Chinatown Cultural Development Strategy 2nd Community Meeting

On October 20th, the DC Office of Planning (OP) and the Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs (OAPIA) organized the second community meeting at the Chinatown Community Culture Center (CCCC). The meeting was part of the Chinatown Community Development Strategy Project. More than seventy community members including residents and business owners participated in themeeting.  DC Council Chairman Vincent Gray also attended the meeting. He encouraged everyone to work together in keeping Chinatown vibrant.

At the meeting, community members participated in a brainstorming session. The purpose of the brainstorming sessition was to help outline the community’s desired outcomes for the future Chinatown.  Some of the suggested outcomes include increasing the number of Asian businesses, decreasing crime in Chinatown, and increasing the number of Asian residents living in Chinatown.

Background: The Chinatown Cultural Development Strategy Project arises out of community concern for the District’s Chinatown. The project’s goal is to provide strategies to help reposition Chinatown as the region’s top destination for Chinese/Asian cultural businesses, programs, services, events and festivals. Through this project, the Mayor's Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs (OAPIA) and the Office of Planning (OP) hope to develop concrete steps to revitalize Chinatown as a cultural destination in the city.