Chinatown redevelopment plan 2019

[BAKGUY]

Any thoughts on the proposal to properly redevelop Chinatown? It needs help. Some nice things are The Mandarin, Dynasty buildings and some of the lamp posts and phone booths from the 80's as well as the gardens in from on Dynasty bldg. The rest is bleak.

[pspeid]

^^ I think it's an important first step to let people know 1) the area hasn't been forgotten and 2) there is the potential for it to develop into a nice little area.

[BAKGUY]

Originally Posted by pspeid

^^ I think it's an important first step to let people know 1) the area hasn't been forgotten and 2) there is the potential for it to develop into a nice little area.

Agreed. It seems forgotten the last 2 decades. Especially since Shanghai was torn down a few years ago and back when Wong's complex burned down, not much happening. So much potential especially for tourism as well as for nearby Exchange residents and locals.Nothing new in shops nor eateries for years now. There are less places now than after the last redevelopment. The timing is ripe for this to happen. Looking forward to it.For sure there will need to be more streetscaping and an incentive to open future businesses catering to those who seek Asian and Chinese foods and goods here rather than on Pembina etc....

[The Jabroni]

It's definitely a prime area for redevolopment and restoration.

I mean, the nearby RRC Roblin Campus kickstarted development 15 years ago, but that has slowed down locally after that since.

This plan will be another boost to the area. East Exchange has seen and will continue to grow. The Northwest Exchange time to shine is now.

[buzzg]

^Are you saying that RRC expansion has slowed down? Because they built the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute, and now they're building a big new building immediately north of the Roblin Centre as we speak.

The Boyce Lofts of Ross are almost completely full now, a lot of Skip employees live in there. I'm sure the developers will start looking to do more right around there, this project seems to have been a slam dunk. It's fantastic.

Also, while there's obviously lots of empty lots in Chinatown, the restaurants and shops that are there (and there's quite a few) are busy all the time. That bakery is incredible.

I don't find it that crazy to imagine a fairly quick "turnaround" if we can get one or two solid mixed-use developments in the area. The Dynasty building is designed perfectly from the sidewalk, and most of the units are occupied already. Forthcoming Marketlands developments and somehow getting a better streetfront presence out of 185 King street, would make a huge difference.

[esquire]

I'm not that optimistic about Chinatown's prospects because I don't think much of the Chinese community really cares that much. To recent arrivals, what is Chinatown besides a small cluster of restaurants on the edge of a dodgy part of town?

You look at Edmonton and Calgary's Chinatowns and they're small, but they at least have a critical mass and can attract investment. Ours simply doesn't have that.

That said, I do think the area has the potential to build on the Exchange District's success. I would be looking more at younger people and Exchange District workers for growth than I would be towards Chinese immigrants. And I suppose, to buzzg's point, it wouldn't necessarily take all that much to improve the area's feel. One decent new building on the Shanghai Restaurant site (it wouldn't even have to be big... even something three or four storeys) would dramatically alter the empty, windswept void feeling that currently predominates in the area.

[BAKGUY]

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/lo...509852842.html

https://hot1005fm.com/winnipegs-chin...ting-makeover/

[esquire]

One of Chinatown's few remaining retailers prepares to close its doors:

Oriental Market shutting its doors after 43 years

Chinatown has turned from ‘good to worse,’ owner says. ‘I’m really sad to leave this community’

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/bu...after-43-years

[trueviking]

China what?

[Luisito]

Originally Posted by esquire

One of Chinatown's few remaining retailers prepares to close its doors:

Oriental Market shutting its doors after 43 years

Chinatown has turned from ‘good to worse,’ owner says. ‘I’m really sad to leave this community’

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/bu...after-43-years

That's unfortunate. When I moved to WInnipeg i was happy to see there was a Chinatown here. I thought it would grow but it's sad to see it actually slowly disappearing.

[1ajs]

Originally Posted by Luisito

That's unfortunate. When I moved to WInnipeg i was happy to see there was a Chinatown here. I thought it would grow but it's sad to see it actually slowly disappearing.

its migrated to pemida

[Jeff]

chinatown is about as nuanced of a concept as corydon being called little italy these days.

[thurmas]

its odd how our china town is not the real chinatown as the area around the uofm is.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by thurmas

its odd how our china town is not the real chinatown as the area around the uofm is.

It was the real deal at one time, it has just faded away as a new one has taken its place.

As I understand it, the old one was mostly people who left Hong Kong and Taiwan and came here decades ago, but the newer one around the U of M is mostly more recent immigrants from mainland China.

[Luisito]

I love the old school inner city Chinatowns. Not a huge fan of the newer strip mall Chinatowns

Has the area on south Pembina been officially designated as Chinatown?

[esquire]

^ No official designation. Honestly, I would be fine with letting the old one's official designation fade into history. I'm sure there must be some disappointed visitors who read about "Winnipeg's Chinatown" in the visitors guide and go there to check it out, only to stumble upon a couple of restaurants and not much else.

[thebasketballgeek]

Chinatown is dead let’s face it.

Add a T&T Market next to the superstore on Bison, develop the land on the southeast portion of the Bison and Waverley intersection with high density mixed use housing and voila there’s our new “Chinatown” (with much more diversity then traditional Chinatowns).

As for the area in Downtown, well it really comes down to developing the Marketlands because it should be a strong enough catalyst to induce development northward.

Also, does anyone know how occupied that apartment at Logan/Princess is? It should be a good tell to see if there is demand too live in that area.

[thebasketballgeek]

Chinatown is dead let’s face it.

Add a T&T Market next to the superstore on Bison, develop the land on the southeast portion of the Bison and Waverley intersection with high density mixed use housing and voila there’s our new “Chinatown” (with much more diversity then traditional Chinatowns).

As for the area in Downtown, well it really comes down to developing the Marketlands because it should be a strong enough catalyst to induce development northward.

Also, does anyone know how occupied that apartment at Logan/Princess is? It should be a good tell to see if there is demand too live in that area. Also 2 bdr starting at $1270 is pretty good value in such a central location for a new build.

[NewIreland]

Originally Posted by thebasketballgeek

Chinatown is dead let’s face it.

Add a T&T Market next to the superstore on Bison, develop the land on the southeast portion of the Bison and Waverley intersection with high density mixed use housing and voila there’s our new “Chinatown” (with much more diversity then traditional Chinatowns).

As for the area in Downtown, well it really comes down to developing the Marketlands because it should be a strong enough catalyst to induce development northward.

Also, does anyone know how occupied that apartment at Logan/Princess is? It should be a good tell to see if there is demand too live in that area. Also 2 bdr starting at $1270 is pretty good value in such a central location for a new build.

70% Occupancy... slow but steady.

[WinCitySparky]

Originally Posted by NewIreland

70% Occupancy... slow but steady.

That seems pretty good for a building that just finished up in the last year