Government briefs: Plan for $1B Javits Center unveiled, LIC hospital project still in limbo … and more

Rendering of Javits Center (inset: Gov. Andrew Cuomo)
Rendering of Javits Center (inset: Gov. Andrew Cuomo)

From the February issue: The Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, which was built in 1986 and has become one of the busiest convention centers in the country, will expand by a third under a $1 billion plan announced by Governor Andrew Cuomo. The plans are expected to upgrade and grow the 2.1 million-square-foot, state-owned facility by an additional 1.2 million square feet. Construction will start later this year with funding provided by the Javits Center and the Empire State Development Corporation.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

“It’s now our obligation to build a New York for the next generation,” Cuomo said during his announcement. The Javits Center has long been criticized as being too small. The new wing will include exhibition space, conference rooms and five times more meeting and ballroom space. In 2012, Cuomo announced plans to replace the convention center with a much larger one in Queens but negotiations collapsed. [more]