Summary Information
Abstract
The Morningside Area Alliance is an organization working for community
improvement on behalf of its member institutions in the Morningside Heights neighborhood
in New York City. The organization was founded as Morningside Heights Inc. in 1947
through joint action of fourteen Morningside Institutions--Columbia University, St.
Luke's Hospital, Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, Teacher's College, Barnard
College, Corpus Christi Church, Home for Old Men and Aged Couples, International House,
Jewish Theological Seminary, Juilliard School of Music, St. Hilda's and St. Hugh's
School, The Riverside Church, Union Theological Seminary, and the Women's Hospital of
St. Luke's Center--with the expressed purpose of "[promoting] the improvement of
Morningside Heights as an attractive, residential, educational, and cultural area." The
collection includes much, if not all, of the material that was created by the
organization as part of its daily business from 1947 to 1992, when the materials were
accessioned into University Archives at Columbia University. This includes records of
the Board of Directors and the various Committees within the Alliance; assorted
publications, reports, pamphlets, and theses both acquired and created by the
organization; files of the different offices within the organization; maps, plans, and
photographs used and created by the Alliance for its work; and the collected materials
and files created for the organization's projects in different subject
areas--specifically buildings, community services and programs, public safety, schools,
and the Morningside General Neighborhood Renewal Plan. The collection also includes a
large quantity of material rearranged into subject files on different areas of concern
within the organization.
At a Glance
Call No.: | UA#0076 |
Bib ID: | 4412857 View CLIO record |
Creator(s): | Morningside Heights, Inc. |
Title: | Morningside
Area Alliance records
1947-1992
|
Physical description: | 149 linear ft. (118 record cartons 4 oversized flat boxes
75 tubes 3 document boxes)
|
Language(s): | Material is in English
|
Access: |
This collection is located off-site. You will need to request this material at least two
business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library
reading room.
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. The Columbia University Archives
approves permission to publish that which it physically owns; the responsibility to
secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
More information » |
Arrangement
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in 15 series:
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Series I. Board of Directors and Community Committee Records, 1947-1992
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Series II. Consultant Reports and Student Theses, 1953-1972
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Series III. Education, 1954-1982
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Series IV. Financial Records, 1947-1990
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Series V. General Publications, 1945-1978
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Series VI. Government Programs and Publications, 1949-1978
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Series VII. Main Office, Files, 1946-1991
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Series VIII. Maps and Plans, 1947-1984
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Series IX. Photographs, 1949-1969
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Series X. Planning Files, 1948-1977
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Series XI. Project Files, 1947-1989
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Series XII. Remedco, 1946-1953
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Series XIII. Subject Files, 1944-1990
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Series XIV. Urban Renewal, 1949-1977
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Series XV. Working Files, 1949-1969
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Description
Scope and Content
This large collection contains the entirety of the materials produced and saved by
Morningside Heights Inc. and the Morningside Area Alliance from the organization’s
inception in 1947 to the 1992 transfer of the records from the Alliance to Columbia
University. It is likely that some items, especially those that more closely resembled
personal correspondence of the officers (many of whom held their positions in
Morningside Heights Inc./Morningside Area Alliance in addition to multiple other
positions across the city and state of New York, in both public and private capacities),
were retained by the individuals or discarded as they saw fit. The vast majority of all
other materials that stayed with the files of the organization and its offices, however,
are present in the collection.
The collection contains the records of the Board of Directors as well as the Executive
Committee and the various committees that were formed at different times to address
different issues. These records are mostly made up of the files for each meeting of the
Board or committee, and contain the minutes of the meeting as well as copies of
supporting materials distributed to those present. There are also occasional memoranda
addressed to all members. The financial records and documents of the organization are
also present, and range in form from receipts and stock certificates to financial
planning documents and yearly audit and budget reports. These records exist not only for
Morningside Area Alliance but also for some of the individual committees and their
projects, as well as for Remedco. The files from the main office of the Morningside Area
Alliance are present in the collection as well, and mostly contain the records of the
secretarial work necessary to keep the organization running—including receipts, office
equipment information, correspondence, and memos.
As part of the Alliance’s information-gathering and distribution mission reports, plans,
publications, theses, and dissertations on anything that concerned their mission were
collected and these materials have been retained in the collection. These materials are
most often concerned with education, youth programming and youth crime, public housing,
and urban renewal, and were mostly published and written either specifically for the
Alliance or for the United States and New York State and City Government and their
various agencies and authorities.
