The International District, like Chinatowns and other traditional ethnic enclaves throughout America are currently facing dramatic changes in urban ethnic, economic and financial structures. In Seattle, the International District's cultural wealth exists side-by-side with its economic impoverishment. At the same time, it is surrounded by symbols of wealth and the "new economy": Safeco Field, Seahawks Stadium, Seattle's growing Central District, Pioneer Square, and headquarters for Amazon.com are neighbors to the ID. Most representative of the contrasts between traditional and modern however, is Paul Allen's Vulcan headquarters located on the ID's border on South 5th and King. While city and community leaders struggle to preserve the cultural and traditional heritage of the district, and resist forces of a gentrifying downtown area, they must also struggle to raise quality of life for its residents, and improve its ability to attract long-term investment in the neighborhood. The contradiction between development and tradition is currently present in International Districts throughout the United States, and more broadly, in Asian countries themselves. This project examines these contradictions through the lens of housing and community in the International District.