> If NYC can do it, Providence can do it).

New York City is the economic capital of the western hemisphere. The tax base is incredibly strong and Manhattan, the smallest borough, is still about 10% larger than all of Providence.

It's absurd to assume we're capable of that and that's without getting into the reality that the early 1950s and and early 2020s aren't exactly the same landscape.

Even then, New York City and Manhattan itself still aren't cheap. The rent on that development is great for the 6,000 or so households living in them but it didn't do a damn thing for everyone else.