American Experience: The World that Moses Built Part 6

PBS Documentary that explores the lengthy career of New York's Master Builder Robert Moses. Over the span of a half-century, Moses dramatically altered the built environment of the New York Metropolitan Region. Bridges, tunnels, roads, housing projects, civic centers and a host of other creations stand today as testimony to Moses. What he accomplished was not without controversy and his legacy must be viewed as a mixed blessing. However, as the NYT's put it "His projects hurt thousands, but benefited millions".

Category:

Education

Tags:

• robert moses
• new york city
• long island
• jones beach
• stuyvesant town
• united nations

[SteveRowland]

The only thing he did right was to glorify cars... Cuz we all know cars are the futur... (sarcasm)

[SteveRowland]

I'm guessing putting minorities and poors in an omelet is a US habits? Someone, please, tell me what's the difference between Robert Moses and a Dictator in terms of politics? Moses : The Art of a Dictatorship over Citizenship. Come back on Earth. What he has done, retrospectively, is clearly a bad thing for nowadays New York citizens. Imagine if all that money have had been used to make mass transit projects instead.

[Richardofdanbury]

You have to break a few eggs to make an omelet Robt.Moses was a visionary he foresaw the growth of our nation and NY State. I can speak on this as I live in the periphery of the Cross Bx Exprwy.

[ebonilia]

@ChrisDutch I am so happy to read your posting bc the Bronx was never the same and many of us who were young when the Bronx project occurred have forgotten and we bc we don't master our past history are allowing the same wealthy contracts to gentrify communities in NYC. Manhattan is becomng Paris where only the elite can afford to live and any borough that borders Manhattan are also considered parts of Manhattan. We need a Ms. Edelstein and Ms. Jacobs BADLY.

[alstoer1]

You're on a different tangent.

The WTC did not have the Engineering challenges the

X-Bronx had. It took so long purely for political

reasons. Everyone from the 9/11 victims families

to the politiians, to law enforcement had to be satisfied.

And 8 years later it was still a big hole in the ground.

No way that happens in Moses's time.

[ChrisDutch]

@alstoer1 No. Moses ran the project into the ground. The price of the project went up and the project took seventeen. As for "too many people having a say now" keep in mind this was a stable, working class Jewish neighborhood that was asking the road be swung away from Tremont into a shanty town area. But Moses saw a chance to get his friends from Nassau management wealthy by giving them a contract for tenant relocation which cost the city millions. The alternate route was straighter.

[alstoer1]

@jerryg1964

Your probably right, and once they became activists these projects became infinitly more costly

to build. Just too many people have a say now. I think in Moses heyday the WTC would have been

completely rebuilt in 3 years time. Its disgracefull how long that hole in the ground has been there.

[jerryg1964]

Cynical as it may be, it wasn't until urban renewal and big public works projects started impacting white neighborhoods (like the Cross Bronx) that the outcry started to be heard. Also, to a lesser extent minorities started to have more of a say in their local matters. When the early easy targets started to dwindle, it became harder to bulldoze projects through.