Approximately 150 people will take part in a bike and bus tour around South Los Angeles, in hopes of starting the conversation of transforming vacant lots, parks and alleyways into spaces that promote a healthier, safer and more active community.
Bethany Ulrich, of the Community Health Councils, Inc., said two different tours will take place, and they are the first of their kind that the organization is putting together.
“We want people to get a picture of what’s out there,” Ulrich said. “They will see success stories, barriers… we just hope to increase awareness.”
The bike tour, led by non-profit organization, C.I.C.L.E (Cyclists Inciting Change through LIVE Exchange) will last five to seven miles and will include three sites where cyclists will stop, showcasing areas where people have worked toward change into more viable spaces for active and healthy lifestyles. Other sites, however, will reflect some of the barriers that stand in the way of redeveloping spaces into healthy and active friendly settings.
Some of the barriers when it comes to redeveloping, Ulrich said, are bureaucratic concerns such as permits and funding.
The bus tour will include five sites, including a stop in Vernon Central to an alleyway located on between Main and 54th streets. Participants will discuss ideas to turn such under-utilized spaces into something the community can use.
Both tours will start at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center in South Los Angeles, where participants will also meet for a summit.
South L.A. has the highest rates of obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes in all of Los Angeles, according to CHC. The summit, which will take place three days after the tours, will give participants the chance to meet with city officials and help create recommendations for a more active South Los Angeles.
The summit and tours will include tour ambassadors who will be in charge of taking pictures and documenting the tours and will take part in a panel during the summit.
“They [the ambassadors] are community leaders, who have received special training on the health disparities in South LA,” Ulrich said. Other panels at the summit will include city government officials that will speak on current state of policies for neighborhood spaces, and people both from and out of Los Angeles that will speak on current efforts that are taking place in their own communities.
“We are tackling a lot in four hours,” Ulrich said. “We want to discuss what’s keeping us from achieving these goals, and also just brainstorm on ideas.”
As of yet, there are no other plans to have other tours. But the summit “is not the end,” said Ulrich. “It’s the start of the conversation,” she said.
More information:
Tour: March 12, 2011 9:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Summit: March 15, 2011 4:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m.
Location: Martin Luther King Recreation Center
3916 S. Western Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90062
RSVP recommended
Photo from TheArches on flickr
