CHINATOWN MUST CHANGE FOCUS IN ORDER TO SURVIVE

The decline of Vancouver's Chinatown has little to do with the
"unreasonable high property tax", as local merchants claim. After all,
the property assessment and tax is merely a reflection of the value of
the property and its business environment.

The main problem is drugs in and around Chinatown. How should we
tackle that problem is a debate that has already dragged on for many
years.

Many Chinatown merchants would like to see draconian measures similar
to those meted out in Singapore for drug dealers and drug takers. But
B.C. health officials and Downtown Eastsiders are of the opinion that
the tough measures taken by the U.S. law enforcement agencies have not
solved the problem of drugs on the street. They favour a humanitarian
approach similar to the one taken by some European countries. They
regard the problem of drug addiction as a medical problem.

Regardless of which approach is taken and even if the drug problem can
miraculously solved, Chinatown will not recover its former glory.

Chinatown's former importance was due to certain social factors. There
were certain language barriers and cultural hurdles. For many Chinese,
Chinatown was where they lived, worked, entertained, shopped and did
business. It was the social and cultural hub for most of Vancouver's
Chinese.

Gradually, things have changed. Society has become racially more
tolerant. As the atmosphere of antagonism diminishes, many
Chinese-Canadians have either moved beyond a need to have a social and
cultural hub in Chinatown or moved on to other neighbourhoods.

I used to be a regular in Chinatown coffee shops, but in the last year
or so I have seldom had a cup of coffee there. The reason is not the
drugs or a law-and-order issue. There are just many shops nearer by
that meet the same needs.

Residents in Richmond and Coquitlam no longer need to make the long
trek to Chinatown to shop.

The groceries, fish and meat are certainly fresher and cheaper in
Chinatown. But not many Chinese like the idea of having to walk
several blocks carrying heavy shopping bags. They would rather use a
push cart in a supermarket. T&T Supermarket a few blocks away from the
centre of Chinatown, for example, has many customers who come from
outside of Chinatown because they can park nearby. But the Chinatown
store is just one of five that T&T has opened in the past few years,
each targeting Chinese customers in a different area.

Many mainstream chain supermarkets now offer live fish in glass tanks
to attract the more lucrative "Chinese trade."

With the influx of Chinese immigrants, Asian malls, restaurants and
shops mushroomed. In Richmond alone, there are over a dozen Chinese
malls. And with the stiff competition, Chinatown's market share
inevitably shrinks.

Whither Chinatown? Chinatown should bill itself as the centre of
Chinese cultural activities and a not-to-be-missed tourist spot.

It is, after all, one of the oldest and best-preserved Chinatowns in
the western world. It is home to the largest Chinese community social
service agency and numerous Chinese clan associations and community
associations. It is historically important.

These are qualities not to be taken over by other new developments or
Chinese malls.

But the history and culture of Chinatown must be preserved and it must
be further developed. Plans to build a theatre at the Chinese Cultural
Centre, erect an ancient Chinese pagoda in Sun Yat-sen Garden and a
square in Shanghai Alley, the origin of Chinatown, and a proposal to
form a Silk Road are all good ideas that would add to the attractions
already there, including the world's narrowest commercial building.

What is missing is an effective promotional campaign and an effort by
merchants to cater specifically to tourists.

The recent Chinatown Festival, organized by nine major Chinese
community organizations with the purpose to revive Chinatown
businesses and to promote Chinese culture, is a good example.
Organizers lined up attractive programs, but few outside the Chinese
community knew about it.

To cater to non-Chinese patrons and tourists, businesses may need to
expand their variety of goods. And more importantly, they will need to
ensure that staff are able to serve non-Chinese customers. This is not
a small hurdle given that there are many non-English speaking workers
in Chinatown, who are paid less than $7.15 an hour.

Chinatown is more attractive to tourists than the Asian malls in
Richmond, but its real challenge is not trying to attract non-Chinese
patrons: It is for merchants to change their attitude.