Casita(s) is a small wood frame house common in the Caribbean and other parts of the Third World. During the XX c. casitas were transformed by the introduction of balloon-frame wood construction. Casitas are found in rural areas of all of the Pan-Caribbean region. In New York City casitas began to appear in Puerto Rican barrios across the city, particularly in neighborhoods like the Lower East Side Loisaida and East Harlem el barrio. They also were found in areas of the Bronx and Brooklyn. Casitas became key neighborhood havens, social clubs for block associations, families, and others in search of spaces and places that were culturally sensitive. Most casitas have been destroyed due to real-estate re-development in the Lower East Side and East Harlem.
Rincón Criollo in the South Bronx section of NYC has retained its community social place and remains the home to Los Pleneros, a bomba music group.
by Luis Aponte-Parés May 29, 2005