Fireworks greet opening of China Town

Chinese band members entertain during the grand opening ceremony of China Town in East Tamaki yesterday. Photo / Dean Purcell

Hundreds of Chinese yesterday celebrated the opening of a little piece of China in Auckland, accompanied by fireworks and a lion dance ceremony.

China Town in Manukau City was opened with two mayors, MPs and local politicians in attendance.

The project is headed by local businessmen Jack Ren and Crown Xu, who have turned the former 7157sq m Bunnings Warehouse building on Ti Rakau Drive into a market square.

Mr Ren said the market would be different from what was being offered at local malls and weekend markets.

Bargaining and bartering are often accepted and expected in such centres. Lili Qi, the centre's marketing manager, says more than half of the 170 stalls have been leased, and business will be in full swing by Christmas.

She said the centre was "an opportunity to showcase Chinese culture".

An "Asian gourmet street" will house more than 30 stalls selling street dishes from China, Taiwan, Malaysia and other parts of Asia.

Dick Quax, a Manukau councillor, said the project was fantastic for Manukau and long overdue.

"China Town will be a huge attraction, not just for the locals, but it will also bring in the tourists and other visitors," said Mr Quax, who attended the opening.

Auckland is home to more than 100,000 Chinese, and 27 per cent of people in Manukau are of Asian descent. A Property Economics study says about 40 per cent of visitors to China Town will come from outside the Manukau area.

Business owner John Robertson, who runs Van Qing, a stall selling Chinese paintings, said the low rent was the main attraction for him to set up shop at China Town.

"It would have cost me three or nearly four times more to start the same thing at the local mall," he said.

The mall was opened on the 61st anniversary of the creation of the People's Republic of China.

However, shopper Kevin Foo, a local-born Chinese, said he wasn't happy with the project.

"Our ancestors have worked so hard for us Chinese to be accepted as New Zealanders, and this China Town is just another sign that shouts Chinese immigrants aren't prepared to integrate."