Juan Pablo Duarte Square, usually shortened toDuarte Square, is a 0.45-acre (0.18 ha) triangular park inHudson Square, inLower Manhattan,New York City. The park, operated by theNew York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks), is bound bySullivan Street and theLentSpace plot to the west,Grand Street to the north,Sixth Avenue to the east, andCanal Street andAlbert Capsouto Park to the south.
In the late 17th century, the plot was a farm owned byTrinity Church. The square in its current form was officially dedicated in 1945 in concert with the renaming ofSixth Avenue to the Avenue of the Americas "in celebration of Pan-American unity".[1] In 1975 benches, trees and sidewalks were added to the square. On May 26, 1977, control of the square was transferred from theNew York State Department of Transportation toNYC Parks. In 1978, the Consulate of theDominican Republic dedicated a statue ofJuan Pablo Duarte in the square. The dedication took place on the 165th birthday of Duarte, who was one of the founding fathers of theDominican Republic.ItaliansculptorNicola Arrighini designed the thirteen-foot bronze figure, which today rests atop an eight-foot granite base. This statue is one of a group of six other monuments toLatin American leaders throughout the Avenue of the Americas.[1][2]
To the immediate west of NYC Parks' portion of Duarte Square, across a one-block stretch of Sullivan Street that is now closed to traffic, is a plot owned primarily byTrinity Wall Street (a parish of theEpiscopal Diocese of New York) and also known as "Duarte Square". It is fenced off and leased for a non-profit arts program known asLentSpace. This plot was targeted by theOccupy Wall Street organization as a new campsite.[3] On December 17, 2011, after demonstrating in Duarte Park and marching on the streets surrounding the park, occupiers climbed over and under the fence. Police responded by arresting about 50 demonstrators, including at least one Episcopal bishop.[4][5]
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