The same tactic was used in the urban cores of major American cities such as Los Angeles to break apart mostly residential areas and redevelop them into high-rise-laden commercial districts, a practice which may now be boomeranging in the post-pandemic economy. New York is claiming “economic stagnation” (in addition to “blight”) in the redeveloped area. However, opponents say only 8 of the total 61 lots targeted by the project meet the definition outlined by the state’s apparently vague threshold.  

“It’s so extreme in this case, I don’t think they can get away with it,” an attorney representing various opposition groups’ legal challenge to the plan told the Times.

Eventually, the redevelopment — which was approved in July — will yield ten skyscrapers, 1,800 units of housing, and the $73 million expansion of Penn Station led by Arup. CRE titan Vornado owns half of the sites included in the scheme, inciting echoes of Columbia University's contested redevelopment of Manhattanville a decade ago. A few supporters, including State Senator Leroy Comrie, have said the plan should be wary of the pitfalls of office-heavy development in light of the new reality. 

“We should spend those once-in-a-lifetime dollars on a 2050-type vision as opposed to a 1970s vision,” he said. “We need to make sure that whatever happens aboveground is actually something that will help finance the project.”