Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Protecting Chinatown

From the NY Times:

Over the last few years, new construction in Chinatown — by both Chinese and non-Chinese investors — has increased as the neighborhood has felt spillover development pressures from TriBeCa, the Lower East Side and NoLIta. In total, the Community Development Project of the Urban Justice Center and the Chinatown Justice Project of the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence, which conducted the survey in 2008, counted 25 new hotels, 118 new high-end priced boutiques and cafes and 26 luxury residential buildings in Chinatown, which it defined with borders along Franklin D. Roosevelt Drive, Pearl Street, Worth Street, Broadway and a jagged boundary to the north.

Though Chinatown has evolved greatly throughout New York City’s history, the advocates argue that the pro-development stance of the Bloomberg administration has created an unprecedented crisis in affordability in the neighborhood. While a broad swath of the Lower East Side has been rezoned over the last three years, advocates also felt that the process should also have included Chinatown. Part of the fear is that Chinatown, particularly the Bowery, would receive the brunt of the development pressures displaced from the Lower East Side.


Photo from sayheypatrick on Flickr

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Chinatown is already 1/2 gone.
You can no longer find $25 Rolex's, Good Ginsing or even firecrackers on Chinese New Year.

Anonymous said...

It's Ginseng.

But you can certainly sing if you drink enough Gin.

Anonymous said...

The longer term plan is to kill two birds with one stone.

Clean out Chinatown for yuppie development thereby pushing
thousands more Chinese into already over-packed Flushing completing the job of driving out its remaining African-American residents that first began 20 years ago.

Some shady (but you've gotta hand it to 'em) skillful plotting!

And what if they eventually run out of space in "bustling" downtown F-Liu-xhing?

That's what the proposed Willets Point "residential" portion of the development is for... complete with Claire Shulman's new waterfront access bridge!

Bingo....
TDC has surely hit the jackpot and that jackass Shulman has probably got a hefty cut from all this!

I wonder if TDC will be building some luxury high rises in Manhattan's Chinatown too.

After all isn't Wellington Chen
now involved with the Chinatown Partnership?

Bravo...Little Duke of Wellington!

Anonymous said...

Though Chinatown has evolved greatly throughout New York City’s history, the advocates argue that the pro-development stance of the Bloomberg administration has created an unprecedented crisis in affordability in the neighborhood.

umm... what about Chinatown in Flushing? Maybe someone wants to do something about that spreading plague that endangers non-Asian Flushing - but oh no! we only care about displacement of minorities and endangered minority communities!

Anonymous said...

That's step#3....
Chinatown/Flushing spreading east up to Little Neck with all of its "lovely" sights and smells!

Don't you just love a "bustling" community a euphemism for low class living!

Anonymous said...

It wouldn't be so bad if the sophisticated high class Chinese from Shanghai had come to Flushing.

But we had the bad luck to get those low class Fujienese and, of course,
those "high class" folks from Taiwan!

Anonymous said...

Why dont you think the machine wants to landmark Broadway Flushing?

That crowd you had over the weekend did not look like the faces they wanted to see.

Anonymous said...

What's Broadway/Flushing got to do with the issues being discussed?

However, those faces you're talking about in Sunday's rally represent only about 250 of the 2,000 votes that Bloomberg will need from this nabe if he plans on getting re-elected

He'll have to face up to that.

I think he'll convince LPC to reconsider.

And by the way, old sport,
this area has quite a diverse mix of people.

You obviously don't live anywhere nearby otherwise you wouldn't be so misinformed.

Anonymous said...

Wait. Eight comments and no mention of "illegal aliens?"

After all, Chinatown's full of them. And since so many comments on this site involve hatred toward those disgusting illegals, I was preparing for a treat.

Or is it just the brown ones? I'm confused.

Anonymous said...

And since so many comments on this site involve hatred toward those disgusting illegals, I was preparing for a treat.
---

My oh my oh my. And what backward mud puddle did you waddle out of?

In this country a citizen can express their views. Now they might not be running for office and don't need to pander, or they might not be running for office and don't need donations to make them sing the song you might want to hear, but you know what?

That is tough.

If you don't like it, you can always go back to where you came from.

Not a betting person but I would wager you are staying put.

Anonymous said...

Funny to remember that back in the eighties and early nineties, Italians down there were complaining that the growth of China Town was encroaching on Little Italy....Seems now that The Yuppie is might-er than all.

Anonymous said...

I once watched the immigration deptartment make a raid on a Davis St, sweat shop in L.I.C.

Half of the building ran to the roof
trying to escape capture but to no avail because they were promptly scooped up.

That was in the old days way back in "1985 BB"(before Bloomberg).

Today the clubhouse advocates voting rights for illegals!

You can't blame them for following the Boss Tweed political handbook.

When you run out of old voters to con... just import some new ones!

Anonymous said...

And Chinatown also includes plenty of Chinese families who have been in New York since before the Civil War. Asian doesn't necessarily equal foreign.

The Chinese also have some of the highest rates of graduation from college and represent a disproportionate number of our doctors, scientists and engineers. Credit where credit is due.