Governor Hochul December 16 announced that 11 projects in Chinatown will be funded as part of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI). A press release from the governor’s office noted, “The New York City Regional Economic Development Council chose to award Chinatown a $20 million award in recognition of the specific and acute effects of the pandemic on Chinatown’s businesses and the wider Asian diaspora in New York City.”
The investments were informed through recommendations from a Local Planning Commitee. You can see the committee’s membership here.
The largest allocation will be for a $5 million renovation of Kimlau Square, the plaza at the end of East Broadway where it meets Bowery. Other big ticket projects include: $4 million to beautify and improve accessibility to Park Row, $3 million to renovate sections of Sara D. Roosevelt Park and $2.5 million to create a Chinatown Welcome Arch. You can see the full list here. If you want to see more detail about each project you can have a look at the project proposal summaries.
More renderings:
