Cooper Square Committee > About

"Save the Lower Eastside" rally, May 22, 1982

HOME » ABOUT » HISTORY

HISTORICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

In 1959, the Cooper Square Committee (CSC) formed to oppose the City of New York's Slum Clearance plan. Throughout the 1960's, the Cooper Square Committee built coalitions, held demonstrations and spoke out at public hearings against the Robert Moses urban renewal plan. Equally important, the Cooper Square Committee held many public meetings with its members to create an alternative plan.

In the late 1960's, the Cooper Square Committee's members created a community based plan, known as "The Alternate Plan," which established basic principles that are still relevant to the neighborhood:

» Displacement must be minimized
» Development must be carried out in stages
» Site tenants must have first priority for the housing that is developed

On February 13, 1970, the Cooper Square Committee forced a vote by the Board of Estimate on the CSC's Alternate Plan for the urban renewal area, and it was adopted as the official plan of the City of New York for the urban renewal area.

By defeating the City, CSC's founding members preserved over 300 buildings, and prevented the displacement of several thousand people, including families, senior citizens, artists and art organizations.

In the 1970s Cooper Square Committee was instrumental in developing community leadership on the Lower East Side. CSC organized the Bowery Residents Committee, the Good Food Co-op, Third Avenue Artists, and also helped start several tenant associations. Members of CSC formed a new tenant rights organization called Good Old Lower East Side (GOLES), which is an ally today in preserving affordable housing.

In 1985, the Cooper Square Committee sponsored development of a Section 8 building for low-income households at 10 Stanton Street, known as the Thelma Burdick building.

The Cooper Square Committee supported development of senior citizen housing on 5th Street and the Bowery. It was developed in 1985 by a private builder and is now managed by the Jewish Association of Services for the Aged (JASA). CSC works closely with JASA to ensure that it be a racially-integrated building.

In 1988, Cooper Square Committee convinced HPD to approve the development of the 22 unit Cube Building on 16-18 2nd Avenue for formerly homeless families.

In 1991, Cooper Square Committee founded the Cooper Square Mutual Housing Association which now manages 356 apartments in 22 formerly city-owned buildings.

Cooper Square Committee was a key player in negotiations with the Cooper Square Task Force created by the City in 1996 to develop a consensus for a development plan for the Cooper Square Urban Renewal Sites around Houston Street and the Bowery. The new development will result in over 750 new mixed apartments, a new 30,000 sq. ft. community center with a gymnasium and swimming pool, and renovation of the 8,000 sq. ft. Church of All Nations Chapel for use by cultural organizations.

The Cooper Square Committee is partnering with Community Access, Inc. to develop a new 54 unit apartment building at 29 E. 2nd St. with supportive services. The development, which is within the urban renewal area (see above), will start construction by the spring of 2002.

When the development of the Cooper Square Urban Renewal Area is completed in 2005, 834 of the 1,355 new and renovated apartments will be low income units (62% of the total) and the Lower East Side will also have a new community center and more cultural space.