NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF STATE ANNOUNCES COMPLETION OF $392,000 WELCOME CENTER AND COMMUNITY GATHERING SPACE IN CHINATOWN

Part of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative, the Think!Chinatown Studio Welcome Center Features Gathering Space for Arts, Culture, and Community 

New York Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley today announced the completion of the $392,000 Cultural Welcome Center, Think!Chinatown Studio, as part of Chinatown’s $20 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) award. The new space will serve as a community gathering place for sharing intergenerational knowledge about culture and the arts with residents and visitors of all backgrounds interested in learning more about Chinatown. 

 

“Chinatown is a world-renowned cultural destination that reflects the rich history, traditions, and contributions of one of New York City’s most vibrant communities,” said Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley. “With the completion of this new cultural center, residents and visitors alike will now have an opportunity to deepen their understanding of the heritage and culture that makes Chinatown so unique. Thanks to Governor Hochul’s continued support through the DRI, this community-driven project will help preserve and celebrate Chinatown for generations to come.”  

 

The center has transformed a once-vacant 1,200 square foot commercial storefront into a gathering space for arts, culture, and community. Programming will include hands-on foodways, folk arts, and cultural workshops, exhibitions for art and urban planning, storytelling recording, tea education and experiences, talks, and cultural performances and demonstrations. The space will also provide office space for Think!Chinatown, which supports cultural programming work throughout the neighborhood, including Chinatown Nights (formerly known as Chinatown Night Market) the Chinatown Arts Festival, and the Chinatown Block Party. Think!Chinatown was a key participant in the overall community-led DRI planning process. 

 

Chinatown is an ethnically diverse neighborhood in Manhattan that contains the largest Chinese population in an urban area outside of China, as well as residents of Latin American, Italian and Eastern European Jewish descent and other backgrounds. The community prides itself on its diversity and broad array of cultural attractions, experiences and services. Through the DRI, Chinatown is creating welcoming landmarks, streetscapes and public spaces to draw visitors and encourage more foot traffic, and economic and cultural activity. 

 

Manhattan’s Chinatown was named the New York City Downtown Revitalization Initiative winner for the fifth round in 2021. Other DRI winners in the region include Downtown Jamaica; Bronx Civic Center; Downtown Brooklyn; Downtown Staten Island; East Harlem; Long Island City; Greater Morris Park; and East Williamsburg. 

 

In addition to the Think!Chinatown Studio Cultural Welcome Center, the following projects are also funded by the DRI in Chinatown: 

 

• Chinatown Connections: Combining three projects: Beautify the Park Row Connection to Chinatown; Renovate Kimlau Square; and create a Chinatown Welcome Arch/Gateway. 
   

• Upgrade a Section of Sara D. Roosevelt Park: Expanding upon the larger scope of work currently planned for the Park, the City will renovate the area known as the Pit, Hua Mei Bird Garden, and adjacent perimeter sidewalk, paths, bike lanes, and walls. The improvements will provide expanded access and a welcoming public space with seating, shade, and landscaped areas for the multi-generational local community. 
   

• Create a Buildings Upgrade Fund: The Chinatown Partnership will establish a grant program to help existing small businesses and building owners make improvements to local storefronts and businesses. Eligible activities include: façade/storefront improvements, ADA accessibility improvements, awnings, signage, lighting, historic plaques and security cameras. 

 

• Open a Community Health and Wellness Center: Establish a new community health and wellness center at 60 Madison Street, which will offer much-needed high-quality and culturally accessible health and mental health services to the community. 

 

• Expand Light Up Chinatown Street Lanterns: This project consists of improving pedestrian lighting, expanding festive street lanterns, and installing illuminated standalone art installation(s), all within the Chinatown neighborhood.  Work includes creating a toolbox of lighting improvements that will result in greater street visibility and safety for residents, strengthening Chinatown’s cultural identity, and attracting tourists and visitors. 
   

