F R I E N D S O F L I T T L E S À I G Ò N

L I T T L E S À I G Ò N C O M M U N I T Y R E S E A R C H R E P O R T ( 2 0 1 9 )

w w w . f l s s e a t t l e . o r g | i n f o @ f l s s e a t t l e . o r g C O N T E N T S

PURPOSE 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 POPULATION 4 Income Supporting Neighborhoods Challenges Recommendations

CULTURE & IDENTITY 8 Language & Cultural Gathering Challenges Recommendations

HOUSING & DEVELOPMENT 12 Total Occupied Housing Units Current & Future Developments Challenges Recommendations

BUSINESSES 17 Business Spotlights Challenges: Small Asian-Owned Businesses in the US Recommendations

CONCLUSION 21 END NOTES 22

P U R P O S E

Little Sàigòn is a vital part of the Vietnamese community and Chinatown International District located in Seattle, WA. Currently Little Sàigòn is home to many small businesses such as restaurants, supermarkets, jewelry stores and much more.

Formed in early 2011, Friends of Little Sàigòn (FLS) is a community organization created to preserve and enhance Little Saigon’s cultural, economic, and historic vitality. FLS focuses on advocacy, community engagement and community building.

The purpose of this research report is to conduct market research on ethnic small business industries, housing and other community needs in the Little Sàigòn community. The goal is to document the community's needs, changes, and growth in order to support future advocacy and programs.

Available research on Seattle’s Little Sàigòn and the Vietnamese community is generally aggregated data categorized under "Asian" and not specific to the Seattle area. The purpose of this research is to provide, collect and present missing data specifically in the Vietnamese community within Seattle, Washington.

Using data and recommendations in this report, FLS hopes to bring awareness to current issues impacting the Vietnamese and Little Sàigòn community, create programs that reflect the community’s needs and empower others to take action in preserving Little Sàigòn.

T I F F A N Y T R U O N G F R I E N D S O F L I T T L E S À I G Ò N R E S E A R C H & A D V O C A C Y I N T E R N 2 0 1 9

1 E X E C U T I V E S U M M A R Y

Little Sàigòn Community Research Report is designed to bring awareness in addressing the gaps in services, tools and resources in the Vietnamese community.

As part of the Chinatown International District, Little Sàigòn is located just east of Chinatown. Its proximity to Downtown has resulted in increasing developments and high leasing prices impacting our community, residents, and small businesses. Therefore this report focuses on four priority areas most impacted by these changes: Population, Culture & Identity, Housing & Development, and Small Businesses.

This report will help shape the future of Little Sàigòn by identifying and recommending strategies for addressing the impacts and gaps in services.

Key elements of the report are:

The change in population within the area The role of nearby neighborhoods The need for cultural assets and services The impact of upcoming mixed-use developments

C H I N A T O W N I N T E R N A T I O N A L D I S T R I C T M A P ( P H O T O B Y C I D B I A . O R G ) 2 Key takeaways are:

Population Gap: Lack of population data within the neighborhood to track foot traffic in the Little Sàigòn area. Recommendation: Track pedestrian and customer traffic with video analytic systems and surveys in order to document the primary reason in visiting the neighborhood.

Culture & Identity Gap: Outdated data and limited services on present day Vietnamese youth and senior connection to their language and culture. Recommendation: Implement cultural programs and frequent user studies on youths and seniors to identify current pain points/needs.

Housing & Development Gap: Little to no detailed data on current residents in Little Sàigòn. Challenges with filling housing with Vietnamese/API demographics who will be impacted the most by the redevelopment. Recommendations: Document occupants in existing, new and upcoming housing developments. Create more support programs to reach out to and support potential Vietnamese/API residents.

Small Business Gap: Missing data of past businesses, where they went, and why they left impacting the lack of culturally relevant small business resources. Recommendation: Document and survey current businesses and provide culturally relevant small business technical assistance.

The findings and takeaways of this report are suggested recommendations to guide investment and support to Little Sàigòn stakeholders and partners in order to address the significant changes in the next few years. Many recommendations are short-term data solutions, and do not provide a macro- or long-term results to addressing the root issues.

