Chinatown business owners in Los Angeles fear they may be displaced after a new developer purchased the building they operate in, Los Angeles Downtown News reports.
The Dynasty Center is located in Los Angeles’ Chinatown at 800 N. Broadway. It is home to over 100 shopkeepers, Spectrum News reports. In July, an urban commercial real estate developer called Redcar Ltd purchased the building.
Redcar Ltd has purchased another property in Chinatown called The Shop. They evicted storeowners from The Shop and redeveloped the properties into office space. Businesses at the Dynasty Center fear the same thing may happen to them.
Chinatown residents and business owners spoke out against a possible redevelopment at a press conference recently.
“From the perspective of store owners, our lives and income depend on Dynasty Center as it currently is. Residents also depend on the Dynasty Center for convenience,” Diana Chau, a Chinatown business owner who was evicted from The Shop said, according to Los Angeles Downtown News.
The Dynasty Center is not the only at-risk Chinatown shopping center. The East Broadway Mall, the largest and oldest mall in Manhattan’s Chinatown, is currently at risk of closing.
Charlotte Nguyen, a volunteer with Chinatown Community for Equitable Development, does want Asian-owned businesses to continue disappearing.
“I’ve seen the loss of local stores and familiar faces on our streets,” Nguyen said, according toLos Angeles Downtown News. “All in the pursuit of profits, none of which ever make it back to us to make sure that we are housed, fed and can thrive. … As long as our community lives, works and dreams here, we are not going anywhere. We have said it before and we’ll say it again: This is about more than just a mall, this is a fight for the future of our community.”
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