CORY REYNOLDS | DATE 12/14/2016

Never Built New York

Imagine what the NYC waterfront would have been like if Samuel Friede's gargantuan 1906 Coney Island Globe had made it past the cornerstone laying stage. Measuring 300 feet in diameter and 750 feet tall, the bulbous, truss-supported 11-story tower was to be topped with huge spotlights and would have contained a theater, roller-skating rink, dance hall, circus, palm garden, weather observatory, several restaurants and a roof garden. This project and nearly 200 more are detailed in Never Built New York, Metropolis Books' monumental new blockbuster presenting 200 years of visionary architectural plans for unbuilt subways, bridges, parks, airports, stadiums, streets, train stations and, of course, skyscrapers. Hear the authors in conversation with Barry Bergdoll tonight at AIA New York, listen to author Sam Lubell on WNYC / Morning Edition, or browse the rest of our Holiday Gift Guide 2017!