Many records were retained together with others compiled for a specific type of use. In
this format, the collection contains a large group of subject files arranged
alphabetically. In addition there are working files, separated by subject but presumably
maintained specifically for ongoing work within the organization. The Alliance also ran
a “Planning Center” which carried out the city and neighborhood-planning function to
which the Alliance increasingly dedicated itself. The files for this body, were retained
and are found together within the collection. Overall the largest piece of the
collection are the project files, which are files containing the records of the various
projects—separated by focus of project—undertaken by the Alliance, its committees, and
the bodies those created. These are the files that contain the greatest depth of
material in the collection, and include documentation of great detail such as hourly
patrol log reports from the Morningside Community Patrol and data sheets from block
surveys of building conditions in the Morningside area.
Photographs appear throughout many different parts of the collection. Those that were
already filed within the materials of a specific series have been retained in this order
and their presence is noted in the container list. Those that were not associated with
any specific part of the collection have been separated into their own series. There are
three major types of photographs in the collection: promotional photos, created for the
sponsoring institutions; photos of building, redevelopment, and housing projects; and
street photography depicting residents, street scenes, and activities in Morningside
Heights.
Finally, the collection contains many large-format maps, plans, and diagrams created by
the Alliance for both their planning and their information-gathering missions. Many of
these were created near the beginning of the organization’s existence in its initial
push to amass a collected body of neighborhood information where none had previously
existed. These were retained separately within the collection, and so have been set
apart as its own series.
Series I: Board of Directors and Community Committee Records, 1947-1992
This series contains the records of the Board of Directors for Morningside Heights
Inc./Morningside Area Alliance, as well as the records of the Executive Committee
and some of the various other committees that were formed over the years. The
committee on cooperative housing and committee on education are some of the best
represented here. The files usually contain the records of each meeting--the
agenda and minutes, the materials distributed to those present at the meeting,
memoranda for members, and occasionally correspondence between members and
receipts or other items which were of concern to the board or those present at the
meeting. Also included in this series are files from the office of one-time
director Barney Weinberg. Correspondence is included in his files, as are a number
of photographs and negatives made by Weinberg
Series II: Consultant and Student Theses, 1953-1972
This series contains the bulk of the larger-scale reports and theses generated by
consultants, employees of the organization, and students. For the most part they
have either been written in conjunction with or in service of the Alliance. Where
this is not the case, the reports were likely retained because they were on topics
that affect or are affected by the organization. In some cases the contributing
material to the report has been retained--i.e. tabulations of figures or
preliminary drafts--but for most it is only the final published report that was
retained.
Series III: Education, 1954-1982
This series contains materials on education both collected and created by the
Alliance. As opposed to the "Schools" subseries of the Project Files series, the
materials that have been retained in this series are mostly concerned with
educational programs in the community which fall outside of the standard offerings
of the city's public education system. The series includes information on and
examples of guides and resources for teachers and youth. There is also a large
body of literature on programs created by the institutions that are meant to serve
the members of the community, as well as literature on similar programs and
options outside of these institutions-- such as the Peace Corps. For much of its
existence the Alliance published an "Inventory of Resources" in the community and
the educational materials that went into this publication are included here. Also
collected are clippings on programs and institutions of higher education in the
neighborhood, newsletters arising out of the area's educational programs, as well
as publications and journals concerning the topic of urban education.
Series IV: Financial Records, 1947-1990
This series is made up of the various financial records generated by and for the
Alliance. Much of the series is comprised of budget, financial, and audit reports
created for the organization and produced yearly. Also included are materials and
some correspondence about the stock options and institutional funding of the
organization, especially from its early days as Morningside Heights Inc. In
addition there are some materials about small-scale expenses and funding such as
office supplies. This series is mostly concerned with the finances of Morningside
Heights Inc./Morningside Area Alliance as itself. Materials relating to the
finances of the bodies and organizations created by the Alliance usually appear
with the rest of the materials on these groups, rather than in this series.
Series V: General Publications, 1945-1978
This is a small series, and contains publications that were not retained
specifically with any other group. Publications that appear here are those —such
as literary publications, histories, and religious publications. In addition there
are directories and guidebooks--of New York City and otherwise--that have been
retained under this category.
Series VI: Government Programs and Publications, 1949-1978
This series contains information and publications generated by either city, state,
or federal government agencies. By far the majority of the materials are on
programs and publications of the United States Government. In line with the
Alliance's early mission and work, the materials are mostly concerned with public
housing as well as the legislation and funding affecting these programs. Grant
notifications on projects carried out by the Alliance are included here. Some
court records concerning housing in the city of New York have also been retained,
along with official record of action on housing legislation in both the New York
State and United States Legislatures.
