THE CHINATOWN BID

There seems to be a lot of controversy over the attempts of the Chinatown Partnership to implement a BID for Chinatown.

I myself until this morning was under the impression that a BID would only bring positive things to our community. This is definitely not a one sided argument. There is actually a lot of opposition to the BID.

I would have to read more on the issue, but as of now, I oppose the BID. Although I do want cleaner streets just like the rest of Chinatown, I think that there are other avenues to accomplish this if that is the only reason that they are trying to restructure our community.

Also, if other small businesses are adamantly opposed to the BID, it is not in the best interest of myself or for Chinatown as a whole to back it up. The guidelines of what a BID would bring are not 100 percent clear since they seem to differ from neighborhood to neighborhood. A BID would impose a tax on the landlords and most likely will tax the small businesses in our community.

Small businesses are the heart of our community and I think they'll be driven out if they have taxes up the kazoo! Who on earth needs more taxes? Realistically, how much are these guys making when they're charging less than $5 for a gourmet meal?

I also agree with the argument that if Chinatown were to get money for the BID that it should be used in other ways (i.e. for our schools, etc). As for the streets, store keepers seem to be willing to maintain them and pay for additional costs out of pocket. After all, we do pay for our own carting companies already.

According to an article by Nick Pinto, "

The largest and one of the oldest of these is the Chinese Consolidated
Benevolent Association, whose president, Eric Ng, is known unofficially as
the Chinatown Mayor. Ng is cautious in discussing the BID, and refused to
join its steering committee. "We have to stay neutral on this issue," he
said, adding that he has doubts about the Partnership's ability to
represent all of Chinatown.