Meet Kenneth Li, the Taiwan-Born 'Mayor' of Houston's Chinatown

TaiwanPlus News

TaiwanPlus meets Kenneth Li, one of the key creators of the bustling Chinatown district of Houston, Texas. Born in Taiwan, Kenneth came to the U.S. as a teenager. He found opportunity in real estate, back when local property rules discriminated against people of color. Over the years, Li has led the charge in developing the area of the city's southwest now populated by Asian businesses and residents of diverse backgrounds.

Transcript

00:00When I first got here, the one we showed you just go before called the deal market and

00:06all from here is all just land, vacant land.

00:11They call him Mr. Chinatown, or the Mayor of Chinatown.

00:17Real estate agent Kenneth Lee is a leading figure in Houston's growing Asian-American

00:23community.

00:24He's largely credited with building up the local Chinese-speaking neighborhood southwest

00:29of the city.

00:31Kenneth was born in Taiwan.

00:34He moved to Hong Kong at 14 and then went to the United States for college, moving to

00:40Houston in 1981 at the behest of his uncle.

00:44He just said, Kenneth, if you go to the United States, you should go to Houston because I'm

00:51going to open a supermarket.

00:53You're going to help me.

00:55That supermarket turned out to be a pivotal first step in creating Houston's contemporary

01:01Chinatown because it offered immigrants from Taiwan and Asia a taste of home.

01:08People came from far and wide specifically to buy the specialty goods that his uncle's

01:14grocery store offered.

01:17With more people came more business, and Asian enterprises sought to gain a bigger foothold

01:23in the city.

01:24As more businesses poured into the area, the demand for financial services grew.

01:29And this was a time where the entrepreneurs reached a critical mass.

01:35And they were not properly served or not effectively served by the mainstream banks.

01:45Jodi Lee is chairwoman of Southwestern National Bank, one of the Asian-oriented financial

01:52institutions that arose from Houston's Chinatown rise.

01:57Her father, CK Lee, is one of the bank's founders, which was created specifically to

02:03serve the needs of immigrant businesses in the area.

02:07Jodi's family moved to Texas from Taiwan.

02:11Her family was one of those who made regular journeys to Houston to visit Kenneth's family

02:16grocery.

02:18We lived in the Dallas-Fort Worth area for two years.

02:22And during that time, we would come to Houston on a monthly basis to buy Chinese groceries.

02:29And each trip would be like three and a half to four hours one way.

02:36While Chinatown boomed, Houston as a whole struggled.

02:41An oil crisis hit Texas in the 1980s.

02:45And people started leaving the energy industry-reliant city, causing property values to plummet.

02:52But where some people saw catastrophe, others saw opportunity.

02:57Outside capital poured in from places like Taiwan, Hong Kong and California to scoop

03:03up cheap local property.

03:06But Kenneth soon realized those buyers needed help.

03:10But in that time, Houston still is a very conservative place.

03:15So in the upscale property, the commercial properties, even if you have money, you cannot buy.

03:23Kenneth became a realtor to help drive those sales.

03:27As he sold more property, he saw a need to build relationships with local officials so

03:33that they could become familiar with the community.

03:36Kenneth worked with local authorities and city officials, showing that Chinatown could

03:41bring much economic good to Houston.

03:45We have to work with the mayor, with the city council, to let them know we are here and

03:50then we are part of the culture and then let's work together.

03:55He asked police to set up an office in his area, paying for the rent and utilities out

04:01of his own pocket, as he believed safety was a big priority for Chinatown's prosperity.

04:08Kenneth also regularly meets with local politicians to advocate for Chinatown's needs, as well

04:14as find out if there's anything Chinatown can do for Houston.

04:19Houston is the place where Kenneth has seen generations of immigrants set up shop and thrive.

04:27He firmly believes that the city is a haven.

04:30Not just for immigrants, but for anyone looking to build success.

04:35He is a fierce Houston promoter, and his love for the city he calls home goes well beyond

04:41the Chinatown community he helped build.

04:44Devin Tai, Jeremy Olivier, and Leslie Liao in Houston for Taiwan Plus.

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