New York City to Take Governors Island From State

It was, perhaps, the best real estate deal in New York City history: For one lousy buck, New York State bought 172 acres of land less than 800 yards from lower Manhattan. Governors Island, the former military base and Coast Guard stomping ground, was going to be, at times, a park, an oasis of affordable housing or a theme park, and always a symbol of the New York's ability to reinvent itself.

But seven years after the sale, pretty much nothing has happened on Governors Island other than the continued decay of its historic buildings and the arrival of picnicking visitors. It has instead become a symbol of the state's dysfunction. So last week, New York City won the right to take over development of the island.