| Looking south on Amsterdam Avenue from 109th Street. Amsterdam Avenue from 100th Street to 110th Street was once the main street of the Dominican and Puerto Rican community of the Upper West Side. Like the rest of the area it is steadily undergoing gentrification (ethnic cleansing, if you prefer), but is remarkably persistent, probably owing the proximity of a large public housing complex, Frederick Douglass Houses. Pockets of Hispanic community and culture are holding out against all odds. (The pace of gentrification here is gentle compared to what is happening in Harlem.) |