As the Hudson Yards project prepares to start construction on Manhattan's west side, Justin Davidson examines the plans for the borough's "largest remaining chunk of emptiness" and shares exclusive new renderings.
At 12 million square feet spread over 26 acres atop the rail yards that stretch west from Penn Station, Hudson Yards is the "country's largest and densest real-estate development." With the first, $6 billion phase of developer Related Companies' project set to begin construction in a few weeks, with an expected 2017 completion date, Davidson asks if a private developer can "manufacture a complete and authentic high-rise neighborhood in a desolate part of New York."
"New York has always grown in nibbles and crumbs, and only occasionally
in such great whale-gulps of real estate," observes Davidson. "In the richest, most layered
sections of the city, each generation's new buildings spring up among
clumps of older ones, so that freshness and tradition coexist. A project
of this magnitude, concocted around a conference table, could easily
turn out to be a catastrophe."
"The centrally planned district has its
success stories-most famously, Rockefeller Center. Coordinated frenzies
of building also produced Park Avenue, Battery Park City, and the
current incarnation of Times Square. But this enterprise is even more
ambitious than any of those, and more potentially transformative than
the ongoing saga of the World Trade Center. New York has no precedent
for such a dense and complex neighborhood, covering such a vast range of
uses, built in one go."
FULL STORY: From 0 to 12 Million Square Feet
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
If passed, the bill would promote the adaptive reuse of defunct commercial buildings.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
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