Series VII: Main Office Files, 1946-1991
This series is made up of the materials retained from the Alliance's main office,
and the employees and functions which were located there. There is a collection of
contact information along with a chronological file of correspondence directed to
the main office. A particularly valuable resource that appears in this series is
the entire run of the Alliance's Staff Notes newsletter--in existence for almost
as long as the organization itself--as well as material on the writing and
publishing of this document. Some human resources materials are included as well
as a collection of "Historical Files,"organizational files from the beginning of
Morningside Heights Inc. which were apparently set apart from the others.
Series VIII: Maps and Plans
One of the largest founding mandates for the Alliance was the gathering and
mapping of information that had previously been unavailable. Most of the
large-format copies of these maps, and occasionally their accompanying
architectural or neighborhood plans, have been retained in this series. The maps
and plans are almost exclusively of the neighborhood of Morningside Heights, but
occasionally maps of neighborhoods in the vicinity or maps of the entire city are
included. A wide variety of information has been mapped onto the materials in this
series, including demographic, population, land use, zoning, transportation,
institutional expansion, economic, and physical building characteristics. Most of
the maps appear to have been made as part of major studies carried out by the
Alliance, especially the Morningside-Manhattanville Redevelopment Report (1951)
and the Morningside Heights Core Area Study (1968).
Series IX: Photographs, 1949-1969
This series is comprised of the photographic materials in the collection which
were not already filed with the materials of another series. Photographs located
in the files of another series have been left there and their presence noted in
the container list. Included in this series are a large number of promotional
photos from the various sponsoring institutions, along with many photographs of
buildings and facilities in Morningside Heights. Most of these photos were created
or collected for use in reports published by the Alliance. Also included are the
contents of a photo exhibit displaying the photography of Richard Conrad depicting
mostly street scenes around Morningside Heights as well as the inhabitants of the
neighborhood. The text of the exhibit, though it has not been associated with any
particular group of photos, has also been retained.
Series X: Planning Files, 1948-1977
This series consists of the files compiled by the planning arm of the Alliance for
use in neighborhood planning and its large role in the organization's published
reports. The files in this series are mostly organized on a certain subject, city,
government body, or institution and are arranged roughly alphabetically. Also
included are the different indices created for the organization’s maps and charts.
Series XI: Project Files, 1947-1989
This large series is made up of material both generated by and used by the bodies
the Alliance created to carry out the various projects it undertook. The series
has been broken up into subseries according to the scope of the projects.
Subseries 11.1. Buildings, 1947-1982
This subseries contains the materials generated by the Alliance's projects
concerning the built environment and infrastructure in Morningside Heights.
Included are clippings and information on certain buildings and facilities of
interest to the organization, as well as pamphlets and information about the
issues involved with redevelopment, public housing, and slum clearance. The
Alliance also kept extensive records on the condition of buildings in the
neighborhood and the history of their ownership--block by block, house by house
in most cases--and these are included here. Those buildings of interest that
showed up in the City's court calendars for various complaints--usually unsafe
or unsanitary conditions--were also heavily tracked, the documentation of which
has been retained. Finally, records on the construction and finance of
Morningside Gardens are found in this series as well.
Subseries 11.2. Community Services and Programs, 1953-1988
This subseries is made up of records of the Alliance's work to increase
services to the community in a variety of areas, but mostly in services and
activities to be provided to neighborhood youth outside of schools. Appearing
here are directories and inventories of neighborhood services, publications on
existing city and state-wide services by both public and private enterprise,
and publications and plans about how to increase offerings of community-service
programs within the neighborhood. As part of this function the Alliance also
tracked and recorded services and programs offered by the sponsoring
institutions--such as continuing education offered at Columbia University for
community members--and put together many services of its own--such as the Stone
Gym Youth Center, several summer camps and activities, and several sports
leagues. The records of these endeavors--including contracts, receipts,
registrations, and publications--are found in this subseries.
Subseries 11.3. General Neighborhood Renewal Plan, 1947-1979
This subseries contains mostly reports and their contributing materials
generated by the Alliance to assist and influence the GRNP process.
