‘Gateways to Chinatown’ project seeks the creation of a new neighborhood landmark for NYC’s Chinatown

It may be Chinatown, but the New York City Department of Transportation, the Chinatown Partnership, and Van Alen Institute aren’t about to forget it. A new collaboration between the three entities looks to find a new contemporary neighborhood marker at the Canal Street Triangle, a triangular traffic island flanked by Canal Street, Baxter Street, and Walker Street.

The project is seeking proposals that will create a new landmark for Chinatown and the surrounding neighborhoods that will “engender pride of place, embody cultural and social identities, and stimulate economic development.”

The design teams will need to take on the challenge of activating the relatively small space by honoring the neighborhoods past and present and packing it with interactive technologies and green space.

The winning proposal will replace a kiosk that sits on the site currently and connect two of Manhattan’s most iconic neighborhoods – Chinatown and Little Italy.

The organizers want the prospective teams to consider the following questions:

• How can the site serve as a “gateway” responding to tradition as well as adapting to ever-changing cultural and generational demographics and technology?
• How can the gateway connect and bring together existing communities and create new opportunities for both locals and visitors to experience the area in fresh ways?
• How can the gateway site link to other gateways within Chinatown, across the city and around the world?

Teams have until June 19, 2017 to submit their proposals. The winning team will be selected in fall 2017 and design and implementation will begin in 2018. For more information, click here.