Thanks for watching and making it into the comments section... god speed. If you are interested in a tour, reach out on IG (tomdnyc). I also run a weekly show in NYC called Let's See What Else (whatelsecomedy on IG) and a monthly show at Caveat - caveat.nyc/events/tom-ds-big-new-york-show . See you soon!
I’m an architect and professional planner who lives in NYC. I am a resident of Manhattan and watched Hudson Yards being built from its beginning. I was excited to visit it upon completion and was also disappointed. The overall plan turns its back to the surrounding community. I was struck by the similarities between Hudson Yards and the casinos in Atlantic City. You are either inside or outside. It’s difficult to even find an entrance into Hudson Yards from the streets. To make it worse, you have to walk through a high end shopping mall to get to the central plaza. Other than the Vessel (which is visually cool); the balance is a boring fail and is a complete disappointment from a city planning perspective.
So true, as a fellow New Yorker I'm a bit disappointed as well. It seems like a "public space" for the rich. I hope the community wises up and puts a stop to plans to build a casino, which seems like the old bait and switch to me.
True, but as the guest in the video suggested the development was never really intended to serve the needs of a city. Why would private investors care about that? That was just how Hudson Yards was sold as an idea.
Hudson Yards is a neighborhood and not merely a shopping mall with an entrance you have a problem finding. Hudson Yards is a work in progress, which will be ongoing for years. Aborting a development when it is still developing is very short sided and silly. Especially coming from an, " architect."
As a NYC resident, I always thought it was interesting how quickly the train that went directly to Hudson Yards was built. The 2nd Avenue train took like 70 years to build…
Mayor Bloomberg was somehow able to use the City's finances to build the 7 train extension. 2nd Avenue is by the MTA. It's a real pity that they couldn't include the 10th Avenue/41st St. station (they left a "provision" for it so the tracks level off here for a platform length) as that neighborhood, the southern end of Hell's Kitchen, really needs it. When they build the Hudson Yards station, you'd think they could have created a connection leading directly into the Javits Center...duh!
The Hudson Yards extension is much easier to build as there were no residents complaining about noise limiting work hours, no previous ground meaning you don't need to tunnel, or worry about existing sewage and electricity.
I'm an old New Yorker who grew up in Greenwich Village. When the "High Line was just the old dilapidated elevated west side highway it was a lot of fun to be able to go up and bike, or skate, or walk from the village down to almost the Battery. The High Line is NOT fun; it's sterile and crowded with tourists and lots of soulless buildings flanking it. I was in Hudson Yards just two days ago. The mall or "The Shops" as it is titled, was filled with customerless high-end shops and PACKED with tourists everywhere else. The same was the case throughout the outside with tourists milling around aimlessly. The area is depressing. The whole development is just another alteration to make another New York area feel exclusive and ultimately be excluding. Tourists find these areas interesting enough to visit, but I don't think a lot of us New Yorkers feel it adds to our day-to-day experience. We mostly go see them once, then avoid them from that point on. I remember a quote from a while back: "New York is becoming a city to visit, but not to live in." It seems this is more and more the case with each passing day.
The Meat Packing district was so much more "vibrant" before the High Line. Streets were stinking of rotten meat and blood,. hookers of every ilk plying their trade, screaming and fighting at all hours of the day and night. Drug use rampant in the abandoned and burned out buildings. Now what was an abandoned raised train used by the previously mentioned sex workers and drug users are now just a safe clean green corridor paid for maintained and protected from private not public funding , surrounded by rich people in new beautiful clean safe building who actually pay taxes to support the City. EWWW ! It also attracts OMG tourists and as we know those who identify as real New Yorkers HATE even more than they hate those disgusting bridge and tunnel people.
that's interesting, I didnt realize you could sneak up on the High Line before. I'm a new yorker too, and yea I was gonna say the HL would be a great park with about 5% of the people.. I remember the exciting buzz years ago when it was announced.. the scale makes it absurd though
Uniglo, H&M, Zara, are not " high end," shops. These are moderately priced stores found everywhere. The criticisms folks like yourself, lobb at Hudson Yards, are the very same criticisms folks had for Battery Park, in lower Manhattan. Battery Park is now a desirable neighborhood, situated in a place where there was none. Hudson Yards will become a part of the fabric of NYC like every other project people shoot down.
@@LUIS-ox1bv You're right about Zara and Uniqlo. But there's also Patek Philippe and Cartier. A mall's a mall, and they generally serve tourism in Manhattan. When you refer to a neighborhood as being "desirable," it really means "expensive," so my original point of new projects always being for higher-income individuals (and tourists) still stands. I grew up in a Manhattan where every neighborhood didn't need to be "desirable."
Great video. So glad you spoke to Sam Stein. He’s a real housing expert. Just picked up his book “Capital City” & it’s phenomenal. A must read for anyone interested in the NYC housing crisis.
Yeah, he was very informative, but he completely lied about the military border that we supposedly have and that immigrants are stopped in militarily from coming in But you have the rich people can just fill out an EB5 form and gain access to this country. If I was a betting man, it’s a lot easier for a person to come in through the supposed military border and it would be to fill out an EB5 form. It just shows that this guy is politically narrative driven, and I lose patience with that.
I bet my right kidney that phase 2, with affordable housing will never happen. Yet, the tax break will not be cancelled so it is yet another bait and switch and the politicians past, present, and future will receive huge kickbacks. Imagine, affordable housing placed closer to the water with waterfront views while the more expensive housing will have their views blocked. This will never happen. My personal critique of Hudson Yards is that it is bland.
I have seen this old "phase 2" trick fall apart here in California several times, over the years. Developers promise to build affordable housing once the highly profitable units are done. Phase 1 gets built, moving heaven and Earth to get these units finished and sold. Phase 2 begins... and the project encounters some trivial obstacle. At that point, the developer bursts into tears about how they can't carry on anymore, it's impossible to go on. The local government wraps the developer's shoulders in a blanket, gives them some hot cocoa to sip on, and pats them on the back for trying, while the two sit on the back bumper of an ambulance. Phase 2 never gets finished. Here in San Diego, we had a "phase 2 rug pull" with homelessness. The City and the County had a long-term, two phase plan, where they'd close down some of the run-down shelters and wind up their contracts with NGO's for some of the other shelters, and they were going to pivot to a different model focused on providing 'wrap around' services and getting people into transitional housing instead of sleeping in bunk beds in sometimes squalid conditions. Sounds great on paper. But what ended up happening, they completed 'phase 1', and significantly contracted the shelter system and removed huge swathes of beds for homeless... but then they never followed-up and did any of the 'phase 2', where they were supposed to modernize the shelter system and increase capacity by adding beds. Worse, the City and County bungled this at precisely the moment homelessness exploded in California. So we had this absurd situation where we had a huge wave of fresh funding from the state and the feds wash over the region, meant to fight homelessness, deliver mental health services, offer drug treatment, etc... and San Diego was steadily removing shelter beds, at the same time. Over the last ten years, San Diego has lost 10% of the beds they had in their shelter system, and they can't seem to figure out how to add any back. The Mayor's Office acts like they're rocket scientists for allowing homeless to stay in tents in a City-owned parking lot. This happened like 10-15 years ago. The City of San Diego is _still_ bitterly fighting about building a large shelter in Point Loma.
