La Guardia Airport 1937 to 1939
$40 million ($623 million in today’s dollars)
Construction of the airport ran $20 million overbudget. The federal government paid $27 million, and New York City covered the rest. In 2008, $13.7 million was spent on repairs, which included runway rehab. 

Hoover Dam 1931 to 1935
$49 million ($792 million in today’s dollars)
Designed to supply Nevada, Arizona, and California with water and electricity, this dam was begun under Herbert Hoover but finished by F.D.R.  Since 2005, $30 million has been spent on major maintenance.

R.F.K. (formerly Triborough) Bridge 1929 to 1936
$60 million ($982 million in today’s dollars)
New York mayor Jimmy Walker broke ground on this bridge one day after Black Thursday. Since it was renamed, in 2008, $3,500 has been spent to replace signs located on the structure and its immediate approach. 

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge 1933 to 1936
$77 million ($1.2 billion in today’s dollars)
The opening-day toll for the bridge was 65 cents ($10.13, adjusted for inflation). Today’s one-way toll is $4. A four-year, $429 million retrofitting of the west approach is set to be completed this year.

U.S.S. Yorktown 1934 to 1936
Part of a $238 million naval construction project ($3.7 billion in today’s dollars)
This 761-foot-long aircraft carrier, christened by Eleanor Roosevelt, patrolled the Atlantic and Pacific in World War II. It was sunk during the Battle of Midway.