SANTA CRUZ — The simple ideas are frequently the best. Take Open Streets Santa Cruz. Close off West Cliff Drive to cars and roughly 10,000 people will show up to roll and ride along the winding coastal road for five hours on a perfect October Sunday.
Of course, a simple idea is not always so simple in practice. For instance, Open Streets requires staffing, police, barricades, marketing, promotion and permits, according to founder and director Saskia Lucas. Approximately $30,000 in expenditures when all is said in done.
“Bear in mind 10,000 people enjoy this event for free. Considering how many people participate, it’s actually a very inexpensive event,” Lucas said. “And kudos to the city of Santa Cruz for providing major funding last year and this year — that’s what’s made this sustainable.”
Paul Richards, 53, of San Jose was rexing down West Cliff on a pair of rollerblades, loud funk music blasting from a bag slung over his shoulder.
“They had one of these in San Jose. It was 12 miles in three directions,” Richards said. “This is great too, although they need to repave the sidewalk; it’s too rough to skate on. They should do this four times a year or something.”
Throughout the afternoon, dozens of Open Street rollers echoed Richards’ sentiment.
“People love the event and they want to see it happen more often,” said Emilio Galvan, 21, a city of Santa Cruz employee. “We hear that a lot.”
The problem, Lucas said, is that Santa Cruz only allows a limited number of event permits for West Cliff Drive every year.
“Open Streets is not really like other events, though. It’s inclusive,” he said.
To minimize the impact on the neighborhood residents, Open Streets encouraged everyone to bike, walk, take the bus or carpool to the event — or park in one of the designated parking lots.
Yet the task of convincing the city to provide more permits for Open Streets is no longer the responsibility of Lucas. She stepped down from her director position last May and handed over the keys of Open Streets to Bike Santa Cruz County and event coordinator Janneke Lang.
“It’s been really straightforward taking over. A lot was in place for us — materials, documents, systems,” Lang said. “Saskia has done such a good job.”
Jordan Gallina, 25, and Aria Brown, 23, pushed skateboards toward Natural Bridges State Beach as a Santa Cruz roller derby girl passed by, handing out fliers.
“It’s nice to be able to skate down the middle of the street without worrying about being hit by cars,” Gallina said.
“It’s also nice to see the community coming together like this,” Brown said.