I visited New York in June and went to Hudson Yards for the first time. Honestly it just feels like a really dull neighbourhood. Would never feel any need to go back.
I visited the shops at HY right before the start of the pandemic. Foot traffic was light and I asked the concierge in a red jacket about restaurant reservations. He called upstairs to check and told me I was lucky there was one table available for walk-in. I rolled my eyes and proceeded upstairs. Only 3-4 tables had customers 😆. Boutiques had no traffic, with the exception of Sephora. Something significant is missing there.
The No 7 subway line should have been directly extended to New Jersey's Weehawken Lincoln Harbor and Secaucus Transfer, where it would do more good than a dead-end at Hudson Yards.
Good point, i wonder if this is still feasible for the future? At the very least the powers that be should build a tenth avenue station like originally proposed.
That would have been nice, but too costly. They are building another tunnel now for Penn Station connection to Secaucus, that bottleneck is horrendous for anyone trying to get to/from NJ, especially Secaucus. A real tragedy which may be helped by new tunnel, but I think they will find a way to mess it up..
My former company moved their HQ to Hudson Yards and I went over to take a look (I'm retired). It all just has a feel of generic big city without any soul at all. I went into the building although I didn't go up to any office, but I didn't imagine it would matter. The one person I spoke with thought it was convenient but that was all the good she had to say about it. Even getting on the 7 train there seemed soulless, until the train got to Times Square where it felt like NY again. They could've built Hudson Yards in the middle of a cornfield for all it mattered that it was in NYC. They managed to suck the life out, you can't manufacture enthusiasm.
Thanks for having Sam Stein on, Tom! It’s great learning about the history of NYC neighborhoods, but it’s also important to learn about the history currently being made, for better or worse, that will dictate the future landscape and demographics of the city. Also, Sam Stein’s excellent short book, “Capital City,” is an important related read.
I've lived in nyc for more than a decade, and I have never been to Hudson yards. For what? It's just a collection of luxury brand stores and a proper "sterile" environment like the interviewer mentioned.
I am surprised that tomdnyc and Professor Sam Stein did not bring up another good example of the dilemmas large developments face; Battery Park City. In its history you had landfill from the excavation/demolition for the original World Trade Center and promises of housing for some low income and people. To wit primarily it became high-end offices, high-end residential towers and high-end retail activity.
I lived there for 3 years. The most disappointing thing about it was how thoughtless the traffic patterns are. Bad bike lanes (sorry, paint IS NOT PROTECTION) and bad space for delivery (everyone who lives there is ordering everything all the time), and the subway itself (not big enough, entrance too far from most of the housing). And it’s thoughtless about pedestrians who aren’t on the high line or in the mall proper. Instead it just thoughtlessly apes car culture when there is no need. Cars and parking should have been deprioritzed but instead we got the usual traffic choked crap.
I work in Hudson Yard. One thing I can't shake is that it feels like Wall Street did 20 years or so ago. Once 6PM hits, it's literally a dead zone with nothing to do and no reason to stay. I think FIDi did some good by developing the South Street Seaport and also developing more of Tribeca which makes FiDi much better than it was 20 years ago for a place to actually live than just work. Hudson Yards needs to build a community or amenities or housing to keep people in the area interested past 6PM.
Same. I've filmed in and out of that Mall. All around the area. People filming along the highline, and at Hudson Yards, at the Vessel, inside the Mall. Who's stopping them? And what part? You even see other vlog travel channels on TH-cam filming there. Tiktokers, Instagram people. What are these two blokes talking about?
When they first started building Hudson Yards, I thought about the Javits Center and how that's just, well, dead. I've been over to Hudson Yards for some client businesses there. It already seems, well, dead. They just don't get it. New York City is the ultimate melting pot of different lives and different people. But these sequestered enclaves don't work because they're not alive.
I remember when they wanted to build a new football stadium on that land for the New York Jets. I never liked the Hudson Yards development. I've been there a few times to check it out but there really isn't anything to offer there unless you are filthy rich.
Better have built an NYCFC stadium. At least the MLS fund their own stadium. Plus is 20 home games, and being smaller means more utility for other events like concerts.
@@MbisonBalrog An outdoor stadium the size that soccer holds wouldn't be good for very much in NYC. You would have the Garden right down the block basically.
@ US soccer stadiums are that size. NFL stadiums good 8 times/year then they want new one every 15 years. Another MSG size better cuz easier to fill with other events.
I am a loyal viewer and I really enjoy YOU. In the 8th grade, my Civics teacher said"People get the government they DESERVE"! THAT is why we have Hudson Yards. Uninterested people re-elect terrible government leaders who make bad decisions (often with intangible REWARDS) ..................and then we blame the developers! The people of NYC DESERVE Hudson Yards until they finally get off there LAZY DISINTERESTED rear ends, change the government representatives, and spend less time in front of their TV's and video games!
""People get the government they DESERVE"! THAT is why we have Hudson Yards." Huh?! You do realize it is mainly office space, the most hi-tech and heavily occupied in Manhattan? No evil government screwed up here, that once empty space over the tracks has brought in billions.
I'm a native NY'r. I visited the Hudson Yards, and it was like visiting Atlantic City. It was interesting. Lol I was shocked to see online that some of those apartments at the Hudson yards are on the NYS affordable housing lottery. Eligible starting salary to move in is $102,00.00 yearly 🤦🏾♀️
I live in public housing but , especially in good weather , walk 10-15 minutes to Hudson Yards, the Vessel , Backyard , the plaza across the street. I find it beautiful , hospitable, relaxing , entertaining. Looking forward to the second phase .
Purchased & read Sam’s book which I found amazingly articulated what was designed to be confusing rather straightforward for a non-planner/real estate fellow such as myself. Definitely put me on game!
