Critics say Penn Station overhaul 'won't go far enough'

The Municipal Arts Society and the Regional Plan Association are offering up their own recommendations

It has now been a week since Governor Andrew Cuomo formally introduced plans for a redeveloped Penn Station and the James. A Farley Post Office building. Shortly after that, Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU) founder Vishaan Chakrabarti published an alternate version of the redevelopment that would incorporate Madison Square Garden into the overall design. This week, others questioning the full scope of Governor Cuomo’s proposal have also come forward.

While the Municipal Arts Society of New York and the Regional Plan Associated commended the Governor’s proposal, they think he just isn’t doing enough, Politico reports. In a joint statement issued by the groups, they say that, "these upgrades will certainly improve the experience at the transit hub, but by themselves, they won’t go far enough."

The two groups have come up with a list of recommendations that include:

• Fast tracking the Gateway tunnel project that would create a new trans-Hudson River train tunnel. MAS and RPA want the state to take this a step further and study the possibility of creating through-train routes between New Jersey and Long Island, and Connecticut.
• Integrating Madison Square Garden into any redevelopment plans, even though Cuomo announced in his