NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – Chinatown has been hurting financially for the past decade and now the City Council may step in to get it back on track.

WCBS 880′s Alex Silverman On The Story

“I think everybody has probably dropped at least 50 percent,” said a man named Kim Pang, who owns a restaurant on Mott Street. “From what I see, it looks really bad.”

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City Council Member Margaret Chin says the struggle goes back to 9/11.

“Chinatown was in what they call a frozen zone. So, you couldn’t really get in and out,” she told WCBS 880 reporter Alex Silverman.

While many neighborhoods have bounced back from their post-9/11 downturns, Chinatown has not.

“There were a lot of workers coming from the Twin Tower[s] to eat lunch and dinner, to shop,” she said.

Today, a council committee will vote to create a Business Improvement District there. A full council vote could come soon after.

Under the plan, small business owners would contribute yearly dues for signage, lighting, and sanitation services.

What do you think should be done to improve business in Chinatown? Sound off below!