City Council unanimously passed a proposal creating a Chinatown Business Improvement District yesterday. Building owners in the district will be responsible for paying a fee to fund street-cleaning, increased lighting and signage, and economic development for local businesses.
The proposal was, not surprisingly, not without controversy. Many local business owners, who have struggled after the 9/11 attacks and post-9/11 security essentially crippled the neighborhood, opposed the idea of paying extra taxes. Paul J.Q. Lee said, "It’s the final nail in the coffin. There’s a depression in Chinatown." Another worried that tenements will be torn down.
However, roponents of the measure argue that the BID will ultimately prove to be a long-term benefit to the area, which is still struggling to rebuild after 9/11 Councilwoman Margaret Chin said, “We still have blocked off roads and many small businesses that were forced to close have never reopened. I know this BID will help revitalize Chinatown and ensure that growth in this important immigrant neighborhood is on par with other neighborhoods in lower Manhattan.”
According to Crain's, "The proposed Chinatown BID projects a first-year budget of $1.3 million with 78% designated for sanitation and the rest used for holiday decorations and advocacy." Unfortunately, the map of the proposed BID does not include the smelliest block in New York.
