Property History
Rochdale Village was named after the English town of Rochdale, England, where homesteading pioneers developed the “Rochdale Principles of Cooperation”. Standing on the site of the former Jamaica Racetrack and opened in 1963, Rochdale Village was built by the United Housing Foundation (UHF), which was spearheaded by its president, Abraham Kazan. Kazan believed in affordable homeownership and created attractive, housing for working-class families with moderate incomes. The cooperative’s layout is based upon the Le Corbusier concept of architectural design, and was created to be a "city within a city". This attractive community currently spans 120 acres and provides its residents with open green spaces and the feel of suburbia, within the limits of the urban Jamaica area. Once the Jamaica Racetrack shut down in 1959, construction of Rochdale Village proceeded at a rapid pace from 1960 - 1962. When Rochdale Village opened in 1963, it was the largest private housing cooperative in the world.
For more details check the Rochdale Village Bulletin Archives and the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
