SF Chinatown’s historic Empress of China building being revived into cultural campus
One of the most iconic towers in San Francisco’s Chinatown is poised to become a new cultural destination.
Community and city leaders unveiled plans Thursday to transform the historic Empress of China Building into a cultural campus celebrating Chinese-American art, culture and history.
Once home to the famous banquet hall of the Empress of China, the building has been mostly vacant since its closure in 2015.
The nonprofit Chinatown Media and Arts Collaborative, a coalition of local nonprofits, finalized its purchase of the property Wednesday after a 15-year battle between the group and real estate investor John Yee, the building’s owner who had been reluctant to sell.
San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan said the prolonged vacancy of the position has taken an emotional toll on the community.
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“The view you will see here represents what your dreams can be beyond being and growing up in Chinatown,” she said. “That was the dream that I had…and to see it go empty for so long, I think it broke our hearts.”
CMAC plans to revitalize the 60-year-old structure into what leaders describe as a vibrant ecosystem for Chinese-American celebrations. The project includes a museum showcasing Chinese-American art, history and culture, as well as other spaces intended to attract both locals and visitors.
“It will be a beacon for visitors and tourists who come to Chinatown to understand our history, a platform for us to tell our story,” said Malcolm Yeung, CEO of the Chinatown Community Development Center. “We want to invite all of our supporters and help us figure out how we use this building to tell our story in a way that is consistent with who we are as Chinatown.”
Mayor Daniel Lurie linked the project to the city’s broader recovery, both culturally and economically.
“I often say that San Francisco is a reflection of Chinatown,” Lurie said. “Our city will only succeed if all neighborhoods see the benefits of a sustainable recovery.”
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Leaders say the project could also support the rebuilding of downtown San Francisco by attracting more visitors to Chinatown.
“Chinatown, because we are a vibrant community where people actually come, we could direct people downtown,” said CMAC board member Mabel Teng. “So I see us as one of the many engines that are contributing to the city’s recovery.”
Teng, a former San Francisco supervisor, said the sales contract with Yee included not disclosing the cost of the sale. She said fundraising would be necessary to continue the project. Yee purchased the building for $17.25 million in 2016.
“We all know that raising funds is not easy. It’s about asking all our stakeholders and the community to invest in their family’s future,” Teng said. “We have a future that we all share. We all share the aspiration for what America has promised us.”
She added that CMAC plans to keep the upper and lower floor restaurants, Empress by Boon and City View, in the tower.
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