Publications which preceded the existence of the GNRP--such as materials on
slum clearance and on Title I housing--have also been occasionally filed in
this subseries, presumably as source material for the overall character and
construction of the neighborhood. A large collection of news clippings on the
plan have also been retained here. The GNRP was carried out through many
different individual projects, which generated documentation for
themselves--most of which can be found here. The Morningside Heights Core Area
Study and its contributing materials have also been filed in this
subseries.
Subseries 11.4. Public Safety, 1954-1989
This subseries is made up of the materials generated and retained by the
Alliance through its broad efforts to improve public safety in Morningside
Heights. The records of the Morningside Street Patrol (later changed to
"Community Patrol") are found here, and include patrol logs, dispatch records,
and collected complaints to and about the service, amongst other items. The
records of the "Operation Alliance" project are also included here. The project
was made up of several different arms--including an escort service for
vulnerable citizens, a campaign to increase public awareness about safety
issues, and work directly with criminals and problem individuals--and all are
heavily documented in this subseries along with the documentation necessary for
the grants that funded the project. Also collected here are pamphlets and
publications on public safety and public safety programs across the
country.
Series XII: Remedco, 1946-1953
This relatively small series consists of materials created by Remedco in carrying
out its mission. It includes the records of the Remedco's creation and function as
a stockholder's corporation--certificate of incorporation, board meeting minutes
and files, stock certificates and financial documents, and correspondence with the
sponsoring institutions who purchased shares. Also included are "Prospecti" for
the city blocks where Remedco was considering purchasing property.
Series XIII: Subject Files, 1944-1990
The subject files are files that were collected and placed together to provide
information on subjects of interest to the Alliance--which range from housing and
redevelopment to education and youth. The files are mostly arranged
alphabetically, but a small final section that had never been filed among the rest
remains out of order. Larger topics are broken up into subheadings underneath the
main topic. The subject files are a good place to begin research, and they cover a
very wide variety of topics that include the tasks the organization undertook
along with the workings of the Alliance itself and the various bodies it has
created.
Series XIV: Urban Renewal, 1949-1977
This series is composed of pamphlets, publications, reports, and other materials
having to do with urban renewal--a topic of central concern to the Alliance,
especially in its early years as Morningside Heights Inc. The majority of items in
the series are reports and publications on specific urban renewal projects or on
general renewal programs--in New York City and elsewhere. The series also contains
information collected on urban renewal programs and funding carried out by the
federal government, and some information on the legislation regarding these
programs.
Series XV: Working Files, 1949-1969
Another relatively small series, this part of the collection consists of files
that accumulated while projects were in progress. These files remained separated
from the materials of any other series though the items themselves are from the
Alliance's early days as Morningside Heights Inc. The files consist mostly of
collected information on a certain topic, filed together with correspondence and
other information necessary to conduct business. Where an order is present the
files are arranged alphabetically, however the entire alphabetical arrangement is
not represented in the collection and it is likely some files were removed and
filed into the materials of other series at a date preceding final processing.
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Using the Collection
Access Restrictions
This collection is located off-site. You will need to request this material at least two
business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library
reading room.
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. The Columbia University Archives
approves permission to publish that which it physically owns; the responsibility to
secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
Restrictions on Use
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of
the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The
responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
Preferred Citation
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Morningside Area Alliance Records; Box
and Folder; University Archives, Columbia University Library.
Finding aid in repository and online; folder level control
Selected Related Material
Columbia University. Office of the President. Central Files, 1890-1984 [Bulk Dates:
1890-1983]
Columbia University Archives Historical Subject Files, 1870s-2012. [Bulk Dates: 1968-1972].
Columbia
University Archives
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About the Finding Aid / Processing Information
Columbia University Archives; machine readable
finding aid created by Columbia University Libraries Digital Library Program
Division
Processing Information
Records processed 2003 Soraya Ciego and Jeff Barton
Records processed 06/--/2012 Charles Macquarie, Pratt Institute 2012
Finding aid written 06/--/2012 Charles Macquarie, Pratt Institute 2012
Funding for the initial processing of this collection was made possible by a grant from
the New York State Documentary Heritage Program.
Machine readable finding aid generated from MARC-AMC source via XSLT conversion
November 6, 2012
Finding aid written in English.
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Subject Headings
The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches at Columbia University through the Archival Collections Portal and through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, as well as ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.
All links open new windows.
