Cypress Hills Houses

Cypress Hills Houses
Interactive map of Cypress Hills Houses
CountryUnited States
State New York
CityNew York City
BoroughBrooklyn
Area
 • Total
28.75 acres (11.63 ha)
Population
 • Total
2,824
Zip Code
11208

The Cypress Hills Houses is a NYCHA Housing Project with 11 buildings that are 7-stories tall. It is located between Sutter Avenue to Linden Boulevard and also between Fountain to Euclid Avenues in the East New York neighborhood of Brooklyn.[2] Designed by the architectural firm of Carson & Lundin, the complex was completed in May 1955.[1][3]

History

The Cypress Hills Branch of the Brooklyn Public Library opened at the complex in September 1955 and was the first branch of the public library system to open in a housing project; it was replaced in 1995 by a new building located on the north side of Sutter Avenue.[4][5]

In May 1967, two experimental playgrounds designed by architect Charles Forberg opened at the complex. The larger of the two circular playgrounds was 72 feet (22 m) in diameter and contained a pattern of 7-foot-tall (2.1 m) concrete slabs. The $70,000 project was sponsored by NYCHA, the Museum of Modern Art and the Park Association of New York City.[3][6][7]

21st Century

In early 2018, the Roma Scaffolding company started replacing built-up roofs with a new fluid-applied system and destroyed smoke rooms and chimneys, restored brickwork, changed the roof railings, and changed the 90 doors within in the housing project.[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "NYCHA Development Data Book 2025" (PDF). New York City Housing Authority. p. 26, c. 5. Retrieved December 8, 2025.
  2. ^ "Cypress Hills" (PDF). New York City Housing Authority. Retrieved December 8, 2025.
  3. ^ a b Stern, Robert A. M.; Mellins, Thomas; Fishman, David (1995). New York 1960: Architecture and Urbanism Between the Second World War and the Bicentennial. New York: Monacelli Press. p. 926. ISBN 1-885254-02-4. OCLC 32159240. OL 1130718M.
  4. ^ "New Library Ready". The New York Times. September 18, 1955. p. 51. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  5. ^ "Cypress Hills Library". Brooklyn Public Library. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  6. ^ "Newest Thing in Playgrounds Opens in Brooklyn". The New York Times. May 19, 1967. p. 35. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  7. ^ "The Ignoble Experiment" (PDF). Progressive Architecture. August 1967. p. 47. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  8. ^ "Cypress Hills Houses". Roma Scaffolding. Retrieved December 9, 2025.