Nobody Wants a McDonald’s in Chinatown

McDonald’s wants to put a new store in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District (CID). Almost nobody thinks that’s a good idea. They are decidedly not loving it. Last night, about 80 CID residents and supporters packed the meeting of the International Special Review District (ISRD), the neighborhood’s historic preservation board. Impassioned public comments, handmade protest signs in Chinese and English, and several people in Ronald McDonald-esque clown masks injected the typically sleepy meeting with life. McDonald’s wants to place its new franchise on the corner of 4th Avenue South and South Jackson Street, along a busy thoroughfare close to the regional transit hub and sports stadiums. The storefront has remained vacant since Bartell Drugs closed four years ago. In submitting its proposal, Mickey D’s managed a remarkable feat: Uniting the community to take action in the span of less than a week.

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