As Chinatown goes, so go the neighbourhoods -- and the buzz

[SpikePhanta]

There quite a few assaults in the chinatown area especially taking advantage of seniors.
And of course I heard that there are a few illegal gangs operating at times in chinatown.

[Alex Mackinnon]

In addition to the above average property crime levels...
I've had binners even try to take a 30-40lb plant pot from my house.

[ckkelley]

Originally Posted by Conrad Yablonski

What crime?

Since when is Chinatown a crime ridden area?

Please explain.

It's probably a reference to the collateral effect of the DTES.

[Locked In]

Interesting article on CBC - not really sure where to put it, but this thread seems appropriate:

'Food street' envisioned for Vancouver's Chinatown
CBC News
Posted: Dec 22, 2011 6:21 AM PT
Last Updated: Dec 22, 2011 6:19 AM PT

A plan is afoot in Vancouver’s Chinatown to make one block of Keefer Street a traffic-free pedestrian zone filled with restaurants and food stalls.

One of the biggest proponents of the idea is Tony Lam, of the Vancouver Chinatown Merchants Association.

"Lots of tourists talked to me, ‘Where's the go-to restaurant?’ ‘Where's the good restaurant in Chinatown,’’ said Lam. “We still have quite a few, but it's not enough."

Lam wants to close the 100-block of Keefer to traffic and pack it with a variety of eating spots.

The idea of a food street has already been tried successfully in Richmond’s Alexandra Road, where hungry visitors can get all sorts of Asian and fusion cuisine.

It's done wonders for the area, according to Tracy Lakeman, of Tourism Richmond.

"We have discovered that one of the best things about Richmond for a visitor is to come and experience the Asian culture," Lakeman said.

The concept could work well alongside plans to revitalize Chinatown, with highrises proposed for two corners at Main and Keefer.

Business and cultural groups like the food-street idea, but a longtime activist says it could spell disaster if new restaurants were to squeeze out those who live in some 200 low-income housing units nearby.

"We need to make sure that no one loses their housing, no one loses their food security at the cost of development for people who have a lot of money," said Ivan Drury, of the Carnegie Community Action Project.

But it appears no one would be imminently threatened by the plan.

Backers say it will take five to 10 years before the food-street project is implemented.

With files from the CBC's Ayesha Bhatty

Source: CBC

[racc]

^^^^
Great idea! I often go there and have thought that it would make a great car-free street. Not much car traffic, lots of peds, narrow sidewalks and lots happening.

[red-paladin]

"We should improve things" -Vancouver Chinatown Merchants Association
"But then it won't be a ghetto anymore!" -Carnegie Community Action Project

[Sir Conga]

Maybe I'm alone, but I would really like to see all the store fronts in Chinatown used effectively before we go to a plan such as this. It is a great plan... but there are plenty of unused restaurant spaces all over Chinatown.

[jlousa]

I could support the idea, but I think the Chinatown BIA needs to stop looking at one solution cure all. They tried this with the parkade, then the night market now this. This will not fix Chinatown. They need to take a lot of little steps and it will take time.

[s211]

Originally Posted by jlousa

I could support the idea, but I think the Chinatown BIA needs to stop looking at one solution cure all. They tried this with the parkade, then the night market now this. This will not fix Chinatown. They need to take a lot of little steps and it will take time.

Thank you. Your response to this proposal is the best so far.

[racc]

Originally Posted by jlousa

I could support the idea, but I think the Chinatown BIA needs to stop looking at one solution cure all. They tried this with the parkade, then the night market now this. This will not fix Chinatown. They need to take a lot of little steps and it will take time.

The article said this would take 5-10 years. No worries about them moving too fast. I would expect that this is not their only idea.

[EastVanMark]

That area is screaming for something drastic. With the advent of modern Asian super-malls in Richmond, the community is going to have to come up with something a little bit more advanced than the "lipstick on a pig" solutions they have come up with lately. This latest idea is just more of the same. Ask any young Asian and they will tell you that Vancouver's Chinatown is for "old people" while Richmond is the destination for the young.

A top-notch Chinese restaurant or restaurants open 24 hrs or very late would go a long way to revitalizing the scene there at night. Once upon a time Chinatown was the go-to place for eating after hours (along with a whole host of other after hours activities) after bar closing hours. Stories out of there during that time period was the stuff of legend. Now the area is largely a dead zone at night. Sad really. Especially considering the modern demographic make-up of Vancouver. Now that isn't going to solve everything but it's a start.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by red-paladin

"We should improve things" -Vancouver Chinatown Merchants Association
"But then it won't be a ghetto anymore!" -Carnegie Community Action Project

I agree - the biggest problem with Chinatown is its location - a block off Hastings.

Even a development like International Village with a "drasticly" big modern shopping centre couldn't overcome the location. Even the big pedestrian generator that is Rogers Arena can't draw them over. People shy away from the area.
Gastown is lucky in that it's largely 2 blocks away from Hastings.

It'll be interesting to see how the restaurant/retail in Woodward's fares over time. SFU and the large scale residential could be the saving grace for them (although residential doesn't provide daytime retail traffic (i.e. look at the retail turnover in Yaletown)).

I think the most drasticly beneficial project would be the construction of office space to generate daytime restaurant/retail traffic.