We were deeply saddened by the passing on Friday of longtime East Village/Loisaida activist and community leader Carlos “Chino” Garcia. Chino was one of the co-founders of the Charas/El Bohio community and cultural center, which operated out of the abandoned former P.S. 64 at 605 East 9th Street from the 1970s until 2001. He continued to lead efforts to have the building (sold off to a developer under Mayor Giuliani) returned to public use and Charas re-established there. For decades Chino led efforts to reclaim and reuse abandoned neighborhood buildings; to pioneer environmentally sound practices for neighborhood regeneration; to provide education, training, recovery, and cultural enrichment for neighborhood residents; and to create a more just and inclusive community. His collaborators included R. Buckminster Fuller, and beneficiaries of his work included Spike Lee, John Leguizamo, and Luis Guzman. 

Village Preservation was honored to have Chino sit with us for a wide-ranging oral history in 2015, sharing details about his life and work in the neighborhood. We were proud to honor him with a Village Award this past June, celebrating his lifetime of activism and leadership. And for over 20 years, we worked with Chino and other Charas activists to landmark and preserve the center’s former home and see its return to community use, a path toward which it is finally on. Over the years, we’ve executed various programs and created multiple resources to highlight his inspiring legacy. 

Chino Garcia’s work has uplifted countless people, and served as a model for generations. He will be sorely missed.