As someone who is middle to to lower class economically speaking, the place is totally impenetrable. Live within walking distance. I could walk around the mall, I suppose. This place is for the very rich to live and work without having to deal with the riffraff.
I compare the Vessel to Cloud Gate in Chicago when explaining what’s different about Chicago and NYC. It also highlights everything wrong, IMHO, with Hudson yards.
Great video, Tom! Would love to see you share more videos like this that does a great job at showcasing these types of issues in different NYC Neighborhoods. Thanks for your smarts & interesting themes! Looking forward to more. 🙏🙏
Well crap, I was just there two days ago and was kinda wondering why it felt "off." Now I know. God I hope the casino thing doesn't happen. (Thank you for another great video!)
This is great. I live in lower Manhattan and walk around everywhere since the pandemic. This study is very enlightening and gives a lot of valuable context for my daily perambulations. I look forward to checking out your other videos. re: Highline. Walk it as early as possible on a weekday. It opens at 7. It's pretty much a candy-colored death march on the weekends due to the crowds; you're better off walking along the Hudson. There again, the earlier the better.
I'm not sure why low-income housing is intrinsically good. That hasn't been explained. If the rich collect here, they aren't in other places. The important thing is that there is more housing.
Thanks for a brief but comprehensive narrative of this unsuccessful urban planning project. Why is it that there is so much chatter and talk in public discourse prior to the execution poorly planned and failed of projects like this but rarely any post mortem discussions. This conversation is a great example of the paramount discussions that need to be had in a more open, accessible and democratic setting to preserve our metropolitan centers and improve the quality of life for all members of our urban landscapes.
Hudson Yards reminds me of large parts of Dubai or Singapore - catered to the rich and trying to be “an experience” rather than a place that life happens in
Im curious who were the main brokerage firms hired to sell or rent out units? Was it the high end boutique firms that cater to wealthy clientele/buyers? Basically no way a normal person can even get a viewing.
The development is built on an active rail yard. I don’t see any opportunity loss here. The development cost public housing will be too high otherwise. The majority of the buildings are new office space that the city really lacks. Along with the buildings leading to the Penn station, the area has developed into a good commercial area. The Vessel is beautiful but is closed for public. I am surprised to see the wheels of the retractable roof in the Shed is already rusted. The shopping mall is a little depressing. Who would actually go there for shopping. The city has invested a lot of money into building the subway stations. Is it worth the money for it?
I personally like Hudson yard and visit it frequently. The worst part of Hudson Yard is probably that many stores are closed - probably a mix of low traffic and high rental rates. But there are some of the stores and restaurants I really enjoy. The location is prime Manhattan real estate land so I don’t understand why you would build low income housing there - it simply doesn’t make sense.
When city funds are being used to literally create new land, that land should be accessible in multiple ways, including as housing, to all of a city's residents. It only doesn't make sense if you can't conceive of a world that doesn't privilege wealth to the exclusion of all other interests.
I don’t think the Friends of the High Line reaps value capture from inceased property values for park maintenance. Upfront they received restricted capitals funds to perform future repairs on the viaduct, from sold development rights.
So-so assessment by Tom & Sam tho it IS mainly offices. Three things to add? (1) The ORIGINAL renderings (copies of which I have, they must online) showed a U-shape development, with a spectacular lawn sweeping from the east towers down to the river and then a bridge to the heliport across the road; but two buildings have already been stuffed right in the middle and the lawn effect is gone; (2) The elevated old tracks that became the Highline were never abandoned; the railroad owner fought (I think) Mayor Koch to keep them up so they could maybe become a park or something else. (3) There is complex tunnel work going on deep underneath; the tunnel will end up at a new station south of MS Garden/Old Penn Station. (The yards are a parking lot for LIRR trains that in rush hour all go EAST.)
What is “affordable” housing price for a one bedroom for example? I’d also like to know what is the downside of them building so many buildings over that rail system? What about our New York City sewer system? How is it functioning well with SO many buildings?
If I want to go to a mall, there are plenty in NJ and LI to choose from. Why do NYC developers keep putting malls in the city? That's like building national fast food chains.
@@billm1866 there are plenty of malls in Manhattan. No need to come to nj. Soho used to be interesting in the 80’s, now it’s just another shopping mall. Manhattan has given up its character for tourist attractions all over the borough.
A lot of not fair analysis here. I'm not an expert by any strech but for starters the 7 line goes to the javitiz center which is an important facility even you don't like it. The spur which could be expanded south further in the future would also serve an area with no current connection.
Hudson Yards....when I go there I just imagine I'm in Dubai. Same people. Its depressing. However my Doc and PT are there and its very convenient from the UWS
Before his troubles, Alec Baldwin did a podcast Here's the Thing, on 10/20/20, where he talked with David Schleicher about real estate in New York, specifically Hudson Yards, and the fantasy of affordable housing provided by billionaires. It's really interesting.
Seems some here think the Yards are only about apartments and super-rich tenants. But aren't the tenants mainly commercial? Black Rock, etc etc? A main reason being it's right by Penn Station? Whatever apartments there are, are not selling well, quote "The luxury condominiums have sold at about half the rate of other condo towers in Manhattan".
A partial list of the commercial tenants: 10 Hudson Yards: L'Oréal USA, Tapestry (Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman), SAP, Boston Consulting Group, Intercept Pharmaceuticals, VaynerMedia, Intersection, and Sidewalk Labs 30 Hudson Yards: Warner Bros. Discovery, Wells Fargo, KKR, and DNB 50 Hudson Yards: BlackRock, Meta, Truist Financial, Russ & Daughters, and Starbucks 55 Hudson Yards: Law firms such as Boies, Schiller & Flexner, Cooley LLP, and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, as well as Coinbase and MarketAxess The Shops & Restaurants at Hudson Yards: Dior, Chanel, H&M, Zara, Sephora, Louis Vuitton, Levi's, Bulgari, Magnolia Bakery, and Pret A Manger The Spiral: NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital - Och Spine Center, HSBC, Pfizer, Baker Tilly, NCC-group PLC, AllianceBernstein, ProShares, SEB Group, Marshall Wace, Turner Construction, and Debevoise & Plimpton
I'm from NYC, born in Harlem and raised in The Bronx. I would never live there even when I financially able to. NYC lost what made our city special, it's time to get out of this hazardous city. I have a friend that lives at Hudson Yard, I had stop going to her place because there's something energetically wrong in that area.
