ThoughtGallery.org > “Why Can’t NYC Do Big Projects Anymore?”

“Why Can’t NYC Do Big Projects Anymore?”

While many complain NYC’s days of major public works are long gone, the government has in fact undertaken a number of huge development projects in recent decades, several described as the largest in our history — ​new rail lines and bridges, a sixty-mile-long water tunnel, redevelopment of industrial parks, transit yards, waterfront,​ public squares, the downtown financial district, and more. So how does the current age stack up historically? How does it compare? And what lessons might we draw, now that it is time to plan for the next generation?

Lynne B. Sagalyn, professor emeritus of real estate at Columbia’s Graduate School of Business, discusses her recent book, Power at Ground Zero: Politics, Money, and the Remaking of Lower Manhattan, and the challenges of large-scale development in present-day New York. ​Jay Kriegel, chief of staff to Mayor John V. Lindsay from 1966 to 1973, and senior adviser to Related Companies, reflects on his experiences “building big.” Tom Wright, president of the Regional Plan Association, shares his view on ​what must be done to update NYC’s infrastructure, based on insights gleaned from the RPA’s Fourth Regional Plan, set to be released this fall.











When: Mon., Sep. 11, 2017 at 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Where: Graduate Center, CUNY
365 Fifth Ave.
212-817-7000
Price: Free
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While many complain NYC’s days of major public works are long gone, the government has in fact undertaken a number of huge development projects in recent decades, several described as the largest in our history — ​new rail lines and bridges, a sixty-mile-long water tunnel, redevelopment of industrial parks, transit yards, waterfront,​ public squares, the downtown financial district, and more. So how does the current age stack up historically? How does it compare? And what lessons might we draw, now that it is time to plan for the next generation?

Lynne B. Sagalyn, professor emeritus of real estate at Columbia’s Graduate School of Business, discusses her recent book, Power at Ground Zero: Politics, Money, and the Remaking of Lower Manhattan, and the challenges of large-scale development in present-day New York. ​Jay Kriegel, chief of staff to Mayor John V. Lindsay from 1966 to 1973, and senior adviser to Related Companies, reflects on his experiences “building big.” Tom Wright, president of the Regional Plan Association, shares his view on ​what must be done to update NYC’s infrastructure, based on insights gleaned from the RPA’s Fourth Regional Plan, set to be released this fall.

Buy tickets/get more info now