• Reopen the Childcare and Family Support Center at Smith Houses (10 Catherine Slip): Repair the 4,700-square-foot childcare and family support center at New York City Housing Authority's Alfred E. Smith Houses to provide daycare and other supportive services. 
   

• Launch a Small Business Innovation Hub: Create an incubator storefront as part of a 2,500-square-foot hub centered on providing local small businesses with training, workshops, technical assistance, physical space and other resources to grow. The Hub, located at 115 Bowery, is a vital center for supporting entrepreneurship and innovation within the Chinatown community.  
   

• Create the Chinatown Art-Eries Public Art Fund: a grant fund focused on public art and cultural placemaking installations that will enliven public spaces and celebrate the cultural heritage and history of Chinatown and surrounding areas. 
   
   

Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, “Think!Chinatown Studio will serve as both a gateway and gathering place, inviting people to experience the culture, creativity, and history that make Chinatown such an important part of New York City. By creating space for education, artistic expression, and community connection, this project helps ensure that Chinatown’s unique identity remains visible, accessible, and celebrated for years to come.” 

 

New York State Council on the Arts Executive Director Erika Mallin said, “Through strategic development and targeted partnerships, this transformative state investment will enrich this community and create lasting benefits for both local residents and visitors alike. The new Think!Chinatown Studio Welcome Center is a wonderful addition to downtown New York City, and we extend our congratulations to NYSCA grantee Think!Chinatown, for this remarkable project.” 

New York City Regional Economic Development Council Co-Chair Félix V. Matos Rodríguez said, “Great neighborhoods thrive when residents, entrepreneurs, artists, and community organizations have places to come together and share ideas. Think!Chinatown Studio creates that kind of anchor for Chinatown—supporting local activity, drawing visitors, and providing a flexible space where new programs and partnerships can take root. The Council was proud to support a project that strengthens the neighborhood’s future while building on the energy that already exists throughout the community.” 

 

Yin Kong, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Think!Chinatown said, “For too long, Chinatown has disproportionately lacked dedicated arts spaces. With the opening of Think!Chinatown Studio, we have created a new entry point for investment in the arts for Chinatown, and a new opportunity for the depths of existing Chinatown culture to find the spotlight. Having spaces like the Think!Chinatown Studio is essential to anchor our placekeeping practices and grow our feeling of belonging to this neighborhood that holds a special place in the heart of so many New Yorkers.” 

 

Lisa Gold, Executive Director of the Asian American Arts Alliance (A4) said, “As the leader of an AAPI-serving arts organization, I know first-hand how vital the work of Think!Chinatown is to our community and the New York City creative ecosystem as a whole. Their programming and welcoming new studio space is needed in Chinatown more than ever and I am thrilled to celebrate their grand opening thanks to the State’s funding.” 

 

The new Think!Chinatown Studio will permit Think!Chinatown to expand its work with local artists and arts organizations.    

 

Chinatown Artist Arlan Huang said, “Every year we await with great expectation Think!Chinatown’s new program. Their arts and cultural programs always reveal new threads in the invisible weave that unites us as a community. It is a joy and always spectacular. As an artist concerned with the health of Chinatown I am humbled by their hard work and delighted to see the new Think!Chinatown Studio! They are quick to respond to community issues. They bring light and perspective with a moral and ethical integrity. And they are willing to defend it. I am proud to be a part of Think! Chinatown.” 

 

About the Downtown Revitalization Initiative 

The Downtown Revitalization Initiative was created in 2016 to accelerate and expand the revitalization of downtowns and neighborhoods in all ten regions of the state to serve as centers of activity and catalysts for investment. Led by the Department of State, with assistance from Empire State Development, Homes and Community Renewal and NYSERDA, the DRI represents an unprecedented and innovative "plan-then-act" strategy that couples strategic planning with immediate implementation. Through nine rounds, the DRI will have awarded a total of $1 billion to 99 communities across every region of the State.