Building as an art, a science, and a civic responsibility
In 1993, local residents and the Central Park Conservancy began developing plans to Frederick Douglass Circle, located at the Northwest corner of Central Park and make it symmetrical with Duke Ellington Circle at the Northeast corner of Central Park. The circle lies above a subway stop.
The traffic circle features a complex colored paving pattern that alludes to traditional African American quilt designs. Harlem-based artist Algernon Miller designed the paving. Additional features, including wrought-iron symbolic and decorative elements, a brass constellation water wall with LED lighting, and inscribed historical details and quotations representing the life of Frederick Douglass and the slaves’ passage to freedom. A central bronze sculpture, depicting a standing Frederick Douglass was also installed.
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SMARTEC personnel provided REI services for this $19 million project which involves the reconstruction of Frederick Douglass Circle, Cathedral Parkway between Frederick Douglass Circle and Columbus Avenue, and Manhattan Avenue from Cathedral Parkway to West 120th Street. The project is located in upper Manhattan where Cathedral Parkway is part of the corridor that leads to the Gateway to Harlem (Malcolm X Boulevard and 110th Street). The easterly side of the project will meet the recently completed construction of curbs and sidewalks along West 110th Street from 5th Avenue to Frederick Douglass Circle.
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The construction work that is being inspected includes the installation of a 48” trunk main, 20” and 12” distribution water mains, and 24”, 15” and 12” sewer lines; heritage and standard traffic signal and street lighting; granite curbing; sidewalks; roadway reconstruction; and tree removal, pruning, and planting. The project also involves the completion of renovations to private utility facilities. Sidewalk work included the placement of new sidewalks, preparation of sidewalk assessment cards with detailed calculations showing square footage costs, preparation of summary sheets and submission of same on a block format as required.
