By Lesley Sussman
At its October full-board meeting, Community Board 3 considered a proposal for the construction of a statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen to be erected on the traffic island at Canal and Baxter Sts. in Chinatown to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Revolution in 1911.
C.B. 3 gave its support to the resolution that called for the creation of the Dr. Sun Yat-sen statue. The measure was presented by Gary Tai, assistant to the president of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, at 62 Mott St., who said his civic group is awaiting city approval for the site.
“We wish to honor one of the most important figures in modern Chinese history as soon as possible,” Tai said, “as next year is the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Revolution led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen.
“This statue, which would be erected adjacent to the Chinatown information kiosk, would become another world-famous landmark in New York City’s bustling Chinatown community and, undoubtedly, a favorite with tourists,” Tai said.
He added that the statue would be designed by the New York City architectural firm of T.C. Ho, at 33 Bowery, the firm which designed and engineered the statues of Confucius and Lin Ze Xu in Chinatown. Ho is also the president of the New York Viet-American Lions Club.
Tai added that much of the memorial’s funding would come from money donated by Sun Yat-sen’s granddaughter.
