Residents living in one of twenty-eight apartment buildings near the 2nd Avenue subway construction are being offered a month in a luxury hotel or a stipend ranging from $5,000-9,000 to leave their apartments while the Metropolitan Transportation Authority enhances their buildings. The buildings in their current state cannot withstand the underground construction.

Phase One of the 2nd Avenue Subway is set to begin with a boring machine that will drill from East 92nd Street to East 63rd Street. The announcement was made on Friday, May 14th in a ceremony unveiling the 485-ton and 450-feet long machine. The line should be completed by December 2016 and is expected to cost $4.5 billion.

The United States Department of Transportation is looking into the Second Avenue Subway line, the Fulton Street Transit Center, the new PATH Terminal and the Long Island Rail Road extension to Grand Central for potential fiscal abuse or wrongdoings. All of these projects have exceeded their budgets and are taking longer than expected to complete. The evaluation should take ten months.

On March 5th, the US Department of Transportation (DOT) announced awards of $274 million in stimulus funds to the East Side Access and 2nd Avenue Subway Extension projects. The East Side Access project will receive $194.5 million and the 2nd Avenue Subway will receive $78.9 million.

An Upper East Side co-op board filed a lawsuit against the MTA, alleging that the first phrase design of the project would block the windows of eight co-op buildings and is not what the MTA originally outlined in the 2004 Final Environmental Impact Statement. The windows would be blocked by eight structures that may tower up to 100 feet.

The 2nd Avenue Subway will make use of new ventilation systems that consist of above ground buildings that will contain modern cooling systems. A few critics argue that these large ventilating buildings will “blight” the neighborhood and bring down property values.

A PBS report on infrastructure discussed critical climate change and weather events that may impact the construction and stability of the 2nd Ave subway. The report stated that cities like New York must consider the potential of more frequent storm events that could put large infrastructure projects at risk.

Governor Paterson (D) stated that the Second Avenue subway project will be delayed due to the poor economy and lack of funds from the state. The Governor also stated that he would be unwilling to raise taxes to fund the project. Proponents of the subway argued that large infrastructure projects, such as the Second Avenue subway, are too important to be postponed by the state’s budget issues.

The Second Avenue Subway line requires a ventilation structure that is 75 feet high. Windows on the east and south sides of an adjacent apartment co-op will be obstructed as a result and will no longer receive sunlight upon the tower's completion next year. In addition to displeasure over the loss of sunlight, residents are frustrated by safety concerns and a potential decline in property values.

Residents in sixty upper East Side apartment units will be the recipients of $10 million from the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA). This compensation is for the the property losses these residents will incur as a result of the eminent domain required for the second avenue subway line.