“CicloIrvine,” the city’s cars-free, open streets event is now an annual affair thanks to a City Council vote last week.
The inaugural CicloIrvine took place this May when city officials closed nearly two miles of Barranca Parkway and Harvard Avenue to cars so that people could walk, run, pedal or skate their way across the entire width of the roads. The event included music, art and family activities such as strolling mariachis and performances from the Southern California Youth Dragon and Lion Dance Team, Kibou Taiko and Focus Dance Theater.
Altogether, about 10,000 people participated, leading Councilmember Kathleen Treseder to propose that CicloIrvine happens every year.
“I think that this is a great opportunity to bring the community together,” she said.
Other councilmembers agreed the event should reoccur annually in a different part of Irvine.
Staff said this year’s event cost about $425,000 to run, of which roughly half was covered by sponsorships.
“I do expect that if we do this annually and sponsors are anticipating it, then our sponsorship opportunities will grow,” Treseder said.
CicloIrvine was inspired by the weekly street closure event originating in Bogota, Columbia, that has given rise to offshoots around the world.
While this was the first open streets event in Irvine, ciclovía (Spanish for bike path) events have been hosted locally by Santa Ana, Garden Grove and Los Angeles, which has three such events scheduled through October.
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Staff writer Hanna Kang contributed to this report.