The book, “How to Kill a City” talks about how NYC & San Francisco started their process 100 years ago. For NYC, it started in these neighborhoods. Guess we’ve come full circle.
Phase two will potentially have a casino AND affordable housing. Affordable housing has NOT been cancelled. If you turned around and read the sign right behind you, you would have seen exactly what is planned in phase two.
Dystopian - absolutely. It is an uncomfortable, sterile space that even my dog gets tense in. I live 6 blocks away and often forget that Hudson Yards even exists because there is NO reason to go there. The iconic structure there is a literal stairway to nowhere with "views" of the walls of buildings, and now featuring literal sui¢ide barriers to stop visitors from leaping to their deaths. Yikes.
As a New Yorker, who has lived in the city for 50+ years, I LOVE Hudson yards! I especially enjoy the outdoor "park area", which is nestled among the new skyscrapers, like the two buildings which seem to be leaning towards each other, "The Edge" which has the highest outdoor observatory in the Western Hemisphere, the Northern start of the Hi Line with its unique walkway with an astonishing array of trees and bushes, the fantastic Vessel (which I walked up and down it -- which is both beautiful and intriguing), a mini Park of trees and tables and chairs, and the Fantastic Spanish Market with a huge array of eateries, both high end - and many which are also most reasonable (and delicious!) They also have an area with a huge outdoor "TV" screen which broadcasts some of the current sporting events -- with upwards of a hundred or more "lounge-type Chairs" with people watching. Hudson Yards is the type of place that makes NYC liveable.
@@IGuess... Nope -- I'm just a NYer since the 1980s who moved here from the Midwest -- and never wanted to leave -- because I generally love this city! I understand the controversy and issues of Hudson Yards -- but what makes NY exciting for me is the wide variety of distinctive neighborhoods - and for those of us who can't afford more space -- an open area like the small park area nestled in between the buildings and on the river here at Hudson Yards -- I've dubbed MY backyard! AND that view from the Edge (which I always take guests up to from out of town -- whether during the day or at night -- is the very definition of "breathtaking"! Expensive? Unfortunately yes -- but that is NYC -- EVERYTHING costs too darn much. BUT -- for me the good parts of Hudson Yards (including this new -- and temporary I think) Pigeon up on the Highline which is a Hoot - has made this an area which we love to visit!!!
I can, I live in brooklyn. I was offered an apartment on the west side and in a development in midtown that was for entertainment industry people. No, I like brooklyn. I used to live on the beach. Can't beat the ocean front. Much cleaner and quieter the Manhattan. They always say affordable housing but they don't say what that is. Affordable by the rich.
gf lived there for a couple years now. it’s pretty awful. as soon as you go down a couple blocks its homeless drug addled streets where she isn’t safe walking around. hudson itself is the epitome of an almost useless retail vanity project… so many cold dead spaces with empty stores
Being from NYC & having family who owned businesses in almost every borough (minus SI), I am saddened to see how NY is developing to an elitist playground.
This must be an old video because it is not sterile, as they say. There are food carts all around, and people can also take videos and pictures all over the place. This area is bustling.
Id love a more in depth explanation as how the developers sold this project as "affordable housing" or some affordable housing to help the poor, but in actuality just lied, and was able to get around this obligation by playing with words, and numbers and stats.
Thanks for watching and making it into the comments section... god speed. If you are interested in a tour, reach out on IG (tomdnyc). I also run a weekly show in NYC called Let's See What Else (whatelsecomedy on IG) and a monthly show at Caveat - caveat.nyc/events/tom-ds-big-new-york-show . See you soon!
I’m an architect and professional planner who lives in NYC. I am a resident of Manhattan and watched Hudson Yards being built from its beginning. I was excited to visit it upon completion and was also disappointed. The overall plan turns its back to the surrounding community. I was struck by the similarities between Hudson Yards and the casinos in Atlantic City. You are either inside or outside. It’s difficult to even find an entrance into Hudson Yards from the streets. To make it worse, you have to walk through a high end shopping mall to get to the central plaza. Other than the Vessel (which is visually cool); the balance is a boring fail and is a complete disappointment from a city planning perspective.
So true, as a fellow New Yorker I'm a bit disappointed as well. It seems like a "public space" for the rich. I hope the community wises up and puts a stop to plans to build a casino, which seems like the old bait and switch to me.
I agree with everything you wrote. Except, about that Vessel. I would dismantle it and plant a giant tree.
True, but as the guest in the video suggested the development was never really intended to serve the needs of a city. Why would private investors care about that? That was just how Hudson Yards was sold as an idea.
Hudson Yards is a neighborhood and not merely a shopping mall with an entrance you have a problem finding. Hudson Yards is a work in progress, which will be ongoing for years. Aborting a development when it is still developing is very short sided and silly. Especially coming from an, " architect."
Pruitt igoe vibes from that sculpture
As a NYC resident, I always thought it was interesting how quickly the train that went directly to Hudson Yards was built. The 2nd Avenue train took like 70 years to build…
Mayor Bloomberg was somehow able to use the City's finances to build the 7 train extension. 2nd Avenue is by the MTA. It's a real pity that they couldn't include the 10th Avenue/41st St. station (they left a "provision" for it so the tracks level off here for a platform length) as that neighborhood, the southern end of Hell's Kitchen, really needs it. When they build the Hudson Yards station, you'd think they could have created a connection leading directly into the Javits Center...duh!
The Hudson Yards extension is much easier to build as there were no residents complaining about noise limiting work hours, no previous ground meaning you don't need to tunnel, or worry about existing sewage and electricity.
@@brmnyc What is really needed is an 11th Ave. subway line. I don't feel like I'm in NYC when travelling down 11th Ave.
Especially since Javits was built with provisions in the basement @@brmnyc
I never use that extension to go to Hudson Yards, but it's useful for getting to Javitz.
I'm an old New Yorker who grew up in Greenwich Village. When the "High Line was just the old dilapidated elevated west side highway it was a lot of fun to be able to go up and bike, or skate, or walk from the village down to almost the Battery. The High Line is NOT fun; it's sterile and crowded with tourists and lots of soulless buildings flanking it.
I was in Hudson Yards just two days ago. The mall or "The Shops" as it is titled, was filled with customerless high-end shops and PACKED with tourists everywhere else. The same was the case throughout the outside with tourists milling around aimlessly. The area is depressing.
The whole development is just another alteration to make another New York area feel exclusive and ultimately be excluding. Tourists find these areas interesting enough to visit, but I don't think a lot of us New Yorkers feel it adds to our day-to-day experience. We mostly go see them once, then avoid them from that point on.
