The Ah Louis Store is one of the last remaining original buildings in San Luis Obispo's Historic Chinatown and it's celebrating its 150th anniversary this weekend.
The City of San Luis Obispo and the operators of the Ah Louis Store are working together to bring a free Lunar New Year Block Party to Palm Street.
"We're so excited to be celebrating not only the Year of the Dragon but 150 years of the Ah Louis Store in San Luis Obispo," said Emily Butler, co-owner of Karson Butler Events at the Ah Louis Store. "We are so excited to bring this event to the community. We are turning our parking lot and the front of our shop into a full festival block party."
Butler and Amber Karson have been stewards of the Ah Louis Store for the last 7 years.
This year, because the store is turning 150 years old, they wanted to honor the historic milestone, and when a Lunar New Year block party came to mind, it felt like the perfect way to celebrate.
"Amber and I are most proud of what we've given to the community," Butler said. "We love having the doors open. We love spreading love and light on the corner of Chorro and Palm. This is a shop that you can come to for all occasions, celebrating life's occasions both big and small."
Karson Butler Events worked alongside fellow Chinatown historic district businesses, the Ah Louis family, the City of San Luis Obispo, and other community partners to help bring this event to life.
"The City of San Luis Obispo has been able to financially help support this event taking place in our community by supporting the funding through our promotional coordinating committee, whose job here at the City of San Luis Obispo is to help support the historic and cultural experiences that take place here in the city," explained Molly Cano, City of San Luis Obispo Economic Development and Tourism Manager.
Cano says recognizing San Luis Obispo's Chinatown historical district is incredibly important.
"Not only can we pay heritage to an important part of our community and the representation that it has here in the City of San Luis Obispo, but it's also an opportunity for us to gather together in our modern day and be able to celebrate those historic events and representation that we have here," Cano said.
The Lunar New Year Palm Street Block Party will include live performances, food, tea demonstrations, and many other activities.
The celebration is scheduled to conclude with a drone light show in the night sky.
"The drone show is an important significance to this event because Ah Louis' family would oftentimes hold celebrations with fireworks and so drones are our way to make a nod to celebrating that historic tradition," Cano said.
The Block Party is scheduled to take place from 11 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10, along the 800 block of Palm Street in downtown San Luis Obispo.
For more details about the event, click here.
