Christopher Columbus Homes

Christopher Columbus Homes

The Christopher Columbus Homes were a public housing complex located between High Street and Eighth Avenue, on the same superblock as the Colonnade and Pavilion Apartments. The complex, part of a Redevelopment Plan, was composed of eight 13-story tall slabs with 200 apartments each. In its inception it provided a close proximity to schools, Broad Street Station, Branch Brook Park, and a newly-constructed church—the Sacred Heart Church. While the site design is reminiscent of Hilberseimer’s urban schemes, the architecture of the apartments followed an orthodox public housing formula: cost-saving approaches were reflected by the bare brick façade, and restraint of finishes on the interior.

1956-1994

demolished

This complex was destroyed in 1994 by means of detonation. After decades of neglect, poor maintenance, and concentration of crime, housing authorities decided to demolish the towers and replace them with townhouses: the Wynona Lipman Gardens, administered by the Newark Housing Authority.

Articles

CLIFFORD J., LEVY. "4 High-Rises Torn Down By Newark." New York Times, The (NY) 07 Mar. 1994: 1. NewsBank - Archives. Web. 13 July 2016.

Vergara, C. "'Dee Dee Was Here, Now She's Gone'." The Nation 259.4 (1994): 125-127. Alternative Press Index. Web. 13 July 2016.

JEFFERY C., MAYS. "Public housing: Case closed Its goal of 1,777 Newark units nearly met, '89 suit dismissed." Star-Ledger, The (Newark, NJ) 16 Jan. 2008: 013. NewsBank. Web. 13 July 2016.