Whose Homes Did His Roads Tear Down: Robert Moses's New York Legacy
Moses used federal Title I money to tear down 26 neighborhoods, pushing the poor from one slum to another, yet claimed 98% of relocatees were better housed — his legacy remains unresolved to this day.
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The more power, the less explanation needed
After LaGuardia retired in 1946, William O'Dwyer appointed Moses as New York City Construction Coordinator, a position that gave him jurisdiction over every public construction project in the city and a direct line to Washington. By 1959, critics pointed out that he simultaneously held multiple government positions and his power was unchecked: consultant fees were not public, staff salaries were not public, trust meetings were held behind closed doors, and he could seize land at will. Reporter Bob Baum noted that private companies could do these things, but as part of a government entity, the public had a right to know. Moses was therefore often called the "Construction Czar" or "Urban Planning Czar."
— Holly FreyRoads first, at the cost of entire communities
In 1948, Moses began building the Cross Bronx Expressway, a seven-mile road cutting through the already heavily developed Bronx. Dozens of apartment buildings were demolished, hundreds of families were displaced, and many streets were cut into dead ends. This community fragmentation was later cited as one reason for rising local crime rates. Those affected were mostly the least resourced, predominantly non-white communities. In a 1945 Atlantic Monthly article, Moses wrote that arterial improvements were "not merely a strip of pavement laid in a gasoline ditch, but a real improvement of the entire area." He genuinely believed he was making the best choices for New York, but his methods were often ruthless.
— Tracy V. Wilson26 brochures, one visual persuasion campaign
In 1949, Congress passed the American Housing Act Title I, providing $1 billion in loans and $100 million in annual grants for slum clearance. Moses realized New York could get a large amount of federal money, so in the 1950s he had his team produce 26 brochures, each targeting a neighborhood he thought needed redevelopment. The brochures contained problem descriptions, photos, and statistics, and were sent to the New York City Board of Estimate, the City Planning Commission, the Title I federal administrator, and the Housing and Home Finance Agency. In 2014, researcher Temis Kronopoulos analyzed the photos and found: vacant lots were shown 22 times, the most common image of urban decay; 20 photos showed back-alley garbage and clotheslines; almost no people appeared in the photos. Kronopoulos wrote: "In this context, slum clearance was also a tool of social engineering."
— Tracy V. WilsonMedia praise first, scandal exposed later
On June 29, 1959, New York Times reporter Wayne Phillips began publishing a four-part series exposing problems in Moses's Title I slum clearance projects: associations with people he shouldn't have been involved with, unregulated funds, and information not shared. But as early as June 14, columns by George Sokolski began appearing in multiple newspapers nationwide, syndicated by King Features Syndicate, with titles like "Robert Moses Is a Selfless Man" and nearly identical content, praising him for "constantly building and beautifying, his work never tainted by corruption." These articles appeared two weeks before the New York Times critical series. Looking back, Sokolski appears to have been asked to preemptively cover for the coming scandal.
— Holly FreyMayor's ban and public tantrum
After the scandal broke, Mayor Wagner did two things: first, he investigated Louis Pokras's role in the Harlem slum clearance project, and because Pokras had organized crime connections, Wagner publicly stated he would never allow him to sponsor any New York development project; second, he banned the city government from working with Moses's favored architect Melvin E. Kessler, whose previous involvement in Upper West Side redevelopment saw developer Manhattan Town Incorporated take Title I funds without building a single building or demolishing a single building, just collecting rent while the buildings decayed. Moses publicly responded that the mayor's "devastating charges and misstatements" scared off venture capital, and said "Title I is a dead duck." Other officials said Title I would continue and praised Moses. Looking back at media coverage, Moses appeared to be throwing a public tantrum.
— Tracy V. Wilson"Moses Must Go": an open letter
In December 1959, the Metropolitan Housing Council began distributing leaflets in New York addressed to Mayor Robert Wagner. At the top in bold letters: "For New York's development, Moses must go." The leaflet listed ongoing problems with slum clearance projects: tenants were sold along with the land; indecent relocation practices continued; luxury housing was built at the people's expense while those who needed housing most were pushed from one slum to another; as former rent administrator Charles Abrams pointed out, slum clearance had become "Negro and Puerto Rican removal." The leaflet demanded: more low-rent housing, an end to subsidizing luxury housing, and building new housing before demolishing old. It compared the situation to cancer and repeated: "Moses must go."
— Holly FreyFire Island showdown: Rockefeller accepts the resignation
In 1962, Moses clashed with New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller over the Fire Island road plan. Moses wanted to build a road spanning the entire island, and after a 1962 storm destroyed most houses, he thought his chance had come. But environmental groups and islanders opposed it, and residents proposed an alternative: making Fire Island a national seashore protected area, which gained federal support. Public pressure gave the governor an opportunity to halt the road project and suggest Moses reduce his government roles to focus on the 1964 World's Fair. Moses submitted his resignation; he had previously threatened other governors with resignation, but they had all refused because many public projects would collapse without him. Rockefeller accepted the resignation, triggering a media storm. Moses claimed the governor had asked him to immediately resign as chairman of the State Parks Commission so his brother Lawrence could take over; Rockefeller said a transition had been discussed for over a year.
