On June 6, the Chinatown-International District Business Improvement Area (CIDBIA) will kickoff the grand opening of Seattle’s second parklet, and the first in the neighborhood. The parklet is permitted under the Seattle Department of Transportation’s Pilot Parklet Program and will provide additional community gathering space in front of Oasis Tea Zone. There will be a ribbon cutting this Friday at 4:00 p.m.
The parklet was funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign in January.
Constructed entirely out of reclaimed materials, the Chinatown-International District’s parklet sits in a space formerly designated as a “no parking” area and is designed to reflect the simple architectural elements of Oasis Tea Zone, according to CIDBIA.
“Chinatown is experiencing an exciting renaissance with five new restaurants opening within a block of this Parklet,” CIDBIA executive director Don Blakeney said in a statement. “With the City’s first translated street signs installed in Japantown and Chinatown last year, and now this parklet, we are thrilled to be a fertile ground for experimentation on how to make our City’s streets vibrant and more user friendly.”
I-Miun Liu, owner of Oasis Tea Zone and CIDBIA board chair said the space is available to the community and to surrounding businesses.
“We’re excited about activating this space not only for the neighborhood to enjoy, but for the surrounding corporations,” Liu said in a statement. “The Parklet is in a lively corner in the heart of the Chinatown-International District and we can’t thank everyone who contributed and helped with the construction.”
The ribbon cutting event will feature a lion dance and music to celebrate the opening of the neighborhood’s new parklet.
SDOT announced an extension of the Pilot Parklet Program through 2014. Twelve (12) more Parklets are expected to be constructed in the next year. For more information about parklets or SDOT’s Pilot Parklet Program, visit www.seattle.gov/transportation/parklets.htm.
Chinatown-International District Parklet Opening
Friday, June 6 at 4:00 p.m.
519 6th Avenue S, Seattle, in front of Oasis Tea Zone