Additional Creators
Genre/Form
Subjects
Heading | CUL Archives: Portal | CUL Collections: CLIO | Nat'l / Int'l Archives: ArchiveGRID |
---|
Bank Street College of Education. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Barnard College. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
City planning. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Columbia University. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Columbia University.--Teachers College. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Community development corporations. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Community policing. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Crime prevention. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Eisenhower, Dwight D. (Dwight David), 1890-1969. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Fackenthal, Frank Diehl, 1883-1968. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Harlem (New York, N.Y.)--Morningside Heights--20th
century. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Housing policy. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Housing--Finance--Law and legislation. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Jewish Theological Seminary of America. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Juilliard Musical Foundation. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Kirk, Grayson L. (Grayson Louis), 1903- | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Libraries and schools. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Manhattan School of Music (New York, N.Y.) | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Morningside Area Alliance. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Morningside Heights, Inc. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Moses, Robert, 1888-1981. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Neighborhood government. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
New York (N.Y.) | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Public welfare. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Riverside Church (New York, N.Y.) | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Rockefeller Brothers Fund. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Rockefeller, David, 1915- | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Social service. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Social work with youth. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Union Theological Seminary (New York, N.Y.) | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Urban renewal. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
Wagner, Robert F. (Robert Ferdinand), 1877-1953. | Portal | CLIO | ArchiveGRID |
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History / Biographical Note
Historical Note
Morningside Area Alliance was founded as Morningside Heights
Inc. in 1947, out of the recommendations of two Columbia University-instituted
committees—acting University President Frank D. Fackenthal's Morningside Heights
Development Committee, and the University’s extant Committee on Research in Urban Land
Use and Housing. Together the committees concluded that any work toward development,
redevelopment, and institutional expansion in Morningside Heights would be wasted
without collaboration across all institutions in the area. After initial meetings of
institutional representatives from the fourteen institutions involved (Columbia
University, St. Luke's Hospital, Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, Teacher's
College, Barnard College, Corpus Christi Church, Home for Old Men and Aged Couples,
International House, Jewish Theological Seminary, Juilliard School of Music, St. Hilda's
and St. Hugh's School, The Riverside Church, Union Theological Seminary, and the Women's
Hospital of St. Luke's Center) during which the name of Morningside Heights Inc. was
agreed upon, Lawrence Orton, a member of the New York City Planning Commission, was
appointed Directing Consultant, later to become Executive Director, and David
Rockefeller was appointed president of the Executive Committee.
The organization began by focusing on information gathering, mapping, and planning as a
way to carry out the stated goal of “[promoting] the improvement of Morningside Heights
as an attractive, residential, educational, and cultural area.” The original certificate
of incorporation further defines the methods, stating that the organization will strive
to collect, study and disseminate information, research and data affecting the
improvement, redevelopment, and advancement of the area; to appear before official
bodies to accomplish these purposes; to increase cooperation between real estate and
mortgage holders for the improvement of the district; to acquire property, provided it
is necessary for these purposes; to further or cause activities which will in any manner
further the intent and purposes given above.
By the end of 1948 Morningside Heights Inc. made the decision to work towards
neighborhood improvements by focusing on developing public housing and improving public
schools.
In addition the organization’s housing-improvement mission, it was decided that
Morningside Heights Inc. would act as a “clearing house” for all real estate purchases
and transactions by the sponsoring institutions. To aid in this task, the stock
corporation Remedco was founded in 1949 to act as the real estate arm of Morningside
Heights Inc. Given the task of acting “as vehicle for any business activity…undertaken
jointly” by the supporting institutions, Remedco was operated by a small executive
committee made up of experienced real estate businessmen who could move more quickly and
effectively than could the Board of Morningside Heights Inc. to complete real estate
transactions. Remedco became instrumental in organizational efforts to rid the
neighborhood of single room occupancy buildings, including the Bryn Mawr which was
purchased and cleared of tenants in 1964 by Remedco before being sold to Barnard College
for institutional use. During its existence Remedco acted on a number of buildings in
this manner.
The efforts of Morningside Heights Inc. in the area of public housing were made vastly
more effective by the passage of the Federal Housing Act of 1949. The
Morningside-Manhattanville neighborhood was selected as a redevelopment area by the
Mayor’s Committee on Slum Clearance in 1950, and as part of the redevelopment process
Morningside Heights Inc. was authorized to compile and present a long report on
redevelopment of the neighborhood. The Morningside Housing Corporation--the company
created to build the Morningside Gardens Housing Development under Title I--was founded
within Morningside Heights Inc. in 1952, but immediately became an independent entity
sharing executive membership with the organization. Morningside Gardens was opened in
1958. The design, demolition, and construction were carried out by the Morningside
Housing Corporation, while Morningside Heights Inc. assisted in financing the project
through Remedco and contributed to design and public relations through their persistent
mission of information-gathering and distribution.
