Bici Centro

Bici Centro, the year-old community bicycle service at the Chicano Cultural Center, is about to have a home of its own. Finally. The nonprofit service has operated as a once-monthly outdoor public shop, but on April 5, Bici Centro will officially open up its own permanent bike kitchen at the center’s La Casa de La Raza. The 1200-square-foot space will be open several evenings per week and will feature tools, parts, and the technical guidance of 20 bike-loving volunteers and expert mechanics. With its new home base and steady funding from the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition, Bici Centro will be able to expand upon its objectives: empowering the public with bicycle maintenance skills while simultaneously pulling old yet salvageable bicycles from the waste stream and putting them back on the streets of Santa Barbara. For information on the shop’s hours and services, visit bicicentro.org.