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Concrete dreams part 2 frederick douglass houses
The Frederick Douglass Houses are a public housing project located in the New York City borough of Manhattan, in the Manhattan Valley neighborhood of Upper West Side, named for civil rights pioneer Frederick Douglass. The actual buildings are located between 100th Street and 104th Street, to the east of Amsterdam Avenue and the west of Manhattan Avenue. The complex is owned and operated by the New York City Housing Authority.
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The original portion of the complex consists of 17 buildings — 5, 9, 12, 17, 18, and 20-stories tall — completed on May 31, 1958 on a 21.76-acre (8.81 ha) site. The development includes 2,056 apartments housing some 4,588 residents. The Frederick Douglass Addition, completed on June 30, 1965, is a 16-story building with 306 residents on .55-acre (0.22 ha) on Amsterdam Avenue between West 102nd and West 103rd Streets.
Development
The development was approved by the New York City Planning Commission on February 7, 1952, as a low-rent housing project to be erected on a 22.5-acre (91,000 m2) site bounded by Manhattan Avenue, Amsterdam Avenue and West 100th and 104th Streets.
The Frederick Douglass Playground covers 1.945 acres (7,870 m2), on Amsterdam Avenue between 100th and 102nd Streets. Land for the playground was acquired by the city in 1954, and the playground was opened on September 10, 1958. The New York City Board of Estimate transferred the property from the New York City Housing Authority to the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation in August 1962, which still is responsible for management of the park.
Notable residents