I remember a quote from a while back: "New York is becoming a city to visit, but not to live in." It seems this is more and more the case with each passing day.
The Meat Packing district was so much more "vibrant" before the High Line. Streets were stinking of rotten meat and blood,. hookers of every ilk plying their trade, screaming and fighting at all hours of the day and night. Drug use rampant in the abandoned and burned out buildings.
Now what was an abandoned raised train used by the previously mentioned sex workers and drug users are now just a safe clean green corridor paid for maintained and protected from private not public funding , surrounded by rich people in new beautiful clean safe building who actually pay taxes to support the City. EWWW ! It also attracts OMG tourists and as we know those who identify as real New Yorkers HATE even more than they hate those disgusting bridge and tunnel people.
that's interesting, I didnt realize you could sneak up on the High Line before. I'm a new yorker too, and yea I was gonna say the HL would be a great park with about 5% of the people.. I remember the exciting buzz years ago when it was announced.. the scale makes it absurd though
@@KerryOConnor1 Yeah, there were ramps that gave you access. I had one by where I lived, on 11th Street.
Uniglo, H&M, Zara, are not " high end," shops. These are moderately priced stores found everywhere. The criticisms folks like yourself, lobb at Hudson Yards, are the very same criticisms folks had for Battery Park, in lower Manhattan. Battery Park is now a desirable neighborhood, situated in a place where there was none. Hudson Yards will become a part of the fabric of NYC like every other project people shoot down.
@@LUIS-ox1bv You're right about Zara and Uniqlo. But there's also Patek Philippe and Cartier. A mall's a mall, and they generally serve tourism in Manhattan. When you refer to a neighborhood as being "desirable," it really means "expensive," so my original point of new projects always being for higher-income individuals (and tourists) still stands. I grew up in a Manhattan where every neighborhood didn't need to be "desirable."
Great video. So glad you spoke to Sam Stein. He’s a real housing expert. Just picked up his book “Capital City” & it’s phenomenal. A must read for anyone interested in the NYC housing crisis.
This is an excellent and informative episode. I enjoyed your discussion with Samuel Stein regarding the development of Hudson Yards. Happy New Year!
Yeah, he was very informative, but he completely lied about the military border that we supposedly have and that immigrants are stopped in militarily from coming in But you have the rich people can just fill out an EB5 form and gain access to this country. If I was a betting man, it’s a lot easier for a person to come in through the supposed military border and it would be to fill out an EB5 form. It just shows that this guy is politically narrative driven, and I lose patience with that.
I bet my right kidney that phase 2, with affordable housing will never happen. Yet, the tax break will not be cancelled so it is yet another bait and switch and the politicians past, present, and future will receive huge kickbacks. Imagine, affordable housing placed closer to the water with waterfront views while the more expensive housing will have their views blocked. This will never happen. My personal critique of Hudson Yards is that it is bland.
They will find a way to turn "affordable" into affordable for the rich and their children or anyone just on the cusp of rich.
A reference to organ trafficking… how engaging from a literary perspective. 😂
And if it every does happen, “affordable” will start at $150k minimum salary
And if it every does happen, “affordable” will start at $150k minimum salary
I have seen this old "phase 2" trick fall apart here in California several times, over the years. Developers promise to build affordable housing once the highly profitable units are done. Phase 1 gets built, moving heaven and Earth to get these units finished and sold.
Phase 2 begins... and the project encounters some trivial obstacle. At that point, the developer bursts into tears about how they can't carry on anymore, it's impossible to go on. The local government wraps the developer's shoulders in a blanket, gives them some hot cocoa to sip on, and pats them on the back for trying, while the two sit on the back bumper of an ambulance. Phase 2 never gets finished.
Here in San Diego, we had a "phase 2 rug pull" with homelessness. The City and the County had a long-term, two phase plan, where they'd close down some of the run-down shelters and wind up their contracts with NGO's for some of the other shelters, and they were going to pivot to a different model focused on providing 'wrap around' services and getting people into transitional housing instead of sleeping in bunk beds in sometimes squalid conditions. Sounds great on paper.
But what ended up happening, they completed 'phase 1', and significantly contracted the shelter system and removed huge swathes of beds for homeless... but then they never followed-up and did any of the 'phase 2', where they were supposed to modernize the shelter system and increase capacity by adding beds. Worse, the City and County bungled this at precisely the moment homelessness exploded in California. So we had this absurd situation where we had a huge wave of fresh funding from the state and the feds wash over the region, meant to fight homelessness, deliver mental health services, offer drug treatment, etc... and San Diego was steadily removing shelter beds, at the same time. Over the last ten years, San Diego has lost 10% of the beds they had in their shelter system, and they can't seem to figure out how to add any back. The Mayor's Office acts like they're rocket scientists for allowing homeless to stay in tents in a City-owned parking lot.
This happened like 10-15 years ago. The City of San Diego is _still_ bitterly fighting about building a large shelter in Point Loma.
I visited New York in June and went to Hudson Yards for the first time. Honestly it just feels like a really dull neighbourhood. Would never feel any need to go back.
I visited the shops at HY right before the start of the pandemic. Foot traffic was light and I asked the concierge in a red jacket about restaurant reservations. He called upstairs to check and told me I was lucky there was one table available for walk-in. I rolled my eyes and proceeded upstairs. Only 3-4 tables had customers 😆. Boutiques had no traffic, with the exception of Sephora. Something significant is missing there.
Yeah, a soul.
@@TwoLicks ... and the heart of a community is also missing.
I also want to add, great job Tom! This is the reason why I’m a Patreon member as well! You always give us great information! Great video
The No 7 subway line should have been directly extended to New Jersey's Weehawken Lincoln Harbor and Secaucus Transfer, where it would do more good than a dead-end at Hudson Yards.
Good point, i wonder if this is still feasible for the future? At the very least the powers that be should build a tenth avenue station like originally proposed.
That would have been nice, but too costly. They are building another tunnel now for Penn Station connection to Secaucus, that bottleneck is horrendous for anyone trying to get to/from NJ, especially Secaucus. A real tragedy which may be helped by new tunnel, but I think they will find a way to mess it up..
@@donniemoder1466 Thanks for the information. Let's hope people with a clear head and a vision for the future prevail.
@@sampa2nyc The guest mentioned the 7 train was planned to go to 10th Avenue, further west. On the way to NJ maybe?
