James Chin, Snake of the Year!
Approval of Luxury Tower Brings
Protest to Chinatown
By Noel Prince

Despite widespread community opposition, on Feb. 13 the city Board of Standards and Appeals voted unanimously to approve four zoning variances needed to erect a 23-story luxury tower at the corner of Houston and Ludlow streets on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

The Lower Manhattan Anti-Displacement Coalition (LMADC), a newly formed coalition of labor and tenants’ rights groups dedicated to protecting residents of the Lower East Side and Chinatown from rapid displacement, has been campaigning for months to stop the tower. They believe it would significantly exacerbate secondary displacement in Lower Manhattan.

Skyrocketing rents in the area, coupled with low wages, have already led to severe overcrowding, tenant harassment, and illegal evictions.

"With rents as high as $5,000 per month, the luxury tower will irreparably change the face of our community," says Kwong Hui, a member of the Chinese Staff and Workers Association and candidate for City Council in District 1. Despite a flood of objections from the community and a near-unanimous vote against the project by Community Board 3, the Board of Standards and Appeals gave the developers its full support, voting 4-0 to grant the variances for the tower.

The LMADC is considering legal action to stop the development, and plans to hold another demonstration on March 23.

Shortly before the board voted to allow the tower, LMADC learned that Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) was holding a banquet to honor James Chin, the board’s chairman, for his contributions to the Asian community, i.e., for his wealth and power. Coalition members called and met with AAFE, whose own roots lie in the employment-rights and civil-rights movements of the 1970s, and asked if they would rescind the award to Chin, but they refused. Pressure was put on the dinner committee, which included political representatives, public figures, and prominent members of the Asian community, But they would rather honor Chin than stand on the picket line with housing organizations and community residents. There were politicians who decided not to attend, but none would make a statement or a call. Only one candidate, Kwong Hui, attended the protest.

On Feb. 24, the night of the banquet, 200 loud and angry protestors showed up to picket. Speakers included Jim Haughton from Harlem Fight Back, Susan Howard of Met Council, Hyun Lee of the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence and Nellie Bailey from the City-Wide Tenants Coalition. The protest ended in a mock award ceremony to the dishonorable James Chin, who received the "Snake of the Year" award.

Seen crossing the picket line were Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields and Councilmember Archie Spigner (D-Queens). Assemblymember Vito Lopez (D-Brooklyn) and Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan) arrived late, presumably to avoid the crowd.

Members of LMADC include: Met Council on Housing, Chinese Staff and Workers Association, Good Old Lower East Side, Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence, National Mobilization Against Sweatshops, Sixth Street Community Center and the Lower East Side Anti-Displacement Project.

Met Council needs volunteers for LMADC. If you’d like to help, please contact Dave Powell at (212) 693-0553, ext. 6, or e-mail: activemch@aol.com