Morgan Hill held its first Viva Calle open streets event Nov. 2, closing 2.5 miles of roads to vehicle traffic and opening them to pedestrians and cyclists in an effort to promote community building and support local businesses.
The event, held from 10am-2pm, marks the expansion of a concept that has taken root in other cities, including San Jose, into South County.
“The whole idea of open streets is you want people to get out and stretch their legs and be active,” said Ed Sothis, who founded San Jose’s Viva Calle program in 2016 while working in the city’s parks and recreation department. “You also want them to share in community, but also you want to trick people into exercising.”…