SEATTLE'S CHINATOWN-INTERNATIONAL DISTRICT

(Excerpts from Hou and Tanner, 2002)

Settled over time by predominantly Chinese, Japanese, Filipino and Vietnamese immigrants, the Chinatown-International District is one of Seattle's richest cultural landscapes. Bisected by Interstate Highway 5 (I-5) and sandwiched between hulking sports stadiums and encroaching downtown skyscrapers, the District is also a symbol of a community's fight against urban renewal and gentrification. Since the 1880s, the neighborhood has been a reception area for multiple waves of Asian immigrants making it, today, a multicultural Asian community. Due to its ethnic diversity, the Chinatown-International District is also a place where multiple cultural identities are forged and compete for expression and power.

A Multiethnic Community

First established in late 1800s, Seattle's Chinatown-International District is characteristic of the historic ethnic enclaves. However, unlike Chinatowns and minority neighborhoods in other cities, it is unique as historic multi-ethnic neighborhood resulted from successive waves of immigration. Since the late 1880s, Chinatown and Nihonmachi (Japantown) developed side by side. Chinese and Japanese-owned restaurants, hotels and other businesses flourished in the area as Seattle became the hub of Asian immigration in the Pacific Northwest (Chin, 2001). Filipinos, starting in the early 1930s, began to immigrate to Seattle. The majority of Filipinos lived in Seattle seasonally, spending the summers in Alaskan canneries and the winters in the District. Starting in the 1920s, a significant African American community also resided in the District adding to the diversity of cultures.

Economic Decline

However, by the 1950s, the Japanese American community had all but disappeared from the area as a result of the internment during World War II. After the War, few Japanese returned to live in the district and only a handful of Japanese businesses reopened. For the Chinese American community, World War II brought increased levels of economic and social mobility. However, as the hotels and family association buildings that had served as home for single men for over 50 years were not fit for families to live in, many Chinese began to seek housing outside of the District in the neighboring Central District and Beacon Hill areas (Chin, 2001: 73). As a result, the District became primarily a community of poor and aging bachelors living in substandard single resident occupancy (SRO) hotels. With few exceptions, the buildings in Chinatown have not been upgraded since they were first erected (Chin, 2001: 74). By late 1960s, the business conditions in the area also stagnated as the regional economy soured (Chin, 2001: 80).

Newcomers and Developments

In recent years, the District continued to experience major changes that brought new tension and contestation. In the area immediately east of I-5, a growing Vietnamese business area called Little Saigon now replaced a formerly abandoned industrial area. In the area west of the core Chinatown area, new office towers housing companies including the Amazon.com represented the latest encroachment of downtown development. The ubiquitous-looking office towers challenged the traditional and historic character as well as the pattern of social and commercial activities in the District.

Urban Revitalization

In the past decades, efforts have been undertaken by local community organizations to renovate historic buildings for affordable housing. Many social service organizations have been established to assist residents and new immigrants in the District. More recently, in the face of encroaching developments as well as the needs for economic revitalization and physical improvement, an effort has been underway to develop an urban design master plan for the District including the Little Saigon. The project envisions plans for streetscape and open space improvement, design guidelines for new development and a review of current land use.

Historic buildings in Chinatown
Community Institution - Chinese Benevolent Association
Non-profit housing and social service development
New grocery market in Little Saigon
Buildings in disrepair
Mural depicting immigrant history
Children's art at Union Station
Dragon Poles: public art project to boost community identity
Encroaching downtown office development
Summer festival in Chinatown-International District
King Street - heart of Chinatown
Storefront at historic Kong Yick Building
Architectural heritage
Abandoned storefront
Small business in the District
Painted columns under the freeway the divides the community
New office plaza in the District
Danny Woo Garden

References:

Hou, Jeffrey and Amy Tanner. 2002. Constructed Identities and Contested Space in Seattle's Chinatown-International District. CELA 2002 Proceedings.

Chin, Doug. 2001. Seattle's International District: The Making of a Pan-Asian American Community. Seattle: International Examiner Press.

Photographs: Jeffrey Hou ©2002