San José To Have A Chinatown
An
area in San José will be
converted into a "Chinatown"
where shops and restaurants will
offer Chinese products and
favourite Chinese dishes,
according to a report by the
daily La Nación.
The proposal is being
spearheaded by the Municipalidad
de San José and the Cámara de
Industria y Comercio China
Costarricense (Costarican-China
chamber of commerce).
The Chinatown will be located in
Paseo de los Estudiantes,
between Calles 7 and 11, east
side of downtown and will take
up to city blocks and could be
expanded depending on the
investment by Chinese
businessmen in Costa Rica.
Johnny Araya, the mayor of San
José, explained that the area
was chosen because it already
houses several Chinese
restaurants.
The Chinatown is expected to
also include a Chinese
supermarket and novelty store.
The idea is to define the area
that will known as Chinatown and
attract private investment to
include a cultural centre and
other businesses, said Araya.
The mayor explained that the
project is only in the proposal
stage but that it has the
support of the Chinese community
in Costa Rica and added that
there is no date set, although
he hopes it to be very soon.
Araya added that the Chinatown
is also expected to attract
tourists to the area where they
can purchase Chinese products
much more easily and there will
be major cultural exchange.
"Chinese culture is ancient and
will be attractive for San José.
Other world cities have a
Chinatown and it appears to be a
very interesting element for
Costa Rica", said Araya./
Isabel Yung, president of the
Cámara de Industria y Comercio
China Costarricense qualified
the proposal as "very
important", adding that she
foresees an explosion of
investment in the area.
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