Grant Houses
Grant Houses | ||
|---|---|---|
ZIP codes 10027 | ||
| Area code(s) | 212, 332, 646, and 917 | |
| Website | my | |
General Ulysses S. Grant Houses or Grant Houses is a
History
Morningside Heights Inc. (MHI) was founded by Columbia University and other area institutions to begin renovating Morningside Heights to target the "undesirables" and stop neighborhood blight in the neighborhood. David Rockefeller and Lawrence M. Orton, a planning commissioner, were President and Executive Director of the organization. MHI helped lobby for slum clearance in the 1940s with the intention of using the legislation to displace residents on the fringes of the neighborhood in order to keep the area middle-class. MHI then encouraged NYCHA to build the Grant Houses and Manhattanville Houses to the north of Morningside Gardens, a middle income cooperative. This created a buffer between Morningside Heights and Harlem. Prior to the construction of the Grant Houses, Columbia conducted a survey of residents on the site of which more than half said they were mostly satisfied with current housing, noting that overcrowding was lower in the area.[4]
Construction on the Grant Houses began in 1954
By 1958 it was felt that the Grant Houses and other large developments in the neighborhood were doing little to improve the area. The development displaced roughly 7,000 residents who were mostly African-American or Puerto Rican and did little to improve older buildings nearby.[9][10]
In the early 1960s, crime began to rise and residents began organizing to obtain more police presence in the area.[11] In 2014, the Grant and Manhattanville Houses were the site of the largest gang bust in city history. 103 suspects were arrested on a 145-count indictment from a grand jury with crimes ranging from weapon possession to murder. Residents cited historic tensions between the developments and institutionalized racism as possible motivations behind the bust.[12][13]
Notable residents
- Ray Chew (born c. 1968), musical director, lived there until age 7.[14]
- Chris Jackson (born 1971), publisher[15]
- Nuyorican Movement.[16]
- Keith Sweat (born 1961), R&B singer[17]
See also
References
- ^ "Grant Houses Population".
- ^ "Grant Houses Area". Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- ^ "MyNYCHA Developments Portal". my.nycha.info. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ISBN 9781136740688.
- ^ "To Break Ground for Housing". New York Times. July 14, 1954. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- JSTOR 40101541.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ "HOUSING OFFICE SCORED; Gallagher Fears Segregated Pattern in Grant Houses". New York Times. October 3, 1957. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ^ "MAYOR DEPLORES SLUM JOB DELAYS". New York Times. August 9, 1956. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ^ "SLUMS ENGULFING COLUMBIA SECTION". New York Times. June 9, 1958. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ISBN 9780393285451.
- ^ Kramer, Abigail. "Busts, but not a solution, from NYPD tracking of housing feuds". Politico PRO. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ^ "How Massive Gang Sweeps Make Growing Up In The Projects A Crime". Gothamist. October 24, 2016. Archived from the original on June 27, 2019. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- The Record (Bergen County), June 28, 2009. Accessed June 28, 2009.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
- ^ Feeney, Michael J. (December 2, 2011). "Harlem-born R&B singer and radio host Keith Sweat releases new album". New York Daily News. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
External links
- "Grant" – NYCHA Development Map