Chinatown Square

Chinatown Square is a two-story outdoor mall located in Chinatown, Chicago, a mile (1.6 km) from the center of Chicago just North of the main Wentworth Avenue District (the main Chinatown Street). Chinatown Square, on 45acre of reclaimed land from a former railroad yard, houses mostly restaurants, retail space, boutiques, banks, clinics, beauty shops, and a handful of offices. This outdoor mall is the largest Chinese mall in the US east of San Francisco and west of New York City. In the middle of the mall, there are statues of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac from Xiamen, China. Other landmarks in the mall include twin pagodas.The mall opened in 1993 as a result of the efforts of Chinese activists who wanted more land from the city of Chicago. In the 1960s, Chinatown's land has been reduced due to the construction of the Dan Ryan Expressway (I-90/I-94) and the Stevenson Expressway (I-55). This created a problem of overcrowding and reduced the possibility of further expansion. On the present location of Chinatown Square, there was a large railroad yard in the 1980s. The conversion of this rail yard led to the creation of Chinatown Square, allowing for much needed commercial and residential expansion. New parks were created at the same time along the Chicago River. Chinatown Square was developed by the Chinese American Development Corporation.