With the world ever racing toward tomorrow, there seems little being done about preserving our past. With the increasing use and development of technology, and the passage of time itself, it's easy to forget how those old, corroded buildings got there in the first place.
Soon those buildings and monuments and old bricked streets of old will be gone. Buildings that offer a window to the past will be knocked down and new ones will be put up. The voices of the generations that came before the 21st century will be silenced.
However, there is hope. The Seattle Chinatown International Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDPDA) are hard at work to preserve the community’s heritage. Established in 1975 as a community funded organization, they thrive to make the community a safe and prosperous place.
Soon those buildings and monuments and old bricked streets of old will be gone. Buildings that offer a window to the past will be knocked down and new ones will be put up. The voices of the generations that came before the 21st century will be silenced.
However, there is hope. The Seattle Chinatown International Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDPDA) are hard at work to preserve the community’s heritage. Established in 1975 as a community funded organization, they thrive to make the community a safe and prosperous place.
"It's important to preserve this area because this is the only Chinatown," says P
rogram Coordinator for the Chinatown International District Business Improvement Area, Julia Nelson.
Armed with their mission to “preserve, promote and develop the Seattle Chinatown International District as a vibrant community and unique ethnic neighborhood,” volunteers and workers go out to protect the community’s most precious positions.
Originally founded in the 1880s when Chinese immigrants were employed for labor, the neighborhood is one of Seattle’s oldest. The Chinese immigrants were put to work on the new railroad system, coal mine digging and salmon harvesting.
In the 1900s, workers lowered the slopes that surrounded Pioneer Square and Beacon Hill neighborhoods to make room for Seattle’s first business district. Soon hotels and office buildings lined the streets of Jackson Street South and the people flooded in. Immigrants from other parts of Asia such as Japan, Vietnam and Korea came to the newly remodeled city in search of a new life. In the 1930s the area was proclaimed the official Chinatown of Seattle and was later renamed in 1951 as the International District that’s known today.
These sites are what the SCIDPDA and others are fighting so hard to protect. Through fundraising and spreading awareness through the city, the SCIDPDA raises money for affordable housing, public safety and transportation.
"Without these buildings being here," says local business owner Donny Chen, " [the surviving buildings] would never have stayed [standing] to this day."
rogram Coordinator for the Chinatown International District Business Improvement Area, Julia Nelson.Armed with their mission to “preserve, promote and develop the Seattle Chinatown International District as a vibrant community and unique ethnic neighborhood,” volunteers and workers go out to protect the community’s most precious positions.
Originally founded in the 1880s when Chinese immigrants were employed for labor, the neighborhood is one of Seattle’s oldest. The Chinese immigrants were put to work on the new railroad system, coal mine digging and salmon harvesting.
In the 1900s, workers lowered the slopes that surrounded Pioneer Square and Beacon Hill neighborhoods to make room for Seattle’s first business district. Soon hotels and office buildings lined the streets of Jackson Street South and the people flooded in. Immigrants from other parts of Asia such as Japan, Vietnam and Korea came to the newly remodeled city in search of a new life. In the 1930s the area was proclaimed the official Chinatown of Seattle and was later renamed in 1951 as the International District that’s known today.
These sites are what the SCIDPDA and others are fighting so hard to protect. Through fundraising and spreading awareness through the city, the SCIDPDA raises money for affordable housing, public safety and transportation.
"Without these buildings being here," says local business owner Donny Chen, " [the surviving buildings] would never have stayed [standing] to this day."
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