[Ebbc-Talk] A Car-Free Lifestyle | Events | Sunday, June 9 Oakland, Berkeley & Bay Area East Bay Express

http://www.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/a-car-free-lifestyle/Content?oid=3D35=
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A Car-Free Lifestyle

"It almost feels illegal to be this free," said a bicyclist weaving big loo=
ps in the center of Broadway during Oakland's last Oaklav=EDa event in 2010=
. The event, which closed Broadway from Grand Avenue to Jack London Square =
to vehicle traffic, was the city's first experiment in a growing internatio=
nal movement that seeks to (temporarily) cede city streets to pedestrians a=
nd bicyclists. On Sunday, June 9, Oaklav=EDa returns, this time to the othe=
r heart of the city, Lake Merritt.

In urban areas, most of our public space is, for better or worse, often at =
the mercy of the vehicles zooming through it. What happens when we take car=
s off the road can thus be hard to imagine. That's why the spirit of Ciclov=
=EDa =97 which started in Bogot=E1, Colombia in 1973 and has since spread t=
o cities across the world =97 can border on the transcendent. "It's almost =
a magical thing that takes place when people go to the forbidden," Gil Pena=
losa, a founder of the Colombian event, told The New York Times in 2008. "T=
here are no losers! It's fantastic for business! It is the best thing Colom=
bia has ever done!"

And in Oakland =97 as well as San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, and the=
 handful of other US cities that have since adopted Ciclov=EDa in some form=
 or another =97 the bicycle-and-pedestrian fair is equally treasured. The i=
naugural Oaklav=EDa event drew roughly 4,000 bicyclists, pedestrians, unicy=
clists, and rollerbladers. But unlike at traditional street fairs, there we=
re few vendors lining the street to sell their wares and command visitors' =
attention. Instead, it was a car-free free-for-all with an emphasis on phys=
ical activity and social interaction. "The idea is just to let people exper=
ience their public space and do whatever they want, as long as it's not in =
a car," said Jonathan Bair, board president of Walk Oakland Bike Oakland, w=
hich organized the event.

The logical problem with that model is, of course, money. The event had to =
be put on hold after its successful debut in 2010 because organizers strugg=
led to pay the fees needed to cover street closures and supporting services=
. But according to Bair, 2013 brought a tidal wave of fundraising support f=
rom the mayor's office, making this year's iteration possible. This time ar=
ound, it'll be a joint venture between Oaklav=EDa and Love Our Lake Day, a =
celebration of the Lake Merritt beautification effort funded through Measur=
e DD. Both Lakeshore Avenue and Lakeside Drive will be almost totally close=
d to traffic circling the lake, with just a smattering of food trucks, boot=
hs, and various dance and music performances along the way. The rest is up =
to you.

For Bair, it's about transforming Lake Merritt into a more utopian space th=
an it is during the day-to-day. "You can walk, you can bike, you can dance =
=97 whatever," said Bair. "Oakland has plenty more spaces for people to exp=
lore with freedom. It'll help Oaklanders envision a city that's more about =
people in the first place." 11-4 p.m., Lake Merritt redesign dedication cer=
emony at 2 p.m.; free. 510-654-6346 or Oaklavia.org


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