For just today, you can buy a highly discounted gift certificate for a bike tour from Wheelhouse Detroit.

Since cheetah-shoes don’t exist yet, bicycles remain the best way to tour a city. Dust off your sightseeing muscles for today’s Groupon: for $15, you get your choice of bike tour and bike rental with Wheelhouse Detroit (a $35 value). Conveniently located at Rivard Plaza on the Detroit RiverWalk, Wheelhouse has been featured in the New York Times and was voted a top cycle shop in Detroit by CityVoters. This Groupon is only valid for tours and bike rentals that cost $35 total.

Link: Wheelhouse Detroit bike tour discount on Groupon

The Bike Porn Film Festival is coming to Detroit.

Hastings Street Ballroom: The , 2010 Bike Porn Film Festivalfor ages 21 and up. 9:30 p.m. Fri. 715 E. Milwaukee, Detroit. 313-873-2955. $4-$6.

The film poster with additional details is on-line (and not safe for work.)

The Southwest Detroit Business Association (SDBA) is inviting people to a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Cinco de Mayo marks the opening of the Pediestrian Bridge connecting East and West Mexicantown.

Come down to the MDOT Welcome Center on Bagley, May 5, 2010 to mark this historic occasion! Event starts at 1:00 PM, with the official opening ceremony at 2:00 PM.

Come to celebrate the historic opening, Stay for a margarita!

How can you saw no? This much anticipated bridge will be opening in Mexicantown on Cinco de Mayo.

As part of their Earth Day coverage, CNN’s article Pedal power is fueling green awareness mentioned the Cass Green Gym in Detroit.

At the Cass Community Social Services in Detroit, the residents who are homeless, in transitional or temporary housing, never expressed any interest in environmental issues before.

“Homeless people don’t care about polar bears,” said the Rev. Faith Fowler, the organization’s executive director. “They care about jobs and health.”

But this year, the center introduced 10 stationary bikes (purchased through a donor) that send power back into the building. Residents became hooked.

They started asking, “Can we start a garden and can we start composting?”

Ninia Cobb, a 43-year-old resident, said the bikes give her two goals: to lose weight and to give back energy.

“I’m not going to light up a whole building by myself,” she said. “I feel like I’m helping the energy thing when you ride it. It feels good.”

The bikes attracted local cycling enthusiasts and youth groups into the center too.

“They care about the planet, but they didn’t care about the homeless,” Fowler said. “They’re sitting shoulder-to-shoulder to someone who has been homeless for two to three years, they sit and talk, and they’re both acting as problem solvers.”

The residents may not care about polar bears, but they might be more interested in biking as a lower cost means of transportation.

Stories like this reinforce how cycling has diverse appeal and benefit.

A press release from Cass Community Social Services adds:

The Green Gym is the nation’s first workout facility created specifically for homeless men, women and children. The grand opening of the Green Gym will mark a revolutionary step by Cass to improve its carbon footprint, reduce its energy costs and improve the quality of life for Detroit’s most at-risk citizens.

Initially, access to the Green Gym will be limited to the 240 men, women and children who live in Cass facilities, Cass 100 staff members and the organization’s loyal volunteers. The Green Gym will be staffed by volunteers and open six days a week, closed on Sundays. Plans include offering fitness classes.

And it wouldn’t be surprising to hear about some group bike rides starting at the Gym this summer… Anyone in?

Today was a big day. Another greenway in Detroit — the Midtown Loop — was officially under construction starting this week and there was a celebration on the lawn of the Detroit Institute of Arts.

From this UCCA/CFSEM press release:

Construction is underway on the Midtown Greenway, a four phase, two-mile greenway trail that will circle through Detroit’s University Cultural Center, Wayne State University and Medical Center and Brush Park districts.

Today at a press conference held at the Detroit Institute of the Arts, organizers officially broke ground to signify the start of the first of four phases of construction. When completed, the linked trails will provide eight miles of continuous greenways, enabling people to go from Wayne State University through the Eastern Market to the Detroit Riverfront.

“One of our main goals with the development of the Midtown Greenway is to reclaim the rights-of-way for pedestrians by creating a widened walkway, improving ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) crosswalks, and adding pedestrian traffic signals,” said University Cultural Center Association President Susan Mosey. “By adding such amenities along the route as outdoor seating, pocket parks and pet-friendly features, this trail will contribute to the quality of life and the lifestyle of the community.”

Mosey noted that only the first phase (Kirby and John R) is under construction and should be completed this year. She expects the Canfield segment construction will begin this fall with the Cass section beginning in 2011. The entire loop should be ready to go by the end of next year.

But that’s not all. The UCCA is also working on non-motorized connections to the Dequindre Cut.

And as we’ve noted before, this greenway is geared towards pedestrians and slower cycling. Commuters and faster cyclists may prefer sticking to the streets. This is similar to the current RiverWalk vs. Atwater tradeoff.

TellUsDetroit.com did some excellent interviews which are now on-line.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE6F3tBx17U&feature=player_embedded

One highlight? Sunny Jacob from Traffic Engineering explaining this project’s focus on Complete Streets and livable communities — something the city of Detroit is now pushing.

This project is all about making the street safe and walkable for all uses… and its the new concept called Complete Streets. We are pushing forward with the city of Detroit to make new communities and make them user friendly for all the uses.

Secretary LaHood — Detroit’s talking the talk and would make an excellent candidate for the next round of federal TIGER (as well as ACT) funding.

We’ve uploaded a video of Al Fields speech. Al is Mayor Bing’s Group Executive for Planning, a very active cyclist, and the one you should thank for Detroit’s first bike lanes (on Belle Isle.)