3 P O P U L A T I O N

Little Sàigòn alone is home to about 268 residents within two major housing developments. In terms of geographical population, there is currently 45,484 people in King County who [ 1 ] [ 2 ] identifies themselves as Vietnamese alone or in combination and 14,992 in Seattle.

Breaking this further down within Seattle, 5,110 U.S. born and 9,882 foreign born were reported. [ 3 ]

V I E T N A M E S E I S R A N K E D #3 IN TOTAL ASIAN POPULATION AFTER [ 2 ] CHINESE AND FILIPINO IN SEATTLE

[ 1 ]

[ 4 ] C R O S S W A L K O F 1 2 T H A V E S A N D S J A C K S O N S T R E E T

4 I N C O M E

The median household income in Seattle who identified as Vietnamese from 2010 was under $10,000 or between $75,000 to $99,999. [ 5 ]

[ 5 ] M E D I A N I N C O M E I N S E A T T L E ( 2 0 1 0 )

I d e n t i f y i n g a s V i e t n a m e s e a l o n e o r i n c o m b i n a t i o n

Less than $10,000 650 $10,000 to $14,999 297

$15,000 to $19,999 221 $20,000 to $24,999 179 $25,000 to $29,999 91 $30,000 to $34,999 207 $35,000 to $39,999 115 $40,000 to $44,999 68 $45,000 to $49,999 155

$50,000 to $59,999 236 $60,000 to $74,999 273 $75,000 to $99,999 519 $100,000 to $124,999 320 $125,000 to $149,999 288 $150,000 to $199,999 194 $200,000 or more 144

Because of the high numbers of people in Seattle identifying as Vietnamese with low or high income, the variety of income puts the median household at $60,021. In perspective, Seattle’s Area Median Income (AMI) is $82,133 whereas the range for qualifying for affordable housing is between AMI of 30% up to 80% of Seattle’s AMI ($24,640 up to [ 5 ] $65,706).

51,803 A A P I S L I V I N G I N P O V E R T Y I N T H E [ 6 ] S E A T T L E - T A C O M A - B E L L E V U E , W A

5 S U P P O R T I N G N E I G H B O R H O O D S

With the growing Vietnamese community, it is also very important to note the surrounding communities who support and contribute to Little Sàigòn.

Surrounding neighborhoods listed above play a vital role in supporting Little Sàigòn because of its current lack of a strong residential population. Many local residents shop and utilize [ 4 ] services in Little Sàigòn.

This is an important consideration especially for existing and new businesses, as they adapt to the growing and changing demographics of the neighborhood.

S U R R O U N D I N G C O M M U N I T I E S I N L I T T L E S À I G Ò N

[ 7 ] NEIGHBORHOOD POPULATION

Jackson Place 1,086 (east of Little Sàigòn)

Minor 8,151 (north of Jackson Place)

Judkins Park 3,287 (east of Jackson Place)

Yesler Terrace 1,721 (north of Little Sàigòn)

First Hill 11,718 (north of Yesler Terrace)

Central Area 3,693 (northeast of Little Sàigòn)

6 C H A L L E N G E S

One notable challenge while researching was finding the right resource to search geographical data by neighborhood. Some of the boundaries in the datasets do not align with the official neighborhood boundaries. This is something that is continuing to change as developments alter streets and right of ways.

There is also a gap in terms of population data within the area, whether the number comes from residents alone, visitors or store owners. With the surrounding neighborhoods and growing population, it was difficult estimating the foot traffic in the Little Sàigòn area using the disaggregated population data.

Because of the gap in population data, there is a gap in foot traffic data. Traffic data is important for current and future businesses in the area wanting to know the average foot traffic in terms of what days of the week are busiest. Traffic data can also be used to monitor future housing developments and the neighborhood capacity.

R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S

FLS recommends documenting foot traffic with traffic counts (i.e. pedestrians, cars) through video analytic systems and pedestrian/customer surveys. Using these tools, we hope to document more information about the area geographically and further refine the data in Little Sàigòn to help support the neighborhood. Using foot traffic data, we can estimate population capacity, find times when the area is busiest and highlight this to draw potential business owners and residents.

C R O S S W A L K O F 1 2 T H A V E S A N D S J A C K S O N S T R E E T ( P H O T O B Y B R U C E N O U R I S H ) 7 C U L T U R E & I D E N T I T Y

As the Vietnamese population continues to grow in King County, it is important to recognize the growing needs of the community. More importantly, what cultural support is needed. [ 8 ] Culture is an important aspect to the community as it adds social and economic benefits. Little Sàigòn allows not only Vietnamese community to gather, but any community to come and gain cultural awareness of the area.

Some of the cultural assets in Little Sàigòn include the small businesses and services provided to the community. They provide culturally relevant foods, products, and resources that were not easily accessible in other parts of the City. In promoting cultural awareness through neighborhood assets here in Little Sàigòn, it creates opportunities for learning and sharing experiences while enhancing the community’s sense of place. With that, in the long run bringing people together can foster inclusiveness and empowerment within the community. [ 8 ]

“Cultural engagement also plays a key role in poverty reduction and [ 8 ] communities-at-risk strategies”

In order to promote cultural awareness and a sense of community, it is important to support the foundations of the Vietnamese community such as language, food, and traditions.

L A N G U A G E & C U L T U R A L G A T H E R I N G

Currently, FLS offers a Vietnamese Language & Cultural Exploration program catered to Vietnamese Americans 18 years and older who want to enhance their understanding of the Vietnamese language and culture.

The 10 week course includes reading and grammar objectives, as well as exploration activities where you can apply the language skills you have learned in class.

On top of this program, FLS seeks to address the gap and challenges of a missing cultural gathering center with the Little Sàigòn’ Landmark Vision. In developing a gathering center, this creates opportunities to promote cultural awareness, host future programs and support additional cultural assets for the neighborhood.

8 L A N G U A G E & C U L T U R A L P I L O T P R O G R A M ( P H O T O B Y F L S )

C H A L L E N G E S

However, FLS’s language program was built from recognizing one of the community challenges mentioned in multiple community research projects, such as the Community Action Research & Empowerment (CARE) project.

"Youth losing connection to Vietnamese culture and cultural identity,

having ― no place to go, peer pressure, needing to be heard, lacking [ 9 ] meaningful challenges, and encountering violence in their lives"

On top of this, “young adults indicated strong family pressure to maintain traditional Vietnamese roles and cultural expectations” [ 9 ]. Despite this on-going pressure, youth expressed not knowing where to go or find resources within the Vietnamese community.

In addition, Vietnamese seniors expressed wanting to gain familiarity with technology (i.e. [ 9 ] iPads) to cope from the feeling of loneliness and disconnection from family . Seniors also emphasized the importance of Helping Link and providing professional providers with a Vietnamese background. Seniors expressed low levels of comfort to professional providers [ 9 ] that did not look like them.

With these challenges, there is also a current gap in knowledge of present day youths and seniors identifying as Vietnamese Americans and their needs as most of these needs were identified from reports dated past 2005.

9 R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S

FLS recommends implementing more cultural programs and frequent user studies to assess youth and senior needs in terms of maintaining and celebrating their culture.

In holding frequent user studies, we can develop long term support based on the needs and pain points identified during each user study by offering or connecting our community with resources such as ESL, youth leadership support, and much more.

In order to have these cultural programs, FLS recommends creating culturally relevant spaces and utilizing community assets like businesses to enhance the cultural experience. Investment in these spaces and programs are important to the long-term cultural identity of Little Sàigòn.

[ 9 ] C O M M U N I T Y M E M B E R S P A R T I C I P A T I N G I N T H E C A R E P R O J E C T ( 2 0 1 1 )

1 0 H O U S I N G & D E V E L O P M E N T

With the increasing Vietnamese community in Seattle, the growing housing needs and redevelopment around Little Sàigòn is important to highlight. With growing numbers, it can create an increase in population size and foot traffic within the area. Using current resident data, we can compare and assess the drastic impact this will have on the neighborhood.

With only a few main housing buildings: Pacific Rim Center and Victorian Row, Little Sàigòn is expecting a shift in economics. Currently, the reported population of Little Sàigòn is about 268 residents. [ 7 ]

V I C T O R I A N R O W

The Victorian Row Apartments is located at 1234 S King Street in Little Sàigòn with 14 affordable units, ranging from studios to 1-3 bedrooms.

V I C T O R I A N R O W A P A R T M E N T S ( P H O T O B Y B E L L W E T H E R H O U S I N G )

P A C I F I C R I M C E N T E R

Built in 2001, the Pacific Rim Center located at 900 S Jackson St, Seattle in Little Sàigòn is a three story building on top of retail space offering 50 units, ranging from studios to 1-2 bedroom condos.

1 2 F R O N T V I E W O F P A C I F I C R I M A P A R T M E N T S B A C K V I E W O F P A C I F I C R I M A P A R T M E N T S ( P H O T O B Y E N G E L & V Ö L K E R S S E A T T L E E A S T S I D E ) ( P H O T O B Y B E T T E R H O M E S A N D G A R D E N S R E A L E S T A T E M C K E N Z I E G R O U P )

On a larger scale, the total occupied housing units in Seattle from 2010 who identified as Vietnamese follows as:

T O T A L O C C U P I E D H O U S I N G U N I T S ( 2 0 1 0 )

I d e n t i f y i n g a s V i e t n a m e s e a l o n e o r i n c o m b i n a t i o n [ 1 0 ]

King County Seattle

TOTAL 11,269 4,122

OWNED WITH MORTGAGE OR LOAN 5,881 1,451

OWNED FREE & CLEAR 918 254

RENTER OCCUPIED 4,470 2,417

With only two current housing developments, FLS acts as a resource in promoting upcoming available housing both at market-rate and affordable units. In order to prevent cultural displacement and increase economic opportunities in Little Sàigòn, future housing developments need to reach out to and cater to families, employees, and community members who work, shop, and utilize services in the area.

1 3 CURRENT & FUTURE DEVELOPMENT

R e s i d e n t i a l C o m m e r c i a l 2 ( u n i t s ) ( f t )

Y e s l e r T e r r a c e * 5 , 0 0 0 n / a ( m i x e d - i n c o m e h o u s i n g )

T h a i B i n h 2 4 9 7 , 5 0 0 ( a f f o r d a b l e h o u s i n g )

A c m e P o u l t r y 3 2 0 1 0 , 0 0 0 ( m a r k e t r a t e )

L o w I n c o m e H o u s i n g I n s t i t u t e 8 4 1 , 7 0 0 ( a f f o r d a b l e h o u s i n g )

P l y m o u t h H o u s i n g 6 9 1 , 1 5 0 ( t r a n s i t i o n a l h o u s i n g )

L o w e E n t e r p r i s e s 3 3 5 6 , 0 0 0 ( m a r k e t r a t e )

B o s h a G r o u p 1 0 0 3 , 5 0 0 ( m a r k e t r a t e )

J W A r c h i t e c t A p t 2 3 n / a ( m a r k e t r a t e )

* Y e s l e r T e r r a c e o u t s i d e t h e b o u n d a r i e s o f L i t t l e S à i g ò n

As of early 2019, there are a total of 1,180 projected units from studios to 2 bedrooms and a total of 29,850 ft 2 of commercial space projected in Little Sàigòn alone.

Although Yesler Terrace is outside the boundaries, this area is notable as it is the Seattle Housing Authority’s oldest public housing development and heavily impacts the neighborhood.

1 4 C H A L L E N G E S

With the new upcoming developments, it’s important to recognize the underlying challenges faced by the community with current and future housing impacts.

"Many community organizations serving low-income communities of color felt that housing information was shared by word of mouth in their communities, so an online database would not be the best tool to help underserved and marginalized communities know about available housing" [ 1 1 ]

Additionally, “more people regard Seattle’s housing as unaffordable … those reporting [ 1 1 ] affordability as “only fair” or “poor” grew by 4% from 78% in 2013 to 82% in 2016” from the 2016 RSJI Community Survey. This survey consisted of 400 phone survey respondents and 1,295 web survey respondents from a total of 1,695.

[ 1 1 ] A 4% growth of the respondents within 3 years indicating affordability as “only fair” or “poor” is a major indicator to have more resources in maintaining reasonable living costs and the need to start documenting singles or family occupants in the area.

