Afternoon rains don’t put damper on those enjoying Sunday Streets
What started as a game of hopscotch ended as puddle jumping as familiar rains returned to Houston during the Cigna Sunday Streets event in the Museum District.
“It’s rain or shine,” said LaSonja Monroe-Polk, Cigna spokesperson. “We had a good two hours of really good participation of people coming out in the community before the rain set in. It was good to get the community out, especially with the hard weekend we had last week.”
Sunday Streets rotates through six Houston neighborhoods a year, closing down streets so attendees can get out, explore and be more active. Three are held in the spring and another three in the fall.
The rain didn’t stop nearby resident Helen Chen, 40, and her 6-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter from coming out and staying out, even after the showers.
“I attend a few of them,” said Chen, who follows Cigna Sunday Street’s Face- book page and gets event notifications. “It’s fun. It’s more fun for the kids when it rains. I enjoy watching them. We live close by, so if we got wet we just went home, changed and came back.”
Street closures are needed to make Sunday Streets happen, meaning a barricade of traffic cones on some streets and police officers on others, which may be a headache for those travelling the area. But for local businesses the event is an overall good thing, MonroePolk said.
“We try to keep it really organic with the vendors coming out, with the food trucks,” Monroe-Polk said. “We really try to pull in the businesses in the community and the area, to get them exposed and open up their patio and have special drinks or meal available for the people.”
Despite having a profitable afternoon, the area for the latest event isn’t as conducive to foot traffic, vendor and East End Bike Ride representative Judith Cruz Villarreal said.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t have a huge turnout,” Cruz Villarreal said. “In the East End we had a big turnout. (Even without) the rain, it hasn’t been that great. I think there isn’t enough shops and vendors out. Normally they do it in an area where it’s more concentrated with vendors and stores. The museum area is awesome, but it’s so separated.”
Chen said some neighborhoods are better than others for the event.
“We do enjoy this event, especially in the downtown east side,” she said. “It’s good for bike rides, for (a) jog, and I enjoy here, but it’s too short. For people having bikes, I don’t really think they’d pay a trip here — for people walking around, yes.”
The Heights will be the next neighborhood to host Sunday Streets, with the event scheduled for May 22.