Kiusala

KIUSALA

 

Sunset Court Association, Inc.
Built 1925 Eric O. Holmgren, Architect

 

This building is one of more than 30 cooperative apartment buildings surrounding Sunset Park, that were either built or converted to co-ops by Finnish immigrants in the early 20th century. The neighborhood was known as Finntown into the 1980s. These buildings were among the first co-ops in the United States and served as a model for the cooperative housing movement that followed.

 

This building had the Finnish nickname Kiusala, because its construction was considered a tease or taunt to the residents of another nearby co-op, whose inhabitants thought their building was the best.

Submitted by @lampbane