About

CONTACT US – Come on by when we are open or give us a call – preferably during open hours. Email is not the best bet with this crowd.

MISSION

Community Bikes is a reuse and repair training program operated by LITE Initiatives. Founded in 2003, Community Bikes’ mission is to promote the use of bicycles as environmentally friendly alternatives to automobiles, and to teach all comers –  regardless of age, skill level or financial status, to safely maintain, repair and reuse bikes and bike equipment. We offer DIY classes and clinics, provide low cost repair and accept quality bikes, parts and accessories donations which we restore and sell to the public.

In these efforts, we collaborate with the Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition and Santa Rosa Cycling Club as well as all of the groups listed on our Associated Groups List.

The majority of the bikes are donated by individuals, though many are picked up from agencies and businesses such as the City of Santa Rosa, Sonoma County Sheriff, Sonoma County Transit and local bike shops. For example, REI donated 20 recalled BMX bikes with their frames cut in half which were disassembled and the parts inventoried by young volunteers.

All of our work to date has been funded by sales, volunteer work and donations of money and reusables, plus small grants from the Sonoma County Community Foundation, REI, Northern California Environmental Grassroots Fund, Whole Foods Market Sebastopol, Bread For the Journey – Sebastopol and a small project grant from the Sonoma County Office of Education. Currently seeking expansion funding, LITE has a number of grant applications in development.

Thousands of people visit the shop and attend Community Bikes events. In 200x, an average of 50 bikes per month are processed one way or another. Catholic Charities, Interlink Self Help Center, The Middle Way, Green Acres Boys Home, New Ways To Work and Analy High School’s Student Commute Program have all benefited, and training classes are being planned or have been conducted for Analy High School, Green Acres and Catholic Charities’ homeless shelter. Click our Associated Groups List – to see our Benefactors, Participating Agencies, Collaborating Groups and Beneficiaries.

HISTORY
Founded in 2003, the Community Bikes was initially a collaboration of LITE and The Middle Way, a job training center for developmentally disabled adults. The shop, operated solely by LITE since 2005, moved to unincorporated west Santa Rosa in December 2005. Now open 5 days a week, it is one of a handful of bicycle shops serving western Santa Rosa and West Sonoma County.