Monthly meet-up promotes sustainable mobility solutions

On a sunny afternoon last Friday, May 6th, Freddy Puza led a group of twenty-four Culver City community members setting out from City Hall on bicycles, an outing planned by the City Council candidate for the first Friday of each month.

The mellow-paced First Fridays at Five ride began at 5pm, and rolled through Culver City for an hour before arriving at 6pm for a Happy Hour chat with the candidate at beloved local bookstore Village Well on Culver Boulevard.

Along the way, riders experienced the new MOVE Culver City bike lanes, and stopped for an ice cream social at Co-opportunity Market on Washington Boulevard. There were jokes, and friendly chatter, but also time for serious talk between the candidate and the voters-on-wheels.

“A bike ride is the perfect way to highlight the advances made to transform Culver City into a hub of sustainable transportation,” Puza noted, “While we imagine the strides that should be made in the future to support an efficient transition to zero-emission energy and mobility.”

The idea for the ride came from observing the success of First Fridays events in other cities. “I was familiar with First Fridays, so I thought to use it here in Culver City,” explained Puza. “My goals for these events are to meet folks in various neighborhoods, experience local streets like a cycling commuter, visit area parks and businesses, and share my vision for a more equitable Culver City.

“We are quickly becoming a destination city that will require bold and thoughtful transportation policies to ensure our residents continue to enjoy the Culver City they know and love, while making the most of the evolving opportunities that allow our city to grow in the direction we desire, and encourage more alternative modes of transportation, including walking and cycling.”

The next First Fridays at Five will be held June 3rd from 5pm to 6:30pm. For more information on the June 3rd ride, please go to https://fb.me/e/3lRdjymYT, or check the campaign’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/FreddyPuzaCC. Get more information about First Fridays at Five and receive campaign newsletters by filling out a brief form on the campaign’s website: http://www.freddypuza.com/contact-us.html.

Freddy Puza is running for City Council in the election to be held Tuesday, November 8, 2022. If elected, he would be the first openly LGBTQIA Culver City Council Member, a historic milestone that would further the city’s reputation for inclusive leadership.

Puza currently serves on Culver City’s General Plan Advisory Committee, formerly served on the city’s Committee on Homelessness, and has participated in numerous local civic groups, including the Fox Hills Neighborhood Association, Protect Culver City Renters, Culver City Democratic Club, Culver City Action Network, Culver City Historical Society, and Leadership Culver City. Puza is part of a small team organizing the Culver City Pride Ride & Rally which will take place on June 26, 2022, and co-organized Culver City’s first Pride Ride and Rally last year.

The campaign has received numerous endorsements from local leaders, including City of Los Angeles Council Member Mike Bonin, Culver City Mayor Dr. Daniel Lee, and Council Members Yasmine-Imani McMorrin and Alex Fisch, CCUSD Board Trustees Dr. Kelly Kent and Paula Amezola, West Hollywood Mayor Pro Tempore Sepi Shyne, West Hollywood Councilmember John Erickson, former Culver City Mayor Meghan Sahli-Wells, former Mayor Gary Silbiger, and former CCUSD Board Trustee Barbara Honig.

The candidate has also received a long list of endorsements from Culver City Board, Commission, and Committee Members, and many endorsements from community supporters. (To see the full list of endorsements, visit http://www.freddypuza.com/endorsements.html.)

“I think the top question people have is, why am I running again?” Puza told a recent gathering. “There is no doubt about it, I’m standing on the shoulders of the progressive leadership that has come before me, and I promise to continue in that direction. I know my platform, rooted in diversity, equity, and inclusion, still strongly resonates with the people of Culver City.”

To learn more or support Freddy’s campaign, please visit FreddyPuza.com.