ABSTRACT
Finally, the last part of the book interrogates the commodification of Manhattan's public space. This is a framework constituting of frictional identities. A period where antagonistic encounters take place within the neoliberal city. From the 70s to the 80s, the text analyses a post-economic downturn where, against all odds, Manhattan launched an intensive waterfront revival that was not fully embraced by the citizens of New York. Continuing into the 90s and burdened by the consequences of a prolonged economic crisis and a shrinking urban center resulting from a high crime rate, saw bold solutions such as the bid to be an Olympic host city were considered. The case study of two relevant projects, Battery Park City (Downtown) and Gantry Plaza State Park (Queens), displays different results in the challenging task in developing a city waterfront strategy that, instead of innovation, privileges the rapid commodification of the architecture and the unbalance between public and private interests.
