Chinatown Summer Nights is an annual event organized by the Chinatown Business Improvement District (BID), also known as @lachinatown on Instagram. Their goal is to "support LA Chinatown small businesses" yet this event fails to do so. Instead, only 4 of the 35+ vendors/performers participating are actual small businesses from the LA Chinatown community. What Chinatown needs is affordable housing, grocery stores, and community centered development, instead BID hosts an event that plays loud music into the night disturbing tenants in nearby senior housing. Chinatown BID does not serve the largely working class and immigrant population of Chinatown, rather the interests of gentrifiers, developers, & property owners.

What Does BID Do?

LA Chinatown is one of the many cities with a BID. The purpose of BIDs is to improve the neighborhood with amenities not covered in the city jurisdiction and budget. The Chinatown BID is a property based district, meaning property owners pay taxes to go towards the BID budget. Over 60% of BID's $2.6 million budget goes toward the security guards in red shirts on bikes that surveil the neighborhood to "improve safety." Instead of truly improving safety, they target and harass street vendors, unhoused folks and elderly community members.

Who Makes Up BID?

Chinatown’s BID board is made up of wealthy property owners and predatory developers that are spearheading gentrification in Chinatown. BID is led by the owner of Far East Plaza, George Yu, where he drove out many long time shops in favor of new hip businesses, creating the first epicenter of gentrification in Chinatown. In 2018, George Yu compensated himself $100,000 and $90,000 in 2019 from the BID budget for his work leading the Chinatown BID. His long time friend and collaborator Tom Gilmore effectively evicted Ai Hoa in 2019, the last full service grocery store in Chinatown in order to move forward with his plans of building a luxury hotel.

George Yu advised developer RedCar, which also sits on BID’s board, to purchase Dynasty Center, Chinatown’s last shopping center. Many vendors in Dynasty Center were previously evicted by RedCar in 2020 from The Shop, another shopping center that had existed in Chinatown, now they face possible eviction from RedCar again.
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These community serving businesses are being replaced by luxury apartments with rents of up to $3,000/month while the median annual income of Chinatown residents is only $19,500. Along with the harassment of local community members, it’s clear that the BID aims to serve young wealthy professionals while pushing out the long-time tenants and community members who built this neighborhood and call it home.

Some of the Board Members of BID

MORE About BID

more about dynasty center

What If My Business Is Participating?

CCED's core mission is to organize and work with the Chinatown community, including residential and commercial tenants, to fight against the increasing gentrification in our community. If your business is participating in Chinatown Summer Nights, we ask that you show solidarity for our community and remove your participation from future events hosted by the Chinatown BID.

What Can I Do?

We’re calling for BID OUT OF CHINATOWN!! We are asking folks to leave Chinatown Summer Nights and instead support the Chinatown community serving small businesses all year long. Together, we can organize and fight for the Chinatown we deserve!
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1. Look through our website for resources on Chinatown BID and a list of Chinatown small businesses to support.
2. Share our BID Zine widely.
3. Support Dynasty Center vendors and our campaign against RedCar.
4. Volunteer and pledge to fight gentrification in Chinatown.

Follow us @CCEDLA on Instagram for updates and how you can support a Chinatown meant for the people and not greedy developers!

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A post shared by Chinatown Community for Equitable Development (@ccedla)

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A post shared by Chinatown Community for Equitable Development (@ccedla)

This is how BID “HELPS” Chinatown! George “Karen” Yu, head of BID, showing the Community what he values: Profits Over People. George Yu gets paid $80K a year from the BID to physically assault non-violent community advocates. Is this what CHINATOWN SUMMER NIGHTS represents?

After our Teach-In, volunteers decided to demonstrate at Chinatown Summer Nights, hosted by @lachinatown (The BID) and @kcrw to inform attendees of how BID is destroying our community and hosting an event that DOES NOT benefit the Chinatown community. Out of nowhere, GEORGE YU, the head of Chinatown Business Improvement District (BID), decided to assault community members advocating for Chinatown. He had to be escorted out of “his event” BY HIS OWN SECURITY. 😬

The Chinatown community NEEDS affordable housing, grocery stores, and community centered development NOT more luxury apartments, wine bars, and art galleries.

To those who attended Chinatown Summer Nights: think about this event and which businesses it actually helps. Support Chinatown and its businesses year round!