This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
It seems like it was just yesterday CicLAvia launched, but now, the car-free event is celebrating its fifth anniversary by going back to its roots and going to the first place where it all started: downtown L.A.
More than 6 miles of Boyle Heights, the Arts District, Little Tokyo, Civic Center, Chinatown, Historic Core and MacArthur Park will be closed off on Oct. 18 for CicLAvia's "Heart of L.A." event so you can walk, bike and skate your way through the streets.
There will be an opening ceremony in front of City Hall at 8:30 a.m. where CicLAvia's founders and public officials will talk about the history of the event and where it is today. (This Heart of L.A. event is their 15th one, so kudos to them!) Then the streets will be open to non-motorized traffic from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
What makes this event fun is all the activities they have planned at the different hubs, which will all have food trucks. At the Chinatown hub, Cirque du Soleil will be promoting their touring KURIOS - Cabinet of Curiosities show. Guests will get to make stop-motion videos, and Cirque will have some costumed performers riding penny-farthing bikes along the route. You can also check out live musical performances at Chinatown's Central Plaza.
The Grand Park Hub will feature a Sun Fun Lounge where you can listen to bands and DJs perform via solar-powered equipment. You can also charge your phones here as well as get some refreshments. Close by at Grand Park between Broadway and Spring Street, you can participate in The Big Draw LA, where the area will be "transformed into a giant experimental drawing studio," according to CicLAvia's press release. At Little Tokyo's Japanese National Museum plaza, you can see a taiko drum performance and take an origami workshop. And the L.A. Times is offering free public tours of its historic Globe Lobby at 202 W 1st St.
Over at the MacArthur Park Hub, make sure to check out the park's colorful spheres art installation floating in the lake.
The Hollenbeck Park hub will have a free photobooth, a Dia de los Muertos Paper Flower Workshop by Self Help Graphics & Art, and a virtual reality performance from the L.A. Phil.
And for anyone that wants to do their own exploration of historic buildings and theaters, check out this Heart of L.A. neighborhood guide.
