Spitzer awaits progress on mega-projects

Gov. Eliot Spitzer pushed for some big projects during his first year in office, including the Penn Station-Madison Square Garden makeover and an expanded Javits convention center. Success would buck New York City’s trend of slowly built mega-projects and would boost Spitzer’s re-election campaign. But some plans have fallen through, like the Javits center expansion. Despite agreements between government, tourism, hotel and construction figures, the plan was sacked after Spitzer’s administration cited unforeseen costs that raised the total price tag to $5 billion.