Stories

Our friends at barrio.LA took a field trip to Atwater Village in advance of June 11 CicLAvia - Glendale Meets Atwater Village presented by Metro. Check out their adventure below! Plus, don't forget to participate in the CicLAvia Produce Program on Sunday, June 11! Get a free limited edition CicLAvia tote bag when you purchase fruits or veggies from participating vendors at the Atwater Village Farmers Market! Pick up a field guide at the event to learn more.

by Alex Merlino, Finance Director

What happened when CicLAvia joined forces with Ivy Station at CicLAvia - Culver Meets Venice? We saw thousands of smiles and appreciative people who took advantage of the Ivy Station-sponsored Bike Valet. Those thousands of happy people joined more than 100,000 active participants on the 20th CicLAvia on March 26th. And Ivy Station’s Bike Valet was a hit! It gave people the opportunity to safely park their bikes, while enjoying and exploring the local shops of downtown Culver City, Mar Vista, and Venice.

by Alex Merlino, Director of Finance

Earlier this week, I spoke with Tom Wulf at Ivy Station, sponsor of CicLAvia - Culver City Meets Venice free bike valets. Ivy Station is the newest Transit-Oriented-Development (TOD) to begin construction in Culver City in 2017. TODs are vibrant, livable, sustainable communities located within a half mile of public transit. Ivy Station, consisting of a state-of-the-art office, residences, a boutique hotel, restaurants & cafés, retail and open space, is sure to become a new destination for both visitors to Culver City and local residents alike, and is located at the base of the Culver City Expo line station.

by Dana Variano, Digital Manager

I spend most of the week staring at my computer. Sometimes, I see fun colors and my eyes sometimes start crossing with website code. When I reach this point, my sensitive and amazing coworkers plea with me: "Dana! Get out of the office once in a while! Please!" So I finally listened to my coworkers this week, dusted off my walking shoes, and hit the CicLAvia - Culver City Meets Venice route to explore Mar Vista. My travel buddy for the day was Jen, a resident of Mar Vista who owns a website called barrio LA that finds and markets unique made-in-LA goods. I found about Jen and her brother Rick's amazing project on Instagram, and the synchronicity of their passion with CicLAvia's was too great to be ignored!

"barrio.la is all about looking up, down & around, making sure we take in everything this city gives to us – like it’s amazing parks, community gardens, outdoor markets & street art."

Jen said she loves going to CicLAvia with her daughter, and that it shows her that "if streets and neighborhoods rally together, they can support each other." I hit the streets of the Mar Vista with Jen to talk about her neighborhood, and what she loves about it.

Hello, everybody! My name is Brandon and I'm a new team member here at CicLAvia – I’ve been here 3 weeks now. This past Friday, I experienced why CicLAvia is as special as it is. Don’t get me wrong - I’ve felt it when I ride the CicLAvia events, and I’ve heard it in the conversations about opening streets across LA. But now- being part of the team - I see the heart behind what we do.

In our new series, we'll be highlighting the partners that make CicLAvia happen. Digital Manager Dana Variano sat down with Chris Blevins, Founder and COO of Pick My Solar, and chatted a bit about their reflections on 2016.

by Ronnie Takkens, CicLAvia blogger

One of my favorite parts of CicLAvia is exploring new places for lunch or a fast snack. Fortunately, Southeast Los Angeles offers plenty of options! Here are just a few places where I've enjoyed lunch on my Road to CicLAvia, but believe me: there are many more amazing places to discover!

by Aaron Paley, CicLAvia producer

I visited Evan Greenspan at his eponymous store earlier this year on Tweedy Mile. Evan is the third generation in his family to keep Greenspan's in continuous operation since it started in Watts in 1928 and then moved to its present location in South Gate in 1939. As soon as I crossed the threshold, I knew I was home.

As far as I’m concerned, biking and coffee go hand in hand. So when I’m riding my bike and I see (or smell) a small coffeehouse, I usually hop off my bike and check it out. Last week I ended up at El Cielito Café in South Gate, which was opened just nine months ago by Daniel Olivares.

by Ronnie Takkens, CicLAvia blogger

17 tower structures, the highest 99.5 ft. high, all handmade by one man, decorated with sea shells from Long Beach and tiles from Malibu Potteries, strengthened with clothing hangers: these are the amazing Watts Towers built by Simon Rodia between 1921 and 1954.