@benqurayza7872 I know the tracks extend all the way to 23rd street. They were floating the idea around for the 7 to terminate there by Chelsea Piers.
My former company moved their HQ to Hudson Yards and I went over to take a look (I'm retired). It all just has a feel of generic big city without any soul at all. I went into the building although I didn't go up to any office, but I didn't imagine it would matter. The one person I spoke with thought it was convenient but that was all the good she had to say about it. Even getting on the 7 train there seemed soulless, until the train got to Times Square where it felt like NY again. They could've built Hudson Yards in the middle of a cornfield for all it mattered that it was in NYC. They managed to suck the life out, you can't manufacture enthusiasm.
Thanks for that sentiment. I like the 80s when it was gritty and industrial in that area. I have no desire to go there...like you mentioned "no soul"
Wow rich people getting a free ride at the cost of others is unheard of
Thanks for having Sam Stein on, Tom! It’s great learning about the history of NYC neighborhoods, but it’s also important to learn about the history currently being made, for better or worse, that will dictate the future landscape and demographics of the city. Also, Sam Stein’s excellent short book, “Capital City,” is an important related read.
I've lived in nyc for more than a decade, and I have never been to Hudson yards. For what? It's just a collection of luxury brand stores and a proper "sterile" environment like the interviewer mentioned.
They do have a large gallery space and the vessel sculpture. And besides, this area beats the dumpster fire it was before.
I am surprised that tomdnyc and Professor Sam Stein did not bring up another good example of the dilemmas large developments face; Battery Park City. In its history you had landfill from the excavation/demolition for the original World Trade Center and promises of housing for some low income and people. To wit primarily it became high-end offices, high-end residential towers and high-end retail activity.
Affordable means Affordable for the rich, and those on the cusp
The City earns far more in tax money from rich neighborhoods than poor ones, so they like the rich.
I lived there for 3 years. The most disappointing thing about it was how thoughtless the traffic patterns are. Bad bike lanes (sorry, paint IS NOT PROTECTION) and bad space for delivery (everyone who lives there is ordering everything all the time), and the subway itself (not big enough, entrance too far from most of the housing). And it’s thoughtless about pedestrians who aren’t on the high line or in the mall proper. Instead it just thoughtlessly apes car culture when there is no need. Cars and parking should have been deprioritzed but instead we got the usual traffic choked crap.
9:04 NYC is so fortunate to have two of the largest recent development projects built on transit hubs. Visionary planning.
Another fascinating video Tom. Thanks and happy new year 🎉
This was actually highly informative. Thank you. 🧐
I love The Shed. I love Little Spain. Every part of NYC is unique, something for everyone.
I work in Hudson Yard. One thing I can't shake is that it feels like Wall Street did 20 years or so ago. Once 6PM hits, it's literally a dead zone with nothing to do and no reason to stay. I think FIDi did some good by developing the South Street Seaport and also developing more of Tribeca which makes FiDi much better than it was 20 years ago for a place to actually live than just work. Hudson Yards needs to build a community or amenities or housing to keep people in the area interested past 6PM.
What was the current impact to the nearby neighborhoods and blocks now that we are a few years out of the delivery of phase 1?
You cant film what part? I been filming all over that place. Serious question.
Same. I've filmed in and out of that Mall. All around the area. People filming along the highline, and at Hudson Yards, at the Vessel, inside the Mall. Who's stopping them? And what part?
You even see other vlog travel channels on TH-cam filming there. Tiktokers, Instagram people. What are these two blokes talking about?
When they first started building Hudson Yards, I thought about the Javits Center and how that's just, well, dead. I've been over to Hudson Yards for some client businesses there. It already seems, well, dead. They just don't get it. New York City is the ultimate melting pot of different lives and different people. But these sequestered enclaves don't work because they're not alive.
I remember when they wanted to build a new football stadium on that land for the New York Jets. I never liked the Hudson Yards development. I've been there a few times to check it out but there really isn't anything to offer there unless you are filthy rich.
If they build the stadium this would be a video of them bitching about the stadium
@@mavensbaseballyep
Better have built an NYCFC stadium. At least the MLS fund their own stadium. Plus is 20 home games, and being smaller means more utility for other events like concerts.
@@MbisonBalrog An outdoor stadium the size that soccer holds wouldn't be good for very much in NYC. You would have the Garden right down the block basically.
@ US soccer stadiums are that size. NFL stadiums good 8 times/year then they want new one every 15 years. Another MSG size better cuz easier to fill with other events.
I am a loyal viewer and I really enjoy YOU. In the 8th grade, my Civics teacher said"People get the government they DESERVE"! THAT is why we have Hudson Yards. Uninterested people re-elect terrible government leaders who make bad decisions (often with intangible REWARDS) ..................and then we blame the developers! The people of NYC DESERVE Hudson Yards until they finally get off there LAZY DISINTERESTED rear ends, change the government representatives, and spend less time in front of their TV's and video games!
""People get the government they DESERVE"! THAT is why we have Hudson Yards." Huh?! You do realize it is mainly office space, the most hi-tech and heavily occupied in Manhattan? No evil government screwed up here, that once empty space over the tracks has brought in billions.
billions for whom?
@@eclint Construction costs, salaries, taxes... Most Manhattan office space is not so high-tech and its a reason some HQs have been moved elsewhere.
I'm a native NY'r. I visited the Hudson Yards, and it was like visiting Atlantic City. It was interesting. Lol
I was shocked to see online that some of those apartments at the Hudson yards are on the NYS affordable housing lottery. Eligible starting salary to move in is $102,00.00 yearly 🤦🏾♀️
I live in public housing but , especially in good weather , walk 10-15 minutes to Hudson Yards, the Vessel , Backyard , the plaza across the street. I find it beautiful , hospitable, relaxing , entertaining.
Looking forward to the second phase .
There's social housing in NYC?
@@Kurio71 Do you mean public housing, like for welfare cases? Yes, they have it here. High crime rates in those projects.
Purchased & read Sam’s book which I found amazingly articulated what was designed to be confusing rather straightforward for a non-planner/real estate fellow such as myself. Definitely put me on game!
As someone who is middle to to lower class economically speaking, the place is totally impenetrable. Live within walking distance. I could walk around the mall, I suppose. This place is for the very rich to live and work without having to deal with the riffraff.
Expect an alligator moat soon.
The public housing "lottery" system is such a joke. SMH Great video. An eye opener. I didn't know about the EB-5 Visa program Only $500k - so cheap.
Minimum is now 800k. It was 500k before 2022.
