The Nelson Rockefeller Empire State Plaza is a sprawling complex of New York State buildings in Albany, NY, the state capital. Then-Governor Rockefeller created the thing because he’d been embarrassed showing Queen Juliana of Holland the state’s capital during a celebration of the city’s Dutch heritage. What she saw was an enclave of thousands of poor people in rundown tenements around the Capital building, so Rocky displaced the people, destroyed buildings and created a monument to himself at a cost north of $2 billion. It was sold to the city as a revitalization project that would bring new life to the down-at-the-heels town. It did the opposite.
© 2024 John Oliver
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