— Tracy V. WilsonWorld's Fair: 50 million vs. expected 70 million
The 1964 New York World's Fair attracted about 50 million people, but Moses had predicted 70 million. The New York Times reported that only 85% of the grounds were ready at opening, 15 of 139 pavilions were unfinished, and many completed pavilions had no exhibits. Some exhibitors arrived with nowhere to put their displays. A fair spokesman told the media that visiting all the other options would take over a week, and unfinished pavilions would be completed before then. Some attractions were finished within weeks of opening, others were abandoned entirely. After the fair, Moses no longer served as New York City Construction Coordinator. In September 1966, his wife Mary died after a long illness, and less than a month later, Moses remarried Mary Grady, who served as secretary at the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. In 1968, Rockefeller merged Triborough into another transportation agency, and Moses was removed from his last New York government position.
— Holly FreyThe Power Broker: one book sets the tone for fifty years
In 1970, Moses published Public Works: A Dangerous Trade, reviewing his career, and wrote: "History repeats itself. Before long, as it has time and again, the opposition will quiet down and claim they always supported the improvement." In 1974, journalist Robert Caro published The Power Broker, detailing how Moses accumulated power, painting an overall negative portrait, and it became a bestseller. Moses issued a statement through his PR team calling the book "full of errors, baseless charges, malicious, unfounded personal attacks, and random punches thrown at almost everyone in public life." He also said Caro fabricated the notion of "helpless displaced people encountering a cruel public works dictator, abusively scattered into the worst slums," and countered that 98% of those moved from demolished communities got better housing. Caro's book won the Pulitzer Prize, and whether accurate or not, its portrayal of Moses has been ingrained ever since.
— Tracy V. WilsonIn their own words · checked verbatim
that an arterial improvement, whether it be a parkway for restricted travel or an express route open to mixed traffic, is not simply a strip of pavement in a gasoline gully. but a genuine shoestring or ribbon improvement of the entire area through which it passes. It brings with it benefits not only to those who travel in cars, but to the thousands who live along it or do business or seek recreation there.
Tracy V. Wilson4:10
empty lots appeared 22 times in the brochures and represented the most popular depiction of urban blight. They always implied that a building was missing, that space was underutilized, and that garbage ended up there.
Temis Kronopoulos9:15
in this case, slum clearance was also an instrument of social engineering. though the brochures emphasize the physical problem.
Temis Kronopoulos10:18
the tenants are still sold along with the land. Two, indecent and inhuman relocation practices still continue. Three, luxury housing is still being built at the people's expense while those in greater need are driven from slum to slum. Four, as Charles Abrams, former rent administrator, has pointed out, slum clearance has become Negro and Puerto Rican clearance.
Metropolitan Council on Housing flyer15:26
the point of writing about Robert Moses and what he does is to show that despite the materialism of current American life, there are still selfless men who serve the people, achieving great improvements in various fields without concern for private advance.
George Sokolski18:28
full of mistakes, unsupported charges, nasty, baseless personalities, and random haymakers thrown at just about everybody in public life.
Robert Moses29:44
susceptibility to the addiction of power was unusually strong.
Robert Caro32:49
whether Robert Moses is right or wrong in what and the way he does things, whether he deserves an accolade of greatness or is just a puffed-up egoist, or whether, as some of his opponents contend, others could have done as well, are things that historians and students of tomorrow may examine in hard perspective.
Bob Baum35:53
Figures
| Cross Bronx Expressway length | 7 miles | 3:07 |
| Title I annual grants | $100 million, for 5 years | 6:11 |
| Number of slum clearance brochures produced by Moses's team | 26 | 7:12 |
| Number of times vacant lots appeared in brochures | 22 | 9:15 |
| 1964 World's Fair attendance | about 50 million | 26:38 |
| Moses's predicted World's Fair attendance | 70 million | 26:38 |
| Percentage ready at World's Fair opening | 85% | 26:38 |
| Number of unfinished pavilions at World's Fair | 15 out of 139 | 26:38 |
| Total value of projects in Moses's 50-year career | $30 billion | 35:53 |
Glossary
- Title I
- The slum clearance and community development provisions of the 1949 U.S. Housing Act, providing federal loans and grants for urban renewal.
- slum clearance
- Demolishing urban neighborhoods deemed blighted and redeveloping them for public or private projects, often displacing residents.
- Power Broker
- Robert Caro's 1974 biography of Robert Moses, which won the Pulitzer Prize and profoundly shaped public perception of Moses.
- King Features Syndicate
- A newspaper syndicate founded by Hearst that distributed column articles to multiple newspapers nationwide simultaneously.
How to listen
Founders and investors interested in urban renewal, the exercise of infrastructure power, and the interplay of media and politics; engineers who want to understand how "strong execution" and "social cost" can coexist.
The listener mail and pet photos starting at 36:54 can be skipped.