Boston: BCEC / Menino Center (South Boston Seaport)#

Opened: 2004. Exhibit space: 516,000 sq ft contiguous. Walk Score: 62.

What happens when you build big on empty land.

What Was Here Before#

Underutilized industrial piers and derelict waterfront. The state used eminent domain to assemble a 60-acre site. A lost 1999 plan by Cooper Robertson proposed smaller blocks, a network of parks, and “active street fronts” — killed by political opposition and post-Big Dig budget constraints.

New York: Javits Center (Hell’s Kitchen / Hudson Yards)#

Opened: 1986 ($1.5B expansion completed 2021). Exhibit space: 675,000+ sq ft. Walk Score: 99.

A 29-year dead zone that took $30 billion to fix.

What Was Here Before#

Penn Central rail yards. The far-west location on 11th Avenue was chosen in 1978 as the cheaper alternative. Designed by I.M. Pei partner James Ingo Freed.

The Dead Zone (1986–2015)#

When Javits opened, the nearest subway was half a mile away. Residents described it as “a big, black hulking building” that cut off waterfront access. Long-time Chelsea resident Edward Kirkland: “People looked at it with a sense of isolation.”