Great work by residents. But next time they need to have a more organized force to keep the city at bay, bring in the media, call their reps in the city council, etc.
You can’t beat the government in force but you can embarrass them until they give up.
If your “community event” has such a high carbon cost of needlessly burning fossil fuels and destroying tires, not to mention the noise pollution and safety aspects, maybe it’s time to find a new community event.
Why not a street take over of bicycles? How about meeting up at a third space like a park, bar or cafe? What about collectively doing some tactical urbanism to improve your community - paint some crosswalks, add bollards to force pedestrianization.