Colorado Boulevard Goes Car-Free on November 15. Here's How Pasadena's Biggest Fall Weekend Fits Together.

When did you last walk down the middle of Colorado Boulevard without a parade going by? For most of the city the answer is May 2015, the last time Pasadena and the nonprofit CicLAvia closed the street to cars for a day. The second time is Sunday, November 15, from 9am to 3pm. CicLAvia's event page calls it the group's 69th event: nearly 3 miles of open streets plus about 2 more miles of pop-up bike lanes.

Pasadena is also using the day as a rehearsal, paying to see how its main street handles a crowd that arrives by train, on foot and on two wheels. That purpose shaped the route, the hubs and the timing.

A Summer Event That Became a Rehearsal

The City Council accepted a $500,000 Metro Open and Slow Streets grant in July, Pasadena Now reported. The council also approved a $330,000 contract with CicLAvia and set aside the city's required $240,000 match, against an estimated total cost of $740,000.

The event was meant for summer. It moved to November because construction on Metro's North Hollywood-to-Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit project made a summer date impractical. The city picked a Sunday to keep traffic impacts down. City officials said the day doubles as a large-scale test of transportation planning, crowd management and public safety ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, when the Rose Bowl is expected to host Olympic competition. A second grant already covers another Open Streets event planned for 2028.

The map changed between July and now. In the summer proposal the route ran from DeLacey Avenue to Bonnie Avenue, with Raymond Avenue closed between Walnut Street and Del Mar Avenue. The final 2.7-mile route, published in the City of Pasadena's latest update, is Colorado Boulevard from Pasadena Avenue to Allen Avenue plus Raymond Avenue from Pacific Alley to Dayton Street. It runs through Old Pasadena, Playhouse Village and the South Lake area. The city also ties the date to Colorado Boulevard's 150th anniversary and the Route 66 centennial.

The Clock Starts Hours Before 9am

On paper the event runs 9am to 3pm. If your car is on the street, the hours that count for you are different:

• 4am. Parking on the route is banned until 5pm, and towing starts at 4am.
• 6am. Streets near the two hubs may close this early.
• 7am. The whole route closes to cars.
• 9am to 3pm. Open streets. There is no start or finish line, so you can join or leave anywhere.
• 3pm. Towed cars are held at the Pasadena Police Department, 207 Garfield Avenue. If you don't pick yours up by 3pm, it goes to impound.
• About 5pm. Streets are expected to be fully open again.

Look closely at that tow window. A car parked on Colorado overnight on Saturday can be towed before sunrise, and the pickup deadline comes during the event, while the boulevard is still closed. CicLAvia's general business participation page says driveways on a route may stay blocked until 6pm, an hour later than the Pasadena page says. If you have a driveway on Colorado or Raymond, check again the week of the event. People who live or work right on the route and pay to park somewhere else can get up to $20 per vehicle back, with receipts, if they submit within 30 days.

Cars can still cross the route at six major intersections, and side streets stay open for local access. Those six crossings appear only on the downloadable route map. If you have a Sunday drive across town, check the map before you go. CicLAvia's general guidance says every bus on a route is detoured and suggests checking your stop on Saturday for posted notices.

Raymond Avenue Is the Hinge

Since the whole event is a test of arriving without a car, the short Raymond Avenue spur matters more than its length suggests. Streetsblog LA described it as a short Raymond leg connected to Memorial Park Station. The Memorial Park and Del Mar A Line stations are both less than a tenth of a mile from the route. Lake and Allen stations are about 0.4 miles away, and Fillmore is 0.8.

The Memorial Park Hub, at 145 N Raymond Avenue, is the western of the two activity hubs. Both hubs have water refill stations, ADA restrooms, first aid, basic bike repair, bike parking and first-come, first-served pedicabs. LAist plans a booth at Memorial Park with giveaways and a listener meet-and-greet.

A few blocks south on Raymond, Jackalope Indie Artisan Fair fills Central Park at 275 S. Raymond Avenue on Saturday and Sunday, November 14 and 15, from 10am to 4pm. Admission is free, and organizers expect more than 200 hand-selected makers selling jewelry, paper goods, home goods, art and food. Old Pasadena's event listing invites Sunday visitors to do both. The whole weekend starts Friday night at the Rose Bowl, where UCLA plays Illinois at 6pm on November 13.

If you want to drive, Saturday is the easy Jackalope day. If you can walk to Central Park or take a quick ride on the A Line, Sunday puts the fair and the open boulevard on the same block.

East of Lake, a Different Day

The east end of the route has its own anchor. The Colorado Hub sits at 1778 E Colorado Boulevard, near Allen Avenue, with the same water, restroom and repair setup as Memorial Park. According to CicLAvia, the ride from Pasadena Avenue and Colorado to that hub is 2.3 miles. Going end to end is a short ride but a long walk.

Past the hub, a 1-mile "Slow Streets" segment continues on Colorado from Allen Avenue to San Gabriel Boulevard. It uses cones and signage to give bikes their own lane, linking East Colorado to the Lamanda Park neighborhood. A second Slow Streets connector runs west along Walnut Avenue from Raymond to Orange Grove Boulevard and continues to Rosemont Avenue. These lanes are not car-free. They are the city testing what a protected bike connection on these streets feels like.

Local businesses along the route have signed up with day-of offers listed on the event page:

• The Bar Method Pasadena is offering a free class pass.
• Bokãos Aveda will do sidewalk consultations and take 15% off.
• Carbon Health will have water, Liquid IV, first-aid supplies and priority clinic care.
• Jenette Bras will give $50 gift certificates to the first 10 attendees and take 15% off sports garments.
• Strong Sports Gym will run mini lessons.
• Tea Spots will take 10% off items for Pasadena residents.

What the City Is Measuring

Both business districts on the route are behind the day. Pasadena Now reported support from the Old Pasadena Management District and the Playhouse Village Association, and Councilmember Justin L. Jones urged businesses to take part. That report also cited a UCLA study of a 2013 CicLAvia on Wilshire. The study found sales 10% higher that day across businesses on the route, and 57% higher among businesses that engaged attendees. The Pasadena Star-News reported that Mayor Victor Gordo framed the day around community connection, local business and active transportation.

On November 15, the city will be watching both spending along a closed Colorado Boulevard and how well a large crowd moves through the Memorial Park and Del Mar stations. City officials have described the day as a rehearsal for crowd management ahead of the 2028 Games, and a second Open Streets event is already funded for that year.

For a Sunday plan, take the A Line to Memorial Park around 10am. Walk south on Raymond to Jackalope, then head east on Colorado toward the Allen Avenue hub before streets reopen around 5pm.

If you live along the route, or own a rental there, and want to talk through how days like this show up for tenants, parking and showings, Mounika Haftavani knows these corridors block by block. Schedule a free consultation, and let's talk about your next move.