In 2004, truck driver Joe Macken began with a tiny Rockefeller Center building; more than two decades later, his vast handmade New York model entered a city museum

Joe Macken began a basement project in 2004, crafting miniature buildings from balsa wood. This hobby evolved into a vast scale model of New York City over two decades. The impressive model, now housed at the Museum of the City of New York, spans fifty-seven by twenty-seven feet. Visitors can explore the detailed exhibit, which opened on February 12, 2026.