The organization’s work with redevelopment and renewal projects was again stimulated in
1960 when the city applied for a federal planning grant from the Housing and Home
Finance Agency to create a General Neighborhood Renewal Plan (GNRP) for the area bounded
by 100th and 125th streets and 8th Ave and the Hudson River, and to fund construction
and the other costs of carrying out the plan. As part of this area, Morningside Heights
Inc. was in a position to offer assistance to the GNRP effort. Assistance included
preparing a public relations plan to stimulate interest in the project and offering
secretarial and other services to the bodies created by the GNRP--mainly the Morningside
Renewal Council. The Council, which was created by the City Housing and Redevelopment
Board to advise it during the GNRP project, was composed of representatives from
different institutions and community groups with a stake in the project, including
Morningside Heights Inc. Ultimately the GNRP would lead to some conflict between the
City and Morningside Heights Inc. due to the limitations of institutional expansion
under the plan, which some institutions, and especially Columbia University, deemed
unconstitutional. During the existence of the Morningside Renewal Council, and
especially during the tense periods in the late 1960s and early 1970s there would be an
air of conflict in the Council proceedings and the interactions between Morningside
Heights Inc, the bodies of the City, and the citizen and neighborhood groups of the
area.
The next largest area of Morningside Heights Inc. work was aid to public schools and
programs for Morningside youth. The organization funded a music program in PS 125 and PS
165 from 1954-1958, and advocated for years on behalf of the effort to build another
elementary school in Morningside Heights. PS 36, which had been proposed at least ten
years earlier as PS 62, was eventually built in 1966 on Morningside Drive. The
organization's strong push for a new elementary school was partially based in the
findings of the Morningside Manhattanville Redevelopment study, which recommended
additional education facilities for the neighborhood where they were currently
lacking.
Throughout its existence Morningside Heights Inc. worked to revitalize organized
extracurricular youth activities in the neighborhood as part of a program intended to
minimize the perceived causes of juvenile crime. In 1954 the organization began funding
the Cathedral Summer Day Camp at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and the
Morningside Basketball league, which would continue under the Adult Youth Association
when it was founded in 1958. The Stone Gym Youth Center was founded for similar
purposes--a process which stretched from 1960 to 1962--and was aided by Morningside
Heights Inc. but largely operated by the youth themselves. In 1977 the organization—now
known as Morningside Area Alliance after a 1972 reorganization and name change
recommended by internal committee—began sponsoring the Morningside Summer Streets
Program which offered activities and day trips for kids in the neighborhood.
Morningside Heights Inc. would continue its work against neighborhood crime on another
front through direct action by the committee on Public Safety and the programs that came
out of it. In 1961 Morningside Heights Inc. began running a street patrol of hired
security guards manning posts and walking beats throughout the neighborhood. The name
was changed to the “Community Patrol” in 1969 and the program has continued through the
present day. Throughout the 1970s and the early 1980s, in response to a perceived
increase in street crime, the Alliance carried out the “Operation Alliance” initiative
which included an increased street presence, flyers and posters aimed at educating the
public about crime, and services to escort vulnerable citizens and work directly with
“problem” youth.
Much of the major work of Morningside Heights Inc./Morningside Area Alliance has been
through the reports released to engage with the organization’s planning as well as
information-gathering and distribution mission. The organization released a large number
of reports, plans, and studies of varying size and length, but some of the larger and
most notable are the Morningside Manhattanville Redevelopment Report (1951), the
Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill Report on Morningside Heights (1958), the Morningside
Heights Core Area Study (1968), and the statistical and economic studies compiled by
consultant Chester Rapkin (1951 as part of the Morningside Manhattanville Redevelopment
Report, and 1970). The findings of these documents reflect much of the major work
carried out by the organization, especially in the earlier part of its existence.
The organization has also gone through many changes in membership due to inevitable
shifting of institutions to and from the area. Starting with the fourteen original
members, Corpus Christi Church withdrew from participation in Morningside Heights Inc.
in 1959 and then rejoined in 1961. The Interchurch Center joined in 1960 after moving to
Morningside Heights, as did Bank Street College of Education in 1968 and the Manhattan
School of Music in 1969. St Hilda’s and St Hugh’s School joined in 1962. The Juilliard
School withdrew from Morningside Heights Inc. in 1969 when it moved to the
newly-constructed Lincoln Center.
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