The Fall and Rise of the International Hotel (I-Hotel)

(Poster depicting the events to save the former I-Hotel, Manilatown, San Francisco, circa 1977. Near the middle, there is a sign for the Chinese Progressive Association, a community agency which still exists today.)

The Chinatown Blogger just came back from visiting the Bay Area. While there, he visited San Francisco Chinatown, Oakland Chinatown and Berkeley. While in SF Chinatown, the Blogger visited the redeveloped New International Hotel. But before we talk about 2009, let’s go back in 2003 when the Blogger was last there. At that time in 2003, the site of the former I-Hotel was located in what was then known as Manilatown, was under construction. Manilatown no longer exists but Chinatown still remains. Below is a photo of the construction site the Blogger took in 2003.

(Construction on the site formerly known as the I-Hotel, 2003)

When the Blogger took this photo, the construction workers took a break to admire this mural. On the mural is an Ode to Al Robles, who recently passed away on May 2, 2009. Robles was a community activist who fought to save the I-Hotel from demolition and narrated in the documentary film Fall of the I-Hotel. In honor to Al, here is the text of Ode to Al Robles as painted on the mural:

Ode to Al Robles
“Coming down from the brown
mountains - where the dreams
cry of laughter and lonliness
back home to a warm bowl
of rice - back home to this place
back home to this hole - where the Manillatown
seeds will once again grow…

Curtis Choy’s 1983 film Fall of the I-Hotel and narrated by Al Robles, is a classic and is widely used in Asian American studies programs as an example of Asian American activism. The film examines the history and migration of Filipinos workers called Manongs who settled in Manilatown, San Franciso and documents the struggles by the remaining Manongs to preserve their community from urban revitalization

Some more background history from the Wikipedia:
The I-Hotel, officially known as the International Hotel, was built in 1907 and was a low-cost residential hotel located at the corner of Kearny and Jackson Streets in the Manilatown section of San Francisco. It was home to many Asian Americans, specifically a large Filipino American population. The primarily Filipino population of immigrants living at the I-Hotel represented an area of Kearney Street in Chinatown known as San Francisco’s Manilatown. Despite its full occupancy, during the urban renewal and redevelopment movement of the mid-1960s, the International Hotel was targeted for demolition. The first eviction notices were issued to residents in 1968, and began an almost 40 year battle spurring disagreements and debate among activists and public officials… The final residents were evicted on August 4, 1977.

Today, the site is home to a new development completed in 2005 and consists of 105 affordable/low-income housing units. Our tour guide, David Ho from the Chinese Community Development Center, said that about 10 of the original tenants from the 1977 evictions were located and agreed to move back in.

Today, here is a picture of the lobby of the New International Hotel:

Pictures from the roof of the New International Hotel:

Photo of San Francisco Chinatown from the top of the New International Hotel

David the tour guide said that some of the major issues facing San Francisco Chinatown is rehabbing the older buildings and preservation of the community. He pointed out that the community was fortunate to have a community master plan in place since 1985. The SF Chinatown master plan established zoning and land use restrictions that was instrumental to preserving the community during the dotcom development boom. There may be lessons that Boston Chinatown can learn from San Francisco Chinatown and the Chinatown Blogger is anxiously hoping he can get a copy of the 1985 SF Chinatown master plan.

Over the weekend, photos of Oakland Chinatown will be posted.

This entry was posted on May 28, 2009 at 9:53 pm and is filed under WORD ON THE STREET. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

| Print