NEW YORK — Madison Square Garden would receive a new 10-year special permit to continue operations, but would be required to assist with improvements to Penn Station, under a proposal outlined by New York City officials on Monday.
The website Gothamist reports the Department of City Planning wants to require the arena to make aesthetic upgrades to the surrounding area. In return for receiving the new permit, Garden owner James Dolan would be required to work with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Amtrak, and NJ Transit on the recently announced $7 billion plan to upgrade Penn Station [see “Penn Station remodel to move forward …,” Trains News Wire, June 27, 2023]. That would likely include surrendering some property.
“It’s obvious that any improvements to Penn Station will require use of property that is owned by Madison Square Garden, no surprise there,” said Dan Garodnick, director of the planning department. “Department of City Planning believes that MSG will need to convey additional easements or other property interests as necessary to allow for the rehab of Penn Station. And the development of new train entrances to Penn Station. And also a mid-block train hall.”
An MTA spokesman told the West Side Spirit that the agency welcomed the proposal.
“We are pleased that the City Planning Commission is recommending that MSG be required to work with the MTA and other transit agencies to ensure that the arena become compatible with a world-class Penn Station,” the MTA’s chief of external relations, John J. McCarthy, told the Spirit. “This is consistent with Gov. Kathy Hochul’s vision to make Penn Station a facility that puts New Yorkers first.”
The special permit is required for the arena, with a capacity of 19,800, to hold events with more than 2,500 people. The current permit expires July 24. A joint report by the MTA, Amtrak, and NJ Transit last month said the arena’s location was no longer compatible with Penn Station operations [see “Rail operators’ report calls Madison Square Garden ‘not compatible’ …,” News Wire, June 5, 2023]. Arena officials have said the report was a ploy by the rail agencies to improve their negotiating position over land they want for the station remodeling [see “Hearing on Madison Square Garden …,” News Wire, June 10, 2023].
The planning department is scheduled to vote on the proposal today (Wednesday, July 12), after which the New York City Council will have 50 days to approve or modify the permit.
Well if you want to remodel Penn Station and also how to fit Madison Square Garden in these plans, you might as well really do it up big Tear down the present Penn Station as well as Madison Square Garden including the office tower and build a super state of the art complex one that incorporates a new station and a new Madison Square Garden complex. If Madison Square Garden is the roadblock caussing any delays or progress find another location in the city for them Its time for a new Garden anyway. You can’t let a greedy selfish and rich family who owns the Garden and their teams hold both the city and the transportation entities hostage for their own purposes. Move Madison Square Garden somewhere else and proceed with building a first class transportation center that benefits the public and will generate new business. Too many of these sports teams with their owners are always trying to control and dictate how a city should run things on their terms and as always, its the people , the taxpayers wind up having to foot the bill for these greedy sports teams and their owners
Joseph C. Markfelder
What is wrong with the present Penn Station? The one that they made from the old post office building a number of years ago and were still working on improving it. The present building is a worthy sucessor to the old Penn Station which was foolishly torn down 60 years ago. It seems to me that this is a waste of money and this is only being done to satisfy greedy real estate interests and special interest groups. Continue to improve the exiisting Penn Station and create better access to the station as well as the subway lines it serves and Madison Square Gargen. The orginal 1910 underground platforms and track layout is still the same and has never been really upgraded as well as both the Hudson River and East River Tunnels but that is another subject for another debate. We can’t undo the mistakes of 60 years years ago when a beautiful railroad station was sacrificed to greed and corruption and political bungling but let us work on we have now and continue to improve the present Penn Station witout creating any massive upheavals and disruptions and crowd in more buildings into an already overcrowded small area in Manhattan. This whole plan sounds like and is doomed to a collosal failure and one that will only make things worse and wind up costing taxpayers and the citizens of New York more money We are reaping the mistakes made of 60 years ago. Let us not go there again or repeat history.
Joseph C. Markfelder
You must mean the Moynihan Train Hall. For one thing, it’s across 8th Avenue from the platforms and a long walk from the Easternmost cars of a train and the IRT Subway under 7th Avenue.
The MTA is still working to finalize its Penn Station plans. It is leading the project on behalf of both New Jersey Transit and Amtrak.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
One can only hope and expect that the rail agencies will deliver a great plan for Penn Station, and MSG has committed to collaborating with them.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Actually there were two railroads in 1964. LIRR had been pulled out from PRR control.
Meanwhile in Philadelphia, a developer wants to put a basketball arena (NBA) and entertainment venue on top of SEPTA’s Jefferson Station.
So you build an entertainment venue atop the nation’s busiest passenger railroad station. At the time it was one railroad. Today there are three. A half-century later and now YOU are in the way. It sounds like a raw deal but with the right kind of eyes anyone could have seen this coming.
Ghost of Penn Central still lingers…