to be our future leaders,” she said. “They’re going to be our future council members (and) mayors.”
With that in mind, Davis-Holmes also said that in order to make it possible for younger adults to live and work in Carson, the city needs to increase affordable housing.
“They cannot afford the million dollar homes,” she said. “A lot of our young people that live here (and) grew up in the city, they can’t afford some of these homes. We want you to stay home. We want to bring in new people. We want to bring in that energy that’s needed to make a city a city.”
One effort to do this is a 145-townhouse complex being built by the city in the new Civic Plaza. This will increase housing supply and be marketed at an affordable price, Davis-Holmes said. The project will be sent out to bid in a couple of months.
“My legacy will be that I invested in the young people,” she said. “I want to invest in our youth.”
Davis-Holmes had invited Towne Avenue Elementary School students to attend the State of the City and encouraged other businesses, nonprofits and faith organizations to do the same so the city’s youth know they’re cared about — and that they are the future of the city.
“2026 is the year of the child,” Davis-Holmes said. “Those are our future leaders and we need to empower them. I want to teach them how to be entrepreneurs (and) how to become homebuyers.”
In her final question, Tellez asked the mayor to expand on how the city is supporting local businesses and nonprofits that are “key” to providing opportunities and assistance for both seniors and children.
Davis-Holmes answered by saying she believes the nonprofits need help.
“My goal is to teach them how to fish because they don’t know about applying for grants (and) they don’t know what the federal funding levels are,” she said. “This community and some of our nonprofits have been so content with having fireworks and they make their money from that.”
Fireworks are also not an option anymore.
Just last year, Davis-Holmes said, Carson banned fireworks in the city to protect public safety, reduce fire risk and preserve emergency services.
“You have to think not only about the profit, but how it’s going to affect someone else in the city,” she said. “We have a refinery here. All it takes is one little spark, and I don’t want to become a Pacific Palisades.”
So, she said, her goal is to help the local nonprofits find other funding sources.
To conclude Thursday’s event, Davis-Holmes summed up her speech by saying, “The state of the City of Carson is ‘off the chain.’”