"The █████████ Project"

Item #: SCP-727

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Object Class: Keter

Special Containment Procedures: As SCP-727 takes the place of a major metropolitan area, the logistics of its containment are among the most complex executed by the Foundation. As such, see guides 727-Md, 727-Cv, 727-O/N, 727-Kt, 727-XK, and 727-TCP as appropriate for more information. The following is a brief overview.
The primary consideration, as outlined in 727-Md, is simultaneously maintaining the appearance of SCP-727 being a metropolitan area and possible travel destination while preventing anyone not already part of the containment from actually entering. That is, SCP-727 (specifically, it's civilian designation, █████████) must remain a common household name in the majority of households, as a place one might go to, while having no-one actually visit. Since the prevention of entrance by force is to be used as a last resort, the containment of SCP-727 is best accomplished by making it unappealing to visit, through the use of "false tourist destinations" (publicly disseminated descriptions and promotional material can be found in 727-Md, while the actual plans for the life-size mock-ups presented to through traffic and external observers can be found in 727-Cv; a brief list includes SCP-727-st-002, "██████████ ██████", SCP-727-st-021, "█████████ ██████ ███████", SCP-727-st-092, "███ ████ ███ ████ ████ ██ ████", SCP-727-st-113, "█████████ ██████ ██████", and SCP-727-st-313, "█████████ ██████████ ███").
A second aspect of the containment of SCP-727 is its role as a transportation hub, as detailed in 727-O/N. Specifically, SCP-727-st-009, "█████████ ███████ █████████████ ███████", which serves as an international airport and central hub for many airlines, SCP-727-st-013, "█████████ █████████ ███████", which serves as a stop for the ███████ railways, SCP-727-st-212, "████ ██ █████████", a major port hub, and finally portions of Interstates ██ (which connect to st-009), ██, ███, as well as State █, US █, and US ██ (of which those portions of which cross into SCP-727 are termed SCP-727-st-443) all must be accounted for. While travel "ending" in SCP-727 is its own problem (as detailed in 727-TCP), maintaining the appearance of a vibrant metropolitan location for through traffic is what presents the greatest difficulties, in that the appearance of travel into and out of SCP-727 presented to through traffic must be maintained while still preventing actual travel.
The majority of the staff at SCP-727 are low-level, often only aware of "The █████████ Project" and not the wider functioning of the Foundation itself. The cover story is often told, in fact, in terms of a prank, accompanied by the viewing of [DATA EXPUNGED] near the center of SCP-727 as an explanation. This has its roots in the earlier, pre-Foundation maintenance of SCP-727; in effect what the Foundation has done is not so much develop containment protocols for SCP-727 as augment them and provide greater material support. Document 727-TCP, rebranded as "The █████████ Project Manual" is what is often given to this level of staff. Such staff primarily serve as "filler" for the transportation portion of SCP-727; boarding and departing from non-transfer air or rail stops, driving the cars coming off or onto st-443 from within SCP-727, as well as augmenting the cover story by providing (falsified, obviously) reports of their "vacations" or "visits to family." Low-level staff are also responsible for importing goods from off-site to maintain the covers of such locations as SCP-727-st-623, the "█████████ █████ █████", or spoofing outgoing communications from places such as SCP-727-st-793, the "headquarters" of the "█████ ██████████".

Description: SCP-727 started as a massive practical joke in the late 18th century, played by █████ ██████████ on a surveying and land distribution company. ██████████ had discovered that [DATA EXPUNGED] in a certain part of the ████████ river valley, and thought it would be amusing to introduce the company to the area under the false premise of developing it as a township; the joke becoming obvious on even a cursory surveying. That company incorporated the area into their own holdings, perpetuating the joke against several generations of possible settlers, each of whom, after discovering the joke, bizarrely took it upon themselves to perpetuate it in turn. This would have been of no real consequence if the joke had collapsed, but instead it hasn't. The danger in SCP-727 lies in the possibility of it becoming revealed as a "practical joke" after such a long period of time: that a site the magnitude of SCP-727 could be falsified would trigger a massive reconsideration of values and normativity in the populace, which could then create a cascade effect. Again, due to [DATA EXPUNGED] it is obvious that SCP-727 cannot be simply turned into an actual metropolitan area, and yet at this point there is no way to simply get rid of it without drawing undue suspicion.
Significant argument has emerged on the exact nature of the [DATA EXPUNGED], which may in fact have a memetic effect on viewers inducing them to perpetuate the joke. This seems to explain how SCP-727 was started in the first place, as well as how it was able to "maintain itself" before becoming managed by the Foundation, although evidence suggests that the deception was dangerously close to collapse at the time, sustained only by bringing in those who broke through the deception "in on the joke."