1. Dome Over Manhattan
R. Buckminster Fuller conceived the idea of a Dome Over Manhattan in July 1950. The proposed Dome would be 2000 feet in diameter and could house 5,000 people to protect from frigid temperatures. “Savings in snow and ice removals and in heating and cooling would soon pay for the dome,” said Fuller of the geodesic dome.
Fuller was commissioned by William Zeckendorf in 1961 to construct a half-mile dome over the Yonkers Raceway, though Fuller dreamt even bigger: a two-mile in diameter dome covering mid-Manhattan. The dome would be composed of shatterproof, one-way glass (appearing like a mirror to aircrafts) and supported by aluminum struts. However, the world has yet to see the construction of a dome large enough to actually cover Manhattan.
For more information about never built NYC buildings, check out The NYC That Never Was: 10 Outrageous Architectural Plans that Never Left the Drawing Board and The NYC That Never Was: Frank Gehry’s 5 Never Built NYC Projects.