Video of Amsterdam from Sit-Up Cycle.
“The whole Portland story about bicycling has been ‘Build it and they will come,’” Roger Geller, Bicycle Coordinator for Portland, Oregon
This weekend, January 9th 2P.M. is the Dallas Winter Polo Invitational at Norbuck Park.
Should be some exciting matches! There will be teams from all over Tejas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and maybe more so check out the scene. More info can be found here.
Here are some of our local boys in action…
Roy Appleton, at the Dallas Morning News, wrote an article on our efforts to install the first cycle track (physically separated bicycle lane) in Dallas along Bishop Boulevard connecting the Methodist Hospital campus to the Bishop Arts District. We’re dubbing this the “Lance Armstrong Gateway” Cycle Track, as Methodist was the birthplace to the Tour de France champion. This, in tandem with our efforts to create an East/West Bicycle Boulevard along Seventh Street, would provide a seamless connection from residential and school areas, to retail and work. The final link needed is the connection into Downtown itself, which is also being worked on with details forthcoming.
(Cycle Track in Aberdeen)
This is an exciting opportunity that we’ve worked with local property owners, and Council Member Delia Jasso to move forward on. Mrs. Jasso’s leadership and help in the effort has been instrumental in getting this project off the ground. We still have a ways to go but the exciting development is that the funds already exist for the project, and our first meetings with leaders at Methodist Hospital have shown promise for a coordinated promotional effort on branding the area as a major bicycling corridor.
(Bishop Arts 2009 Mardi Gras Parade)
2010 looks to be an exciting year for bicycle initiatives in North Oak Cliff. For starters, heads of Winnetka Heights home owners association, local business owners, and property owners are working with BFOC to develop Dallas first “pilot” pedestrian/bicycle boulevard along Seventh Street, connecting the Winnetka neighborhood with the Bishop Arts District. The street was the former trolley line, and is dotted with local hotspots such as the Turner House, the soon-to-be-opened Nova tapas/bicycle gastro pub, the Kessler Theatre, Seventh and Tyler Arts District, Bolsa (which was just listed in GQ as one of the top 10 new restaurants in the nation), and ending in Bishop Arts. The route will also be the spine of the area’s pedicab route, which will be used to mitigate parking issues for visitors wanting to experience the area.
(image from indypedicabs.com)
Speaking of pedicabs, Matt Spiller’s, owner of Eno’s is working with the OCBC to procure three new pedicabs for the area. We should have more details as info comes online.
The next major group rides we’ll be leading will take place on Sunday, February 7 & Sunday 14th. The first will be Oak Cliff’s Second Annual Mardi Gras ride and the next weekend will be our first Valentine’s themed ride. So one week, we’ll be decked out in beads, and for the second prepare to see hundreds of people dressed as cupids or in red regalia pedaling through the streets of downtown Dallas.
(photo by Melissa Davis Hennings)
The beautiful and historic Kessler Theatre, which opened in 1942 by Gene Autry, comes roaring back to life with a special holiday open house this Sunday, December 27th from 4PM to 6PM. If you mention BFOC at the door, $2 will be given to support our efforts. The official grand opening won’t be until February, but this event is designed to give everyone a peek at the restoration progress that is now taking place.
The event is free and open to the public with special performances by Emily Elbert who will be showcasing new songs from her second CD – to be released this spring – and some old favorites from her debut album, Bright Side. Opening for Emily will be Austin’s Ruby Jane, a 15 year old singer and violinist who has performed with Willie Nelson, and was featured on the stage of the Grand Ol’ Opry at age 9, so be sure to bring the kids!
Along with the soon to be opened Nova bike pub, owners at the Kessler are also consulting with BFOC to help make the venue “bike friendly”, so stay tuned for some exciting announcements. The Kessler Theater is located at 1230 West Davis Street in North Oak Cliff, 10 blocks West of Bishop Arts.
(Photo by Flickr User Bahi P)
SideDish wrote up a piece about the soon to be opened Nova (formerly Kavala) in Oak Cliff. We wrote about the new business going online a few weeks back, and it looks like they’re officially announcing it to the press.
We have a couple more bike friendly businesses coming online as well in 2010. Stay tuned!
NBC covered our BFOC and local businesses efforts to bring pedicabs to North Oak Cliff to help ferry around everyone crossing the river to take in our restaurants and entertainment. Matt at Eno’s and Councilwoman Delia Jasso are interviewed for the piece also:
We’re very close to putting everything into place now, and will be announcing a major event shortly that will spotlight the pedicabs. The full write-up of our efforts can be found on their website here.
Thanks to all who came out yesterday for the Dallas Santa Ride! We had a great turnout and were able to donate a load of toys to the Toys for Tots group. The Dallas Morning News posted a short online video of the ride here:
And David Wilson posted a few pics from the Houston Street Viaduct here.
This Sunday’s Santa Ride looks to be a pretty nice day of 53 degrees and mostly sunny. We’ve just posted the route map here, and plan on passing through Deep Ellum, circiling Dallas Heritage Village, passing over the Houston Street Viaduct to Bishop Arts, then heading back past Lake Cliff Park and returning to Downtown. Note that we’re starting this ride at the beautiful new Main Street Garden Park at Harwood and Main. Toys for Tots will be on hand, if you’d like to bring an unwrapped gift before we get started, and Dude, Sweet Chocolate will be selling their incredible Hot Chocolate. We’re trying to line up an old fashioned Salvation Army Christmas band to perform in Bishop Arts, so hopefully there’ll be an opportunity for some caroling!
For those who want to dress up, eHow offers a cheap DIY Santa suit option here, and an elf suit here, and of course, Goodwill offers a giant selection of ugly holiday sweaters. See you all Sunday at 2:30!
(An Oak Cliff open-air market which North Dallas reps seek to restrict)
As Oak Cliff slowly shakes off the decades of neglect due to car-first planning which saw the dismantling of our streetcar system, destruction of historic structures in favor of parking lots, the creation of wide one-way thoroufares through the heart of our residential neighborhoods, all of which only benefited the sprawling suburban areas of the city, it’s amazing to see efforts being put forth to stop homegrown grassroots efforts that are actually working. The latest afront is a plan put forth by city staff to regulate and limit the number of open air markets and community gardens in the area by creating a central regulatory body that would oversee the entire process. And why? To protect the Downtown Farmers Market, which has been ailing for years, and definitely deserves our support, but not at the detriment of our own community. The ripple effects here have the potential to end our amazing events like Bolsa’s monthly local farmers market, Make’s Urban Bazaar, Bishop Arts CliffFest, and the handful of new community gardens that are beginning to spring up. Point of fact, Bolsa’s market is responsible for launching new businesses in the area like Dude Sweet, Chocolate, while Make’s Urban Bazaar started off in the Downtown Farmers’ Market but left due to the heavy restrictions put in place by the city.
It’s notable that the councilmembers in favor of regulation are from far North Dallas, in areas that were built well after WWII with sprawling car-only infratructure with an emphasis on decentralization and separated zoning. These regulations do little to hurt their own communities, as they weren’t built with a townsquare/people-first form like Oak Cliff. Their districts also boast an abundance of organic grocery options like Whole Foods, SunFlowers, or are only miles from a Central Market. In the Cliff, these same stores bypass our community due to a lower percentage of college-graduates (which is the demographic most of these use when looking to develop a new store).
The groups organizing our grassroots markets are doing so because we are lacking in our area, and the service they provide is one that allows us and our families a necessary and enjoyable option where we can simply hop on a bicycle, ride a few blocks from home, and purchase fresh vegetables, honey, meats and poultry from local providers. This only hurts the close-in neighborhoods and not those living in Districts far from the city core who have a plethora of options. Can you imagine visiting a city like Florence, Paris, New York, or Austin and seeing city officials restrict open air markets? We’ve already suffered the damage of regulations that make it nearly impossible to open an outdoor cafe, a mixed-use building, or small retail establishment with limited parking…this is not how you rebuild a city.
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Notable:
Dallas Tops Bicycle Magazine's Worst Cities for Cycling
Answers to most common talking points by those opposed to bicycle infrastructure
“There are times I ride in Austin, and I’m afraid of cars...Imagine what the beginner cyclist must feel like?”
- Lance Armstrong
The success of “complete streets” advocacy in cities such as San Francisco, Portland, New York, and Chicago has clearly demonstrated the effectiveness of infrastructural enhancement.
-Paul Dorn, League Cycling Instructor (#1237)
The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) Recommends cities adopt bicycle lanes to curb obesity trends
Portland Metro: 174 Miles of On-street bikelanes, 8% bicycle ridership, 0 Fatalities in 2008
Dallas Metro: 0 Miles of On-Street bike lanes, .2% bicycle ridership, 6 Fatalities in 2008
"Our story is build it and they will come. We’ve built it and we now are approaching 6-8% mode split."
- Roger Geller, Bike Coordinator for Portland
Dallas Craig’s List Bike ListingsFriends of BFOC