In documenting missing current and future numbers of occupants, we can further shape the community needs by gauging the size of the neighborhoods. With new upcoming housing developments for potential residents and families, this will bring more foot traffic and business to the area. It is critical to ensure that existing businesses are supported to cater to this new/increasing demographic, and being thoughtful about what kinds of new businesses can support the neighborhood’s growth while also complementing it’s unique cultural character.

Another challenge posed by missing current occupants in the area is attracting more Vietnamese/APIs to live in the area. It’s important to attract Vietnamese/APIs as they are the main constituents that will benefit most from the cultural resources and amenities in their own community. In the face of gentrification and displacement, it has already been a challenge to bring back communities that were once in the area.

1 5 R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S

In doing this research, it was difficult to access demographics in current housing developments. As new developments begin to rise, it is crucial to document these households in terms of how many families, couples and singles are living in the area, their income, race, and where they moved from are some important indicators of housing accessibility and neighborhood change.

Using this data can help determine the needs of current residents in terms of support from the community and public agencies providing housing. On top of this, implementing more support programs can help attract Vietnamese/API communities to the area. Implementation of more support programs will build relationships within the Vietnamese/API community by establishing networking and trust.

L A N D M A R K P R O J E C T : M U L T I - P H A S E C O M M U N I T Y V I S I O N ( P H O T O B Y F L S )

1 6 B U S I N E S S E S

With varying restaurants, jewelry stores, warehouses and grocery stores, small local businesses shape what Little Sàigòn is today. They set the foundation for what makes Little Saigon unique in terms of design, use, and feel.

Little Sàigòn businesses first established around the intersection of S Jackson Street and 12th Avenue S in the late 1980s after the fall of Sàigòn in 1975. Today, Little Sàigòn makes up a large percentage of the currently Asian-owned businesses in the US. There are currently about 91 businesses in the area with the majority being food-based. Aside from the major grocery markets, businesses are mom and pop shops with and an average of 1-3 employees.

B U S I N E S S S P O T L I G H T S

C H U M I N H T O F U & V E G A N D E L I S P R I N G R O L L H O U S E

"There are approximately 1.9 million Asian-owned businesses in the U.S - [ 1 1 ] almost half of which have fewer than 20 employees"

1 7 Specifically in the Little Sàigòn, it is important to recognize that the area is now under the [ 1 2 ] International Special Review District (established in early 2019). This requires businesses in the district to apply for permits and present to a community board when making changes to their business storefront or developing a new project.

[ 1 2 ] D I S T R I C T B O U N D A R Y O F I N T E R N A T I O N A L S P E C I A L R E V I E W D I S T R I C T

C H A L L E N G E S : S M A L L A S I A N - O W N E D B U S I N E S S E S I N T H E U S

As part of a larger community, businesses face similar struggles as first time owners or as small local businesses. Of the 144 AAPI small business owners surveyed in 2018 by the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, 40% faced difficulty [ 1 3 ] in covering cash flow on a monthly basis.

On top of cash flow, many businesses face problems requesting loans which prevents potential business owners from starting up or growing their business.

[ 1 3 ] Barriers to getting loans or qualifying include:

Low Credit High interests Lack of documentation Too much work Language barriers Didn’t think they would qualify in the first place

1 8 [ 1 3 ] S T A R T U P B A R R I E R S O F 1 4 4 S U R V E Y E D A A P I B U S I N E S S E S

[ 1 3 ] B A R R I E R S G E T T I N G L O A N S O F 1 4 4 S U R V E Y E D A A P I B U S I N E S S E S

1 9 More specifically with language barriers, respondents cited limited English proficiency as a barrier to starting or operating their small business and did not know where to find assistance help in their language.

Although only 18% of the businesses surveyed stated language barriers as a factor preventing clients from seeking or obtaining funds [ 1 3 ] , this is one of the main reasons that prevents business owners in Little Sàigòn from accessing resources. The result of a language barrier makes loans seem burdensome and leads to the top percentage of the factors listed in the survey.

In the 2016 FLS Community Engagement report, Vietnamese small business owners indicated not only was their limited English a barrier interacting with the government (i.e. filling out taxes/documents), but also with their customers. Businesses in Little Sàigòn also suggested “that ESL classes and classes on American customs and mannerism would be helpful for it may help them interact better with their American customers” [FLS Community Engagement report] on top of having a Vietnamese-English speaking authority to walk through important paperwork.

One difficulty in recognizing language barriers of the area is the limited records of past businesses and why they left. There is no current resource that tracks past businesses and where they went if they relocated. It is unknown what factors cause businesses to leave, therefore hard to determine what is needed for businesses to stay in the area.

R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S

FLS continues to promote increased language access in all programs that intend to support small businesses. This is a key role in FLS’ small business support program where technical assistance is culturally relevant in order to increase access and success.

We also recommend documenting current and future businesses, keeping the information in an organized database in order to track their needs, available resources, and understand why businesses come and go.

2 0 C O N C L U S I O N

As Little Sàigòn continues to grow and develop, the changes in population, housing, culture and impact on businesses are important factors to address. Recognizing these gaps and challenges are crucial at this stage in order to prevent further displacement and gentrification.

This report identifies suggested recommendations to guide investment and support to Little Sàigòn stakeholders and partners in order to address the significant changes in the next few years. As mentioned, many recommendations are short-term data solutions, and do not provide a macro- or long-term results to addressing the root issues. Future economic analysis, research, and planning must be committed to sustain Little Sàigòn for future generations.

L I T T L E S À I G Ò N S E A T T L E ( P H O T O B Y S E A T T L E T I M E S )

2 1 E N D N O T E S ( l i s t e d i n o r d e r o f a p p e a r a n c e )

1 Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). “Demographic and Housing in King County.” American FactFinder, 5 Oct. 2010, https://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/15_SPT/DP05/0500000US53033/popgroup~048.

2 Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). “Demographic and Housing in Seattle.” American FactFinder, 5 Oct. 2010, https://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/15_SPT/DP05/1600000US5363000/popgroup~048.

3 Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). “Vietnamese Nativity in Seattle.” American FactFinder, 5 Oct. 2010, https://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/15_SPT/B05012/1600000US5363000/popgroup~048.

Nguyen, Diana. “A Restaurant Owner Braces Himself To Keep Seattle's Little Saigon Vietnamese.” Spokane 4 Public Radio, 3 May 2017, https://www.spokanepublicradio.org/post/restaurant-owner-braces-himself-keep- seattles-little-saigon-vietnamese.

Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). “HOUSEHOLD INCOME.” American FactFinder, 5 Oct. 5 2010, https://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/15_SPT/B19001/1600000US5363000/popgroup~048https ://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/15_SPT/B19001/1600000US5363000/popgroup~048

6 “Small Business Report.” National CAPACD, https://www.nationalcapacd.org/wp- content/uploads/2019/03/CAPACD_SmallBusinessReport_final_web.pdf.

7 The Demographic Statistical Atlas of the United States - Statistical Atlas, https://statisticalatlas.com/.

8 “The Importance of Culture.” Ontario.ca, https://www.ontario.ca/document/environmental-scan-culture-sector- ontario-culture-strategy-background-document/importance-culture.

“Community Action Research & Empowerment (CARE) Project.” VFA Seattle, Feb. 2011, 9 https://www.vfaseattle.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/vfa-care-report-final-2-14-11.pdf.

Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). “TOTAL POPULATION IN OCCUPIED HOUSING UNITS 10 BY TENURE” American FactFinder, 5 Oct. 2010, https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml? pid=DEC_10_SF2_HCT2&prodType=table

“RSJI Community Survey.” Seattle Gov, Apr. 2017, 11 https://www.seattle.gov/Documents/Departments/CivilRights/2016 RSJI Community Survey.pdf.

Frestedt, Rebecca. “International Special Review District.” Seattle Gov, 12 https://www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/programs-and-services/historic-preservation/historic- districts/international-special-review-district#makingchangesinthedistrict.

“Small Business Report.” National CAPACD, https://www.nationalcapacd.org/wp- 13 content/uploads/2019/03/CAPACD_SmallBusinessReport_final_web.pdf. 2 2