The Van Cortlandt Stadium running track and
grandstand, built by the WPA between 1936[1] and 1939[2]. The WPA's purpose
was to put the maximum number of unemployed people to work and therefore its
policy was to spend as much as possible on labor and as little as possible
on materials. For this reason, cheap concrete was one of its favorite
construction materials and, indeed, it tends to discolor over time. This is
almost as sure a sign of a structure's WPA origins as its Art Moderne
styling, also evident here (for another prominent example, see the Orchard Beach bathhouse). The track was
originally cinder; it has been resurfaced with an all-weather rubberized
material. The interior playing field, originally grass, is now artificial
turf. To see how this area looked in 1978-79 (immaculate grandstand but
the athletic field was bare dirt and the track was grey cinders) see the
football game at the end of the film
The Wanderers.
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