[zmitri]

By nailed down, I meant "done right" and functioning smoothly -- not nailed down as in impossible to duplicate else where.

For example there is nothing very early stage in New York that wields the respect and track record of YCombinator or SV Angel. Both of those have become institutions in SV and are very important as connectors and seed stage investors.

The Stanford ecosystem is another example that is well oiled. The Cornell Tech campus in NYC has tons of potential, but it's still quite new.