City will spend $80 million to rebuild
Chinatown building ravaged by inferno
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
One of the most important
cultural hubs in Chinatown,
destroyed in a massive
inferno back in January and
partially demolished later, will be
rebuilt with the city’s help, Mayor
Bill de Blasio said Thursday.
De Blasio announced that the
city’s Department of Citywide
Administrative Services (DCAS)
will provide $80 million toward
the reconstruction of 70 Mulberry
St., which housed several
education centers and more than
85,000 items belonging to the
Museum of Chinese in America.
Along with providing funding,
the city also will create an
advisory committee from local
residents and leaders dedicated
to the project. The city will also
embark on a three-month visioning
process seeking public input
about the site’s future.
“In January, Chinatown lost the
beating heart of its community: 70
Mulberry Street,” de Blasio said.
The exterior of 70 Mulberry St., as shown in March. The building
was gutted by a five-alarm inferno on Jan. 23, 2020
“We’re working hand-in-hand
with the community to preserve
this building’s rich history and
bring it back to life again.”
“Working with the residents
of Chinatown, we have secured
the funding necessary to rebuild
this treasured site at the heart of
the community,” added Lisette
Camilo, Commissioner of the
NYC Department of Citywide
Administrative Services. “This
historic building is important to
PHOTO BY TODD MAISEL
the entire neighborhood and we
want local voices to help drive its
redevelopment.”
The former tenants of 70 Mulberry
St. who relocated after the
fi re will be welcomed back once
the building’s completed, de Blasio
said. The city is now working
to preserve any salvageable material
to ensure “a redevelopment
that acknowledges the history and
signifi cance of the site.”
The advisory committee will
include the displaced tenants as
well as representatives of local
elected offi cials and Manhattan
Community Board 3.
“After the 70 Mulberry fi re collapsed
the building’s upper fl oors
and displaced its 5 long-serving
nonprofi ts, Chinatown immediately
lost critical senior, cultural, career
development, youth, and adult literacy
services that immigrant families
depended on for generations,” said
City Council Member Margaret
Chin. “COVID-19 stressed our
shared urgency to bring this building
back, restore the historical
elements that the community has
grown to cherish, and welcome
these displaced nonprofi ts home as
soon as possible. This is a good step
to making that a reality, and I thank
the Mayor for taking this action.”
Displaced tenants expressed
relief that the building would be
brought back out of the ashes,
and anticipation for their eventual
return.
“We recognize that this is a
diffi cult fi scal year, so we greatly
appreciate the $80 million allocation
for the rebuilding effort,” said
Wayne Ho, president and CEO of
the Chinese-American Planning
Council. “The seniors of the
CPC Chinatown Senior Center
are eager to return home to 70
Mulberry St., which for more than
40 years has provided a hot meal,
human services, arts and cultural
activities, ESOL classes, and more
to over 300 seniors per day.”
“The Museum of Chinese in
America (MOCA) is emboldened
and encouraged by the prioritization
that Mayor Bill de Blasio
and the Department of Citywide
Administrative Services (DCAS)
Commissioner Lisette Camilo have
placed on rebuilding 70 Mulberry
St. for the Chinatown community,”
added Nancy Yao Maasbach, president
of the Museum of Chinese in
America. “DCAS’ commitment to
preserving salvageable components
of the existing structure and upgrading
the building construction
for broad community use reassures
MOCA that the $80 million funding
investment in 70 Mulberry,
its tenants, and the community
will contribute to a stronger New
York City overall and will provide
dividends for generations.”
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