When? Sunday 23 February, from 9am until 2pm
Where? Along Victoria Road (Main Road), between Roodebloem Road and Searle Street
What’s new? A focus on the collaborative nature of this car-free community day. The organisers - local NPO, Open Streets Cape Town (OSCT) - invite residents, local businesses, NGOs, civics, faith communities, and sports, arts and cultural groups to use the platform to showcase projects and build networks.
Why go? During an Open Streets Day we see Cape Town’s best side - people putting aside differences, sharing space and working together to address challenges and strengthen communities. There’ll also be fun and fabulous activities ranging from a Korean Pop fan fest to electric skateboarding demos.
What is Open Streets all about?
Open Streets bring people together to experience a safe, vibrant public space where everyone is welcome and all ages can play, dance, cycle, skate, explore and connect with each other. This iconic programme is helping to bridge social and spatial divides in a segregated city where the street environment is often hostile to people. 'Open Streets Woodstock' will transform one of the most congested and chaotic stretches of road in Cape Town into a large urban playground, making a bold statement about the potential for our streets and public spaces to become more people-friendly, connected, and inclusive.
What will happen on the day?
Open Streets is simply a car-free street with space to walk, ride bicycles, and skate freely (keeping in mind that everyone shares the space and needs to watch out for each other). Local parks and businesses will be open and there’ll be a handful of food stalls. So far, activities registered include a live broadcast by Bush Radio, a Street Store by The Haven Night Shelter, film showcase by TEDx Cape Town, martial arts demonstrations, a dance cypher, music performances, arts and crafts, zumba, kids bike rides, Cape Town Tourism doing a virtual reality activation and more. This list will keep growing and the invite even extends to anyone wanting to just pitch up on the day with a non-commercial interactive activity. It’s not just a passive event with entertainment, but rather a chance for all participants to help create the special atmosphere, and see how everyone has the responsibility and potential to contribute to positive change in their neighbourhoods.
OSCT encourages anyone interested to participate to get in touch, as there’s still time to register an activity, which should be non-commercial and in line with some simple guidelines to ensure everyone’s safety.
Contact:
info@openstreets.co.za or message OSCT on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter
Media queries: Rebecca Campbell, Managing Director, 076 783 2583
Photo was taken by Lisa Burnell at Open Streets Woodstock on 25 February 2018