@@JohnRa-m9u Damn....too late. LOL
I compare the Vessel to Cloud Gate in Chicago when explaining what’s different about Chicago and NYC. It also highlights everything wrong, IMHO, with Hudson yards.
Isnt that the suicide tower?
Happy new years Tom!! Love the videos have a great new year.
Great video, Tom! Would love to see you share more videos like this that does a great job at showcasing these types of issues in different NYC Neighborhoods. Thanks for your smarts & interesting themes! Looking forward to more. 🙏🙏
Well crap, I was just there two days ago and was kinda wondering why it felt "off." Now I know. God I hope the casino thing doesn't happen. (Thank you for another great video!)
How was the $30 burrito?😄 You crack me up. Samuel is such a great guest.
This is great. I live in lower Manhattan and walk around everywhere since the pandemic. This study is very enlightening and gives a lot of valuable context for my daily perambulations. I look forward to checking out your other videos. re: Highline. Walk it as early as possible on a weekday. It opens at 7. It's pretty much a candy-colored death march on the weekends due to the crowds; you're better off walking along the Hudson. There again, the earlier the better.
@@sigmonky for comparison take a look at the elevated park they created in Paris. We have no taste.
Is it better than the football stadium that was considered for the site?
I'm not sure why low-income housing is intrinsically good. That hasn't been explained. If the rich collect here, they aren't in other places. The important thing is that there is more housing.
You had me all the way up to claiming that union labor is the answer.
Thanks for a brief but comprehensive narrative of this unsuccessful urban planning project. Why is it that there is so much chatter and talk in public discourse prior to the execution poorly planned and failed of projects like this but rarely any post mortem discussions. This conversation is a great example of the paramount discussions that need to be had in a more open, accessible and democratic setting to preserve our metropolitan centers and improve the quality of life for all members of our urban landscapes.
How do they prohibit you from filming in a public space?
Hudson Yards reminds me of large parts of Dubai or Singapore - catered to the rich and trying to be “an experience” rather than a place that life happens in
Im curious who were the main brokerage firms hired to sell or rent out units? Was it the high end boutique firms that cater to wealthy clientele/buyers? Basically no way a normal person can even get a viewing.
Why did they build a mall filled with luxury stores rather than a practical place with a supermarket and some fun, normal stores?
The development is built on an active rail yard. I don’t see any opportunity loss here. The development cost public housing will be too high otherwise. The majority of the buildings are new office space that the city really lacks. Along with the buildings leading to the Penn station, the area has developed into a good commercial area. The Vessel is beautiful but is closed for public. I am surprised to see the wheels of the retractable roof in the Shed is already rusted. The shopping mall is a little depressing. Who would actually go there for shopping.
The city has invested a lot of money into building the subway stations. Is it worth the money for it?
I personally like Hudson yard and visit it frequently. The worst part of Hudson Yard is probably that many stores are closed - probably a mix of low traffic and high rental rates. But there are some of the stores and restaurants I really enjoy. The location is prime Manhattan real estate land so I don’t understand why you would build low income housing there - it simply doesn’t make sense.
Somebody has to walk the dogs etc…cities need everyone to be great
@@MarvinEELittle Sure, but obviously dog walkers cannot expect to live the most expensive part of the town.
When city funds are being used to literally create new land, that land should be accessible in multiple ways, including as housing, to all of a city's residents. It only doesn't make sense if you can't conceive of a world that doesn't privilege wealth to the exclusion of all other interests.
Dream on brother😂😂😂 it will never happen… and why not build affordable housing somewhere where it is affordable? That’s a better solution
I don’t think the Friends of the High Line reaps value capture from inceased property values for park maintenance. Upfront they received restricted capitals funds to perform future repairs on the viaduct, from sold development rights.
You hit the nail on the Head! STERILE!
So-so assessment by Tom & Sam tho it IS mainly offices. Three things to add? (1) The ORIGINAL renderings (copies of which I have, they must online) showed a U-shape development, with a spectacular lawn sweeping from the east towers down to the river and then a bridge to the heliport across the road; but two buildings have already been stuffed right in the middle and the lawn effect is gone; (2) The elevated old tracks that became the Highline were never abandoned; the railroad owner fought (I think) Mayor Koch to keep them up so they could maybe become a park or something else. (3) There is complex tunnel work going on deep underneath; the tunnel will end up at a new station south of MS Garden/Old Penn Station. (The yards are a parking lot for LIRR trains that in rush hour all go EAST.)
There was also an issue about suicides on the honey comb
What is “affordable” housing price for a one bedroom for example? I’d also like to know what is the downside of them building so many buildings over that rail system? What about our New York City sewer system? How is it functioning well with SO many buildings?
If I want to go to a mall, there are plenty in NJ and LI to choose from. Why do NYC developers keep putting malls in the city? That's like building national fast food chains.
@@billm1866 there are plenty of malls in Manhattan. No need to come to nj. Soho used to be interesting in the 80’s, now it’s just another shopping mall. Manhattan has given up its character for tourist attractions all over the borough.
How do they address many people leaving the city?
Great video, Tom!
A lot of not fair analysis here. I'm not an expert by any strech but for starters the 7 line goes to the javitiz center which is an important facility even you don't like it. The spur which could be expanded south further in the future would also serve an area with no current connection.
Even if I were super rich, I would hate it.
Was there earlier, it’s nice to look at
Hudson Yards....when I go there I just imagine I'm in Dubai. Same people. Its depressing. However my Doc and PT are there and its very convenient from the UWS
Before his troubles, Alec Baldwin did a podcast Here's the Thing, on 10/20/20, where he talked with David Schleicher about real estate in New York, specifically Hudson Yards, and the fantasy of affordable housing provided by billionaires. It's really interesting.
Seems some here think the Yards are only about apartments and super-rich tenants. But aren't the tenants mainly commercial? Black Rock, etc etc? A main reason being it's right by Penn Station? Whatever apartments there are, are not selling well, quote "The luxury condominiums have sold at about half the rate of other condo towers in Manhattan".
