CyclovITA Amphi: Bringing Tucson’s Streets to Life
On December 7th, 2024, Living Streets Alliance hosted our first Cyclovita—A mini-Open Streets event in the Amphi neighborhood, in partnership with Building Bridges and Woods Memorial Library.
(All photos by Mamta Popat unless otherwise noted.)
Our streets are more than just pathways for cars—they are the largest public spaces in our cities, communally owned by all of us, making up over 80% of public space across the country. Streets are spaces for connection, movement, and community—not just for commuting. They’re also where we can dance, share resources, access healthcare, ride bikes, walk with neighbors, and breathe some fresh air together.
After every one of our signature Cyclovia Tuson events, we hear from participants who want more—more chances to come together in the streets, car-free and carefree. This feedback inspired us to pilot our very first Cyclovita, a smaller-scale Cyclovia, in one of the neighborhoods we love: Amphi.
A New Kind of Cyclovita in Amphi
Thanks to funding from an AARP Community Challenge Grant, in December we closed down .75 miles of street in the southern part of the Amphi neighborhood and opened it up for people to reclaim. Our shortest route yet was filled with diverse languages, delicious food, live music, community resources, and—of course—people in joyful motion. There was walking, biking, skating, hula-hooping, and even dancing!
Amphi is a truly diverse neighborhood, home to families who have lived here for generations, as well as immigrants from all over the world—Afghanistan, Rwanda, Eritrea, Mexico, and beyond. In fact, 32 languages are spoken in this one neighborhood! While it has a reputation and reality of hardship and struggle, it is also a place where cultures, traditions, and community power come together in a beautiful way.
Highlights from Cyclovita Amphi
A joyful sight was how multi-generational the event was, there were seniors out walking their dogs, whole families visiting the different booths, and so many kids cruising on their bikes after getting full tune-ups—all spending the day in a safe, car-free environment. Unlike our larger Cyclovia events, where tens of thousands of people come from all over Tucson, Cyclovita Amphi was a more intimate gathering, with neighbors from the immediate area coming out to enjoy the streets together. We saw the same kids again and again zooming around, their faces beaming with smiles, chalk-covered hands from drawing, and a sense of freedom that only comes with safe, open streets.
Overheard from kids:
While decorating her bike: “Can we do this tomorrow?”
Shouting from an apartment window: “Thank you for setting up the streets!”
While teaching his sibling to ride a bike: “You got this, you got this!”
Photo by Living Streets Alliance
Streets Full of Life and Movement
One thing that really stood out was how many families walked together from one end of the route to the other. It wasn’t uncommon to see the same families hours later at another part of the event, still enjoying the day together. Seeing families and kids walking, talking, and playing freely without fear of traffic is what makes days like this so special. We dream of a Tucson where this kind of carefree family time can happen more often, and with more space for joy and connection.
The art and music filling the streets were also highlights of the day. Two experiences stood out to participants:
King-Doumbya Drum and Dance Group
Located outside of Building Bridges, this group got everyone moving and grooving with energetic rhythms and even taught some fun choreography. It was impossible to stand still!
Esperanza Dance Project
Outside the library, the crowd was moved by this powerful youth performance. It was a beautiful display of youth expressing themselves through movement, part of their healing process and reclaiming agency through dance.
Community Partnerships: Making It Happen
The success of Cyclovita Amphi was possible thanks to incredible community partnerships that brought relevant, fun, and meaningful activities to the neighborhood. hassan clement of the Panteras Tenant Empowerment Program, in partnership with Woods Memorial Library, organized a resource fair at one of the activity hubs. Celina from 3rd Generation Barber provided free haircuts for the community, while Gospel Rescue Mission gave out free clothing. Over 20 community organizations offered resources like rental assistance, vaccines, violence intervention services, and more.
Rhonda Martin orchestrated the Global Artisan Market and Taste of Amphi potluck, which brought together local refugee women and families from the Building Bridges and Tucson Refugee Ministry programs. People were able to purchase beautiful handmade crafts and enjoy delicious foods from around the world. We saw jewelry and gowns from Rwanda, baked goods from Afghanistan, and candles from Colombia, among many other unique items.
Photo by Living Streets Alliance
Throughout the event, kids played with hula hoops, created sidewalk art with chalk, and got henna tattoos from local artists, Soheila and Anise, while their bikes were fixed up by Toby and Elliot from Campfire Bicycles and Roadrunner Bicycles. A total of 40 bikes were fixed that day!
Bottom two photos by Living Streets Alliance
The Joy of Relationship
As our neighborhood collaborator, Erica Prather, shared at the event, “This is also resistance—JOY is key to how we relate to one another and resist the systems that divide us.”
Thank you to everyone who joined us and helped make this event possible. And a special shout-out to the 81 volunteers that joined to support Open Streets in Amphi! We’ve learned so much from this experience, and we’re more excited than ever to continue sharing joy in our streets together. Every time we do, we grow stronger as a community and more inspired to keep bringing people together in creative and meaningful ways.
This pilot event is made possible through generous support from Tucson Ward III Councilmember Kevin Dahl, AARP Tucson, and through grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the AARP Community Challenge.
