COVID: San Francisco Business Leaders Brainstorm Ideas To Revive A Deserted Chinatown
Image retrieved from CBS News.
SAN FRANCISCO – At the start of the pandemic, there were empty storefronts and deserted streets in San Francisco's Chinatown. A year later, it isn't much better. Now business leaders are brainstorming on ways to bring people back.
The lanterns hanging above Grant Avenue are dingy these days and the businesses below have suffered mightily with the one-two punch of the global pandemic and rampant xenophobia.
"Unlike Amazon, Chinatown did not fare well during this pandemic," said Jane Chin of the Chinatown Community Development Center.
Pre-pandemic, two out of every 10 storefronts along Grant were empty and shuttered. Today that number is 6 out of 10.
"Out of 930 private businesses, only 150 were open in early 2021. Seventy percent of the restaurants closed, many will not re-open," said Chin.
There was a call to action among the many organization and associations in Chinatown, on Tuesday.
