On Sunday, March 3, CicLAvia, an open streets event held in Los Angeles where streets are closed to motor vehicles and are open to the public to walk, bike and skate, took place along Venice Boulevard right in front of Venice High School from 9 am to 4 pm.

The route offered several miles of city streets along Culver City, Mar Vista and Palms to its participants.

“Getting to see many people bring their bikes and just having fun on that day warmed my heart,” said senior Lilly Martinez. “One of my favorite parts of this event was most definitely dancing along to the songs that a booth was playing. Shout-out to that booth for providing the music.”

Several clubs, including Garden club, the Sports Medicine team, Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) and STEMM club, participated in the event and held booths in the front of Venice High School. These clubs began setting up their booths at 8 am and finished cleaning up at 5 pm.

CicLAvia started as a grassroots initiative in 2008 as the outgrowth of discussions held by a number of individuals who recognized that open streets events could address active transportation, urban land use, and public health needs in Los Angeles, according to www.ciclavia.org.

Many food vendors parked their food trucks on the front lawn of Venice, selling food to anyone who passed by. Along with food trucks, jumpers were also placed on the front lawn for children and adults to enjoy.

Inspired by the ciclovía events that started 40 years ago in Bogotá, Colombia, the first CicLAvia was held on Oct. 10, 2010.