A partial list of the commercial tenants:
10 Hudson Yards: L'Oréal USA, Tapestry (Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman), SAP, Boston Consulting Group, Intercept Pharmaceuticals, VaynerMedia, Intersection, and Sidewalk Labs
30 Hudson Yards: Warner Bros. Discovery, Wells Fargo, KKR, and DNB
50 Hudson Yards: BlackRock, Meta, Truist Financial, Russ & Daughters, and Starbucks
55 Hudson Yards: Law firms such as Boies, Schiller & Flexner, Cooley LLP, and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, as well as Coinbase and MarketAxess
The Shops & Restaurants at Hudson Yards: Dior, Chanel, H&M, Zara, Sephora, Louis Vuitton, Levi's, Bulgari, Magnolia Bakery, and Pret A Manger
The Spiral: NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital - Och Spine Center, HSBC, Pfizer, Baker Tilly, NCC-group PLC, AllianceBernstein, ProShares, SEB Group, Marshall Wace, Turner Construction, and Debevoise & Plimpton
Oh damn, the controversial Hudson Yards. I can't wait to watch! I hope you spill the whole pitcher here!
Happy new year Tom D🎉🎊🎇🎆
That thing looks like it belongs in a Robocop movie
Greedy politicians and billionaire developers in cahoots.
I'm from NYC, born in Harlem and raised in The Bronx. I would never live there even when I financially able to. NYC lost what made our city special, it's time to get out of this hazardous city. I have a friend that lives at Hudson Yard, I had stop going to her place because there's something energetically wrong in that area.
Didn’t that same Ontario retirement fund get screwed by FTX?
IT IS WINTER HOW OLD IS THIS ??????????/
Great swaths of prime real estate in NYC are affordable housing”projects”. I think this development is fun
Happy New Year 2025 and this New Year brings you lots of peace and happiness
The book, “How to Kill a City” talks about how NYC & San Francisco started their process 100 years ago. For NYC, it started in these neighborhoods. Guess we’ve come full circle.
A mall, hoisted perpendicularly.
Lol "No I don't!" Samuel has a lot of useful insight on this "public space" Love hearing how the NYC sausage gets made.
How can your friendly neighborhood Spiderman get crime fighting done in a place like this!
every country allows access for payment, in the guise of development, progression, etc.
Phase two will potentially have a casino AND affordable housing. Affordable housing has NOT been cancelled. If you turned around and read the sign right behind you, you would have seen exactly what is planned in phase two.
So the affordable part took more than what 20 years to come to fruition. What is even the point? The need for affordable is always immediate.
@ thank the democrat leaders who killed the economy over Covid. Had they not, it would have been finished already
great, informative episode! thanks
As a fellow tomd I salute you.
By the way, great video, guys!
Dystopian - absolutely. It is an uncomfortable, sterile space that even my dog gets tense in. I live 6 blocks away and often forget that Hudson Yards even exists because there is NO reason to go there.
The iconic structure there is a literal stairway to nowhere with "views" of the walls of buildings, and now featuring literal sui¢ide barriers to stop visitors from leaping to their deaths. Yikes.
burritos are now $30.00!!!??? is there a fire sale?
The fix is in. It always has been. "Money doesn't talk. It swears.", Bob Dylan
FYI eb5 amounts are 800K or 1M not 500K
You guys film this like 3 months ago?
You didn't mention that "The Vessel" is a $200m suicide tower. I find it to be a fitting metaphor for the whole situation.
9:50
It’s public space on private property
AKA it’s private smh
It's getting difficult to tell the difference between Manhattan Tokyo, Brunei and Beijing.
The Highline has become a tourist zoo. It was lovely in its early days, but utter hell now. Never going back.
As a New Yorker, who has lived in the city for 50+ years, I LOVE Hudson yards! I especially enjoy the outdoor "park area", which is nestled among the new skyscrapers, like the two buildings which seem to be leaning towards each other, "The Edge" which has the highest outdoor observatory in the Western Hemisphere, the Northern start of the Hi Line with its unique walkway with an astonishing array of trees and bushes, the fantastic Vessel (which I walked up and down it -- which is both beautiful and intriguing), a mini Park of trees and tables and chairs, and the Fantastic Spanish Market with a huge array of eateries, both high end - and many which are also most reasonable (and delicious!) They also have an area with a huge outdoor "TV" screen which broadcasts some of the current sporting events -- with upwards of a hundred or more "lounge-type Chairs" with people watching. Hudson Yards is the type of place that makes NYC liveable.
Oh please. This is not an organic comment and you’re promoting on behalf of someone else
Thank you bot Chatgpt!
You are not a real person.
Agreed.
@@IGuess... Nope -- I'm just a NYer since the 1980s who moved here from the Midwest -- and never wanted to leave -- because I generally love this city! I understand the controversy and issues of Hudson Yards -- but what makes NY exciting for me is the wide variety of distinctive neighborhoods - and for those of us who can't afford more space -- an open area like the small park area nestled in between the buildings and on the river here at Hudson Yards -- I've dubbed MY backyard! AND that view from the Edge (which I always take guests up to from out of town -- whether during the day or at night -- is the very definition of "breathtaking"! Expensive? Unfortunately yes -- but that is NYC -- EVERYTHING costs too darn much. BUT -- for me the good parts of Hudson Yards (including this new -- and temporary I think) Pigeon up on the Highline which is a Hoot - has made this an area which we love to visit!!!
Imagine being able to live somewhere in Nyc where it’s actually safe and clean
you can afford to live in Hudson Yards? lucky you i guess....
I can, I live in brooklyn. I was offered an apartment on the west side and in a development in midtown that was for entertainment industry people. No, I like brooklyn. I used to live on the beach. Can't beat the ocean front.
Much cleaner and quieter the Manhattan.
They always say affordable housing but they don't say what that is. Affordable by the rich.
Safe, clean and affordable.
My pre-covid visit convinced me this money pit would sink the city's soul.
gf lived there for a couple years now. it’s pretty awful. as soon as you go down a couple blocks its homeless drug addled streets where she isn’t safe walking around.
hudson itself is the epitome of an almost useless retail vanity project… so many cold dead spaces with empty stores
It was originally intended the site for a new stadium for the Jets & they were also hoping to lure the Giants.
As if I need more reasons to hate Hudson Yards. But you only have to look at the developer to understand all of this.
Who is/are the developer(s)?
Akin to Times Square, New Yorkers (born and raised myself) never even consider visiting Hudson Yards. It's a tacky tourist-trap.
Being from NYC & having family who owned businesses in almost every borough (minus SI), I am saddened to see how NY is developing to an elitist playground.
This must be an old video because it is not sterile, as they say. There are food carts all around, and people can also take videos and pictures all over the place. This area is bustling.
Id love a more in depth explanation as how the developers sold this project as "affordable housing" or some affordable housing to help the poor, but in actuality just lied, and was able to get around this obligation by playing with words, and numbers and stats.
There's not much housing of any kind. It's mainly offices, with high occupancy.