As the periphery of the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut Metropolitan Region extends further in all directions, its infrastructure is pushed to the limit, constraining the potential for growth and making the Region a less attractive place to live, work and visit. In the last two decades, the Region has added 2.3 million residents and 1.5 million jobs, with the large majority of new residents and business activity locating outside of the region's cities. We are rapidly approaching full buildout of our suburbs. To accommodate sufficient additional growth to meet the economic aspirations of its residents, we must create new opportunities for commercial and residential development in our suburban centers and urban core. Manhattan, along with neighboring waterfronts in Brooklyn, Queens and New Jersey, boasts the nation's most robust infrastructure system, as well as access to millions of workers and vital resources. A vibrant, dynamic Central Business District (CBD) remains the key to sustainable metropolitan growth, even as other regional centers emerge and expand. In the 20th Century, an expanding CBD stimulated growth throughout the Region. Through most of the century, this expansion occurred in the Midtown core as business moved north from the traditional center in Lower Manhattan. In the last 20 years, however, commercial development spilled over into neighboring districts - Midtown South, Downtown Brooklyn and Jersey City - as businesses looked for alternative locations to expand. While these areas will continue to develop, perhaps the greatest untapped opportunity for expansion is on the Far West Side, a vast tract of underutilized land directly abutting Midtown between 8th Avenue and the Hudson River. This area has been eyed for decades - Regional Plan Association considered it for development in each of its three Regional Plans, in the 1920's, 60's and 90's. But the need to develop Manhattan's Far West Side will be even more critical in the next century. The City of New York has recognized the area's potential and put forward an ambitious and comprehensive plan for developing this part of the city. With this in mind, this year's Regional Assembly is titled "Make No Small Plans" and dedicated it to a discussion of plans for the Far West Side and their impact on the Region's future. The Assembly will bring together leaders from the public, private and academic sectors for the first comprehensive forum on this vital issue.