CHINATOWN: MOVING FORWARD
March 2007 Update

Last June, we sponsored a well-attended Chinatown Summit at the Hawaii Theatre, in which stakeholders offered their ideas on how we can revitalize this bustling and historic part of downtown Honolulu. The ideas were not costly, grand, time-consuming projects to change the face of Chinatown. Rather, these were pragmatic projects to stimulate business, preserve the character of the area, and create the foundation for Chinatown's rebirth as a center for commerce and culture and the arts.

Listed below are accomplishments and progress that has been made on both the Mayor’s Top Initiatives and City projects.

Mayor’s Top Initiatives

Bright Ideas Mini Awards:  We partnered with the Ford Foundation and five of our largest banks--First Hawaiian, Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific, American Savings, and Hawaii National--to create the Bright Ideas contest to encourage small groups to bring about a positive difference in Chinatown.  One of the Bright Ideas award winners hosted "Movie Night in Aala Park” February 23-24 as part of the City and County of Honolulu's Month in Chinatown festivities. The Ford Foundation was so impressed with the City's revitalization efforts that we've been invited to apply for additional funding.

WiFi Access for Chinatown:  In early 2007, we signed a contract with Earthlink, thanks to our Department of Information Technology, to begin the provision of free broadband Internet access to Chinatown for a year.  We expect this service to be operational by May 2007.

Homelessness:  We are seeking a partner and funding to develop a City-owned parcel on River Street, makai of Vineyard Boulevard, into transitional housing to ease Chinatown's homeless problem.

Arts:  The Hawaii Arts Alliance was awarded a $125,000 grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to develop a business plan for another arts incubator in Chinatown.  This will take the underutilized shared-space concept that is working so successfully at the Arts at Marks Garage to another level.

Night-Time Activities:  To encourage more First Friday-type events, the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development provided a $5,000 grant to the Honolulu Culture and Arts District (HCAD).  HCAD, in turn, partnered with the student activities program of Hawaii Pacific University to run a pilot film event on Fort Street Mall. The September 22 event, featuring the award-winning Brazilian film, “Favela Rising,” proved to be a successful model and the organizers have sought additional funds to purchase a portable screen to run more events that will bolster business activity and bring life back to a part of town that is dark after work.

The Mayor’s Office of Economic Development and other City agencies worked with five Chinatown organizations to coordinate the City’s Month in Chinatown, a series of events to celebrate the Chinese New Year.  This public-private collaboration, which brought together formerly separate celebrations, led to better coordination among the sponsoring organizations, a single calendar of events for all the groups, more effective marketing, maximized use of City resources, and, ultimately, a much stronger event than in previous years.  Events included a parade along Hotel Street, an evening of lion dances through the streets of Chinatown, and more than six days and evenings of entertainment, food, and arts at various venues.  The month culminated with the two-day Movie Night in Aala Park.

The organizing committee prepared a 32-page, full-color guidebook for the City’s Month in Chinatown and distributed Year of the Boar ribbons and pins that gave participants a discount at selected participating restaurants and businesses.  This concept was so successful that a visitor to Honolulu took the idea back to the mainland and used it for the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation’s Year of the Boar celebrations this past March.

With support from Hawaiian Electric, HCAD, and the Japan Travel Bureau, OED was able to “Light up Chinatown” for the New Year by stringing colorful red Chinese lanterns along Maunakea and Hotel streets during February and March.

Tourism:  The City’s request for $25,000 from the Hawaii Tourism Authority in FY2007 was approved to help implement the first year of the Oahu Tourism Strategic Plan.

Preserve America Neighborhood:  We have taken advantage of our Preserve America Neighborhood designation, which was announced last year by First Lady Laura Bush, and have applied for a National Park Service Preserve America grant to promote Chinatown. The grant will enable the City and its partners to develop a heritage tourism program with interactive displays, maps, plaques, and informational brochures to encourage residents and visitors to explore and appreciate this historic neighborhood.

Sun Yat-sen Memorial:  The Sun Yat-sen Foundation and other organizations, including the City, are planning events to commemorate the 10-year sister-city relationship with Zhongshan to take place in Fall 2007 to coincide with the November birthday of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the father of modern China.

Dragon Boat Festival:  We increased funding for Dragon Boat Festival planners to $20,000 to ensure that Ala Moana Beach Park becomes the site of a major dragon boat festival.  Our sister-cities and boat associations from all over the world will be invited to the event, scheduled for August 2007.

City and County Projects in Chinatown

Public Safety:  We made anti-crime street lighting improvements along River, Hotel, and Pauahi streets and upgraded eight street lights on Pauahi Street between River and Maunakea Streets.

Pedestrian Safety:  City crews restored the crosswalk on the Diamond Head side of Nuuanu and Pauahi streets in the month following the summit. We're examining methods to improve pedestrian safety along the narrow, busy streets of Chinatown.

Parking:  We are implementing “Project Park Safe” in the Chinatown Gateway parking garage to improve safety in this municipal lot. As a first step, all stairwells have been painted with bright white paint.  New and brighter lighting fixtures will replace old fluorescents and exit signs will be replaced with LEDs.  The selected contractor, AMPCO Electric, is proceeding with the installation of conduits and other infrastructure while the lighting fixtures are being manufactured.  The project will be completed this May, barring any problems with the shipment of the light fixtures from the mainland.

To help residents and visitors find public parking in Chinatown, the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development spearheaded the printing of a parking map using the innovative Z-Card folded system. Included on the back side is a reprint of the City’s Downtown Chinatown historic walking tour.

Sanitation:  The City’s Clean Team--23 members strong--keeps Chinatown and downtown areas looking great with regular water pressure blasting of the sidewalks.  The Department of Environmental Services provides special garbage pick up for commercial establishments, a service not offered in other areas.

Landowner Issues:  We have worked with the State Historic Preservation Office to explore ways to balance historic preservation with project feasibility to make adaptive reuse of Chinatown’s buildings a reality. A key challenge is to maintain the basis for designation while allowing economically viable adaptive reuse.

The City has provided technical assistance to landowners and the HCAD on a façade restoration project for Hotel Street that received a $250,000 grant-in-aid from the 2006 State Legislature.

In the week following the summit, HCAD, in partnership with the Historic Hawaii Foundation, sponsored a two-day forum showcasing the innovative ways that the Downtown Denver Partnership has helped nonprofit organizations, area businesses, landowners, and the public sector work together.  The HCAD president stated, “The Chinatown Summit was a great stepping point to gather people together, but we must follow with private initiatives to ensure that the excitement is sustained.  Now is the time to learn from the experience of other communities that have successfully turned the corner.”

Many of the landowners who attended the forum have joined together in a Landowners Group to continue dialogue and plan.  In November, the City’s Director of Planning and Permitting met with this landowner group in to provide information and offer assistance.