Seattle's Chinatown-International District seeks World Cup foot traffic

SEATTLE - Business owners and community advocates in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District (CID) are sounding the alarm over a sharp drop in sales during the World Cup, warning that regional transit plans and persistent public safety issues are keeping international soccer fans away.

Despite massive crowds filling nearby Pioneer Square and the waterfront, local advocates say the historic CID neighborhood remains largely empty. Merchants have experienced a 10% to 20% decline in sales over the past month compared to the same period last year, according to community advocate and former City Councilmember Tanya Woo.

Economic disparities amid tournament crowds

While international soccer fans pack adjacent parts of the stadium district, neighborhood advocates say the influx of visitors has failed to reach local storefronts.

"You look at the TV and the waterfront is just jam-packed," said CID advocate Gary Lee. "Pioneer Square is jam-packed. Elbow to elbow. I go over to Chinatown and it's just like dead."

Community members express concern that transit routing has actively directed tournament visitors away from the neighborhood. Some advocates stated they feel Sound Transit has funneled fan traffic away from the district, cutting off potential patrons.

Sound Transit, Visit Seattle respond to traffic concerns

In response to community criticism, Sound Transit released a statement detailing its collaborative planning efforts with local transportation and event organizing committees, noting that its station management plans were modeled after other global sporting events.

"We worked closely with the Local Organizing Committee (LOC), the Seattle Department of Transportation, King County Metro and other regional partners to develop our passenger and preferred station management plans," Sound Transit said. "The plans we developed took into account best practices and learnings derived from other cities’ hosting major sporting events, including the recent Summer Olympic Games in Paris."

Contrary to assertions that traffic was diverted from the area, the transit agency stated that the local CID transit hub has seen the highest passenger volumes among its designated tournament stations.

"Among our three preferred stations on match days, we’ve consistently seen the biggest ridership volumes at International District/Chinatown Station (IDS)," the agency stated, adding that it has partnered with the Chinatown International District Business Improvement Area (CIDBIA) to deploy station ambassadors who encourage riders to explore the neighborhood.

Tourism organization Visit Seattle also addressed the community's concerns, outlining its ongoing promotional initiatives aimed at directing international soccer fans into the district.

"As we’ve been marketing our city to the world, we’ve routinely highlighted that Seattle is a city of neighborhoods, including the Chinatown – International District, encouraging visitors to explore them on match days and beyond," a Visit Seattle spokesperson said.

The organization noted it has supported the development of the digital "SEA&WIN" app and the "Unity Loop," a physical and digital route highlighting more than 20 local CID shops, museums, and sites, including the Wing Luke Museum, Sairen, and Pho Bac Sup Shop. Visit Seattle also launched the "Let’s Play SEA 26 Community Brand and Hospitality Playbook" to help local merchants maximize the economic impact of the global tournament.

Public safety challenges at 12th and Jackson

The drop in tournament revenue compounds ongoing neighborhood struggles with vandalism, open-air drug dealing, and crime, particularly concentrated around 12th Avenue and South Jackson Street.

Former City Councilmember Sara Nelson emphasized that local government must prioritize neighborhood stability during major regional events. "The role of local government is to deliver basic services and that means keeping neighborhoods safe and ensuring that when there are good, large crowds, that the local businesses benefit, not hurt," Nelson said.

In response to neighborhood calls for immediate intervention, a spokesperson for Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s office emphasized that while long-term solutions take time, the administration has begun executing its targeted safety strategy.

"We’ve already begun deploying the resources and partnerships we’ve announced and believe they will be effective," a spokesperson for the mayor's office said. "But we also acknowledge addressing these problems that have existed for years won’t happen overnight. We want neighbors and business owners to know we’ve heard them, we’re following through, and we’re committed to this work and the partnerships we’ve built with them."

However, some residents remain skeptical of the current timeline. Lee noted that current enforcement efforts feel temporary, with brief periods of clarity followed by a swift return of illegal activity, describing the cycle as "two steps forward and five steps back. So, we can't have that. We're hurting enough already."

Final push for foot traffic

With only one tournament match remaining in Seattle, community members are organizing direct outreach to salvage the final days of the sporting event.

The advocacy group plans to march through the stadium district on July 6 to formally invite tournament attendees into the CID. Organizers hope the direct appeal will generate the extra foot traffic necessary to support struggling storefronts.

What they're saying:

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson's office issued the following statement to FOX 13 Seattle:

"The Chinatown-International District’s history and culture are a vital part of Seattle’s identity. The City is committed to ensuring the CID is a vibrant part Seattle for years to come. In advance of the FIFA tournament, the City, King County, and FIFA local organizing committee worked together to introduce a Chinatown-International District shuttle stop for the duration of the summer, including the World Cup games in Seattle, in an effort to boost access to the CID for visitors. Over 16,000 riders have utilized the shuttle during the four Seattle matches.

Crime and disorder issues in the CID have gone unaddressed for far too long. Mayor Katie Wilson has recently undertaken a new initiative to address longstanding issues in Little Saigon. The Seattle Police Department and outreach workers from the Evergreen Treatment Services REACH and We Deliver Care programs are collaborating to reinvigorate the nationally recognized Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion strategy that originated in Seattle and King County in 2011. These partners are actively working to address crime at 12th Avenue and Jackson Street, and the city is making investments in community activations, neighborhood ambassadors, Health One resources, crime prevention through environmental design, and increased outreach in the neighborhood.

We continue to work with the CID community to address their concerns and ensure it is a safe, active, and vibrant neighborhood."

The Seattle FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee (SeattleFWC26) also issued the following statement to FOX 13 Seattle:

"The Chinatown-International District is one of Seattle's most treasured neighborhoods. A healthy Seattle needs a prosperous CID.  We share the community's goal of a thriving CID, and we take the concerns business owners are raising seriously. Many of the challenges being described are real and predate the World Cup, and we've worked to meet this moment by investing in the neighborhood rather than around it.

"We have partnered closely in the CID to ensure small businesses are informed, heard, and supported. We have held dozens of informational meetings and one-on-one interviews with small business owners, several of which we recorded and posted online so busy owners could watch on their own time. When businesses raised concerns, we acted on them by making meaningful changes to event transportation and parking plans based on direct feedback. We have also invested in practical solutions, such as funding a dedicated neighborhood liaison and providing reserved parking for CID businesses, while equipping businesses with resources like multilingual playbooks. We have also worked with partners to drive visitors and investment into the district through initiatives including sponsoring fares for King County Metro’s new waterfront shuttle, amplifying CID-led events, and have worked with donors to spotlight more than 20 CID businesses with SEA Beacons.

"We also know that a neighborhood's prosperity depends more on how we show up for it year-round than on any six days of soccer. But we can still use the last match in Seattle to help the CID kick off a strong summer: on July 6th, we’re calling on all Seattleites to show up and spend at least $26 at a CID business. Come before the game if you can, but show up any time.  No gimmicks, just genuine civic teamwork. Explore the Unity Loop, play SEA&WIN, or visit the CIDBIA website to pick a business to support. It’s important for our community to keep showing up for the CID long after the World Cup’s final whistle."

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