For Release May 1, 2010

League of American Bicyclists Awards Salt Lake City Silver Status as a Bike Friendly Community

On April 28, Salt Lake City was awarded Silver status by the League of American Bicyclists (LAB), a leading bike advocacy organization, in their spring 2010 Bicycle Friendly Communities (BFC) awards. Sixteen new and five renewing cities were named Bicycle Friendly Communities. Salt Lake City along with Flagstaff, Arizona, were the only two communities to move from Bronze to Silver status.

Salt Lake City received Bronze status in 2007 based on its commitment to bike friendliness that began close to 25 years ago under Mayor Palmer DePaulis in partnership with the Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee (MBAC). Following this designation, the City furthered its initiatives to become more bicycle friendly. The MBAC put forth the Silver City Initiative to promote new ideas for bike friendliness and to address feedback from reviewers of its 2007 application. Major components of the Initiative included extending the Complete Streets Policy, increasing police department outreach and enforcement, holding an annual bike summit, hiring a bicycle and pedestrian coordinator, and increasing expenditures on infrastructure improvements.

The Salt Lake City Public Library and the Bike Collective are pleased to announce the opening of the Day-Riverside Bike Shop to the public for the 2010 season.  This satellite location hosts an open workshop at the Day-Riverside branch library (1575 West 1000 North) on Wednesday nights from 6:00-8:00pm.

The workshop offers replacement tubes and patches, cables, and a full set of tools.  Anyone is welcome to walk in for minor repairs such as flat tires, basic tune-ups, brake and derailleur adjustments, or component replacement if you bring your own components.  We also offer a small team of volunteer mechanics who would be happy to advise on any repairs, and help locate parts if needed.

We also plan to work on some special projects this year including Road 1 safety courses and building Low Rider Bikes.  Yes, you read that right. Spoke rims, sissy bars, the works.  If anyone is interested in helping out with the workshop contact Clinton Watson 801-594-8632.  Happy riding!

We are featured on Gavin's Underground, the extremely popular City Weekly Blog!

Photos by Gavin Sheehan

"Gavin: For those who may not know, what kind of services do you offer for cyclists?

Jonathan: For cyclists we have Do-It-Yourselfer nights at our Community Bike Shop, where anyone can learn how to work on their bikes using our expertise, tools, and even basic parts. We also have free formal Park Tool School classes on every Monday night from 6-7. During the summer we can be seen providing Valet Bike Parking services for various community events like the Farmers' Market. Ride your bike there, leave it safe and sound with us, and volunteers will make sure it is there when you get back. Last summer we parked over 5000 bikes. For kids, we have an Earn-a-Bike program and a Trips for Kids program. We partner with various after-school programs to offer these, but the gist is simple. In TFK we bring the mountain to the kids, and show them the natural beauty of the Wasatch front through mountain biking. In EAB, kids pick out a bike to keep, but they have to take it apart and rebuild it from scratch in order to earn it. Of course we are always looking for people to volunteer for each of these programs."

Read the Full Interview

 

Hopefully people read the description that explains the title.

Page 142-143

"Whether you need a bike for commuting, a start ride for aspiring fat-tire daredevils, or simply some advice on bicycle repair, the SLC Bike Collective can provide what you're looking for -- for pennies on the dollar, compared to other places. No, you probably won't find any carbon-frame road bikes, but thanks to a partnership with the Salt Lake city Police Department, unclaimed bikes found by police are donated to the collective, and the selection is quite varied. Plus, the options for purchase go beyond cash or credit. By volunteering at the collective, people can earn their rides while learning bicycle care and repair.

2312 S. West Temple, Salt Lake City,

801-328-2453, SLCBikeCollective.org"

Yes, if you used a cheap lock, didn't register your bike, and didn't record your serial number -- the police have no way of knowing it is yours or contacting you should they find it.   At which point it sits for 90 days and then is legally given to the Collective, and in turn given to someone in need through our Bikes for Goodwill Organizations program.  Prior to our contract with the SLCPD, each bike was auctioned off for an average gross cost of $25.

However we would love it if no one had their bike stolen in the first place, so here is how you can protect yourself:

1. After the explosion of bike theft last year, we highly recommend you lock your bikes up with U-Locks that use flat keys.  Cables and chains are easily cut, and cylindrical keys can be thwarted with the white tube of a bic pen.
2. The Collective is also one of the only bike shops in town that registers every bike that goes out our door with the police department.  We have even created a digital system to reduce the amount of mis-read chicken scratch.

 

Page 66

"The Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective receives more than 400 bikes yearly from the city police department and from private donors.  That's some serious locomotion.  Foliks in the community can swing by for a cheap bike, or learn how to work on their own ride.  Kids and people who can't afford to buy a bike outright can volunteer and earn $5 per hour toward a bike.  Not only does the collective help butts get on reused bikes, but it also helps keep them on.

2312 S. West Temple, Salt Lake City,

801-328-2453, SLCBikeCollective.org"

Courtesy of the Deseret News:

...

Council members earlier this month approved a deal to donate up to 400 bicycles found or confiscated by the city police department each year to the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective.

"It provides people with a low-cost, sustainable form of transportation that's environmentally friendly," said Dave Iltis, chairman of the Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee. "It's healthy and it doesn't use gas."

The collective refurbishes the used bicycles and puts them back out in the community. Most of the bikes go to low-income and refugee families.

"Everyone needs to get around," said collective director Jonathan Morrison. "And car ownership is not cheap."

 

For Immediate Release:

Salt Lake City Council Approves Resolution to Donate Unclaimed Bikes to the SLC Bike Collective

11-6-09 (Salt Lake City) -- The Salt Lake City Council unanimously approved a resolution last night that will allow Salt Lake City to donate all unclaimed bicycles held by the Salt Lake City Police Department to the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective.

"We have experienced a tremendous demand for bicycles this year and this influx of bicycles will help those in need, specifically those in need of transportation," said an elated Jonathan Morrison, Executive Director of the Collective.  "The Collective would like to publicly thank the Mayor's Office, specifically Matt Lyon, David Everitt, and Mayor Becker as well as the City Council for collaboration on this resolution."

SLCPD holds bicycles that are abandoned, recovered as stolen property, or as evidence in cases. The bikes are held for a specified amount of time (generally 90 days) and attempts are made to contact the owner of the bicycle.  If the bicycle is unclaimed after that time period, then the bikes are deemed surplus and have in the past been auctioned off or disposed of.

The new program will see that the bikes are put back on the streets to serve the residents of Salt Lake City and County.  The Collective will repair and service the bikes as needed and provide those bikes to low-income residents or non-profit organizations. Putting the bikes back on the streets helps to increase the level of cycling in Salt Lake City and benefits the City and its residents by reducing air pollution and carbon output, increasing the health of its residents, and providing transportation solutions to its low-income residents.

The resolution was the result of a year-long process of that required the drafting of an agreement between Salt Lake City and the Collective, conducting a Doug Short analysis to show that the donated items would improve the public good, and much hard work from Matt Lyon of the Salt Lake City Mayor's Office. The Mayor's Office, the Collective, the Salt Lake City Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee, SLC Police Department, the Salt Lake City Council and Staff, and the City Attorney's Office contributed to the process.

The approval of the resolution should result in the donation of approximately 100-200 bikes per year to the Collective given current levels of unclaimed bicycles.  The resolution provides for a cap of 400 bikes per year to be donated to the Collective.

The draft agreement and resolution can be viewed here: http://www.slcgov.com/council/agendas/2009agendas/Nov5/110509C5.pdf
 

***

The Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee (MBAC) is an all volunteer advocacy organization whose purpose is to promote, enhance, preserve and, where necessary, restore physical, social, political and economic environments in which bicycling is recognized as an essential element of a clean, healthy, and vital community.  For information on the MBAC or this press release, contact Dave Iltis, Chair at 801-328-2066, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit slcgov.com/bike.

The mission of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective is to promote cycling as an effective and sustainable form of transportation and as a cornerstone of a cleaner, healthier, and safer society.  For more information, including crank addiction, visit www.slcbikecollective.org or call 801-FAT-BIKE.

 

--
Dave Iltis
801-328-2066
Chair, Salt Lake City Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee
slcgov.com/bike

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Rachel Colledge (801) 936-0318

7th Grade Teacher, Spectrum Academy

SEVENTH-GRADE STUDENTS FROM SPECTRUM ACADEMY WITH HIGH-FUNCTIONING AUTISM AND ASPERGER’S SYNDROME GAIN SKILLS FROM SALT LAKE CITY BICYCLE COLLECTIVE EARN-A-BIKE PROGRAM

October 16, 2009 --Spectrum Academy, the premier charter school in Utah that tailors learning environment and curriculum to accommodate the unique needs of children with Asperger's Syndrome and other high-functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders is partnering with the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective to provide unique learning opportunities for these students in the areas of bicycle mechanics and assembly, teamwork, project management and social skills.

The generous volunteers and staff of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective offer their time twice per week for one hour sessions to instruct and assist 7th grade students in repairing and reconstructing bicycles that they will earn to keep upon the completion of their session. These amazing volunteers are working to ensure that these students with special needs have an especially-enriching experience.

Students are finding themselves accomplishing feats that they once thought impossible, thereby helping them to feel more self-reliant and capable of accomplishing a project. Some examples are: students with fine motor deficiencies are now reconstructing the inner workings of the bicycle tire. Students who are working on improving their social skills ability are now working in teams.

Spectrum Academy is ever so grateful for the generosity of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective and its efforts to offer such wonderful hands-on education to those with special needs.

Class Days: Tuesday and Thursdays
Class Time: 8:00 a.m. until 9:00 a.m.
Class Place: Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective: 2312 S. West Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah 84115

 

Momentum Magazine issue 41, pages 19 & 21:

The 19th century Mormon prophet Brigham Young instructed the builders of Salt Lake City to make the roads wide enough to allow horse-drawn carts to make U-turns. Whether or not you believe in prophets, you have to wonder whether he sensed how modern cyclists would struggle to share the road with motorists. Just as Young was concerned with the future of transportation in Salt Lake City, the city’s modern leaders foresee the necessity of improving the city’s cycling infrastructure.

Parked outside the Salt Lake City Hall you can often find mayor Ralph Becker’s well-loved commuter bike. Becker, a long-time commuter cyclist, has increased the cycling infrastructure budget from $50,000 to $500,000 to double the city’s 60 miles of bike lanes over the next several years. He and his Bicycle Advisory Committee have put the wheels in motion to establish a bicycle transit center at the Intermodal Hub in downtown Salt Lake City, with the hope of installing a bike share program.

Read More...

 

City Weekly

Click on the image for the entire article.

Click on the image to see the whole article.  Thanks to everyone involved in the Collective for making this such a lean, friendly and fun non-profit.  Good work!

Courtesy of the City Weekly:

BEST NO-BOYS CLUB
Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective’s Women’s Night
Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective operates on the philosophy, “Teach them to fish, and they can feed themselves,” but many students won’t even ask for lessons. Walking into a warehouse full of gearheads can be intimidating, especially for fiercely independent women who are embarrassed to admit they can’t change a flat bicycle tire. The collective understands, completely. This year, the local nonprofit added to its impressive list of outreach programs a bi-monthly Women’s Night, with female mechanics teaching women how to work on their own bikes in a friendly, pressure-free environment. All ages and levels welcome, each second and fourth Wednesday.
2312 S. West Temple, Salt Lake City, 801-328-2453

 

Collective

Collective

SLC Trips for Kids