Preserving the Historical Memory of Honolulu's Chinatown

Abstract

Honolulus Chinatown is a unique component of urban fabric of Honolulu and part of the Hawaiis multicultural mosaic. This paper states the brief history of Honolulus Chinatown and its uniqueness. It analyzes how the historic buildings in Honolulus Chinatown are impacted by three sets of historic preservation legislation at National level, State level and city level. This paper addresses the design guidelines which make a significant contribution to retaining the essential character of Honolulus Chinatown. As one of Honolulus seven Special Districts, Chinatown contains a rich and varied array of historic fabric, but it also faces the development pressures. The aim of this paper is to share the Chinatown preservations experiences, and hopefully provides inspiration for Chinas historic preservation.