Rally Held To Stop Construction Of Proposed Jail In Chinatown
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A rally was held Sunday in Chinatown to stop the construction of a jail.
Back in 2017, former the city laid out a plan to close Rikers Island, and open a jail in every borough except Staten Island.
One of the four sites would be in Chinatown at what is now the Manhattan Detention Center. The community gathered Sunday afternoon to urge Mayor Eric Adams to stop the plan, which is set to start in two week, saying it will greatly disrupt life and businesses in a community already hard-hit by the pandemic.
"It's gonna disrupt this entire neighborhood," one protester said.
City Councilman Christopher Marte added, "He chose Chinatown to be in a decade of dust, with the construction of the tallest jail in the world."
Rikers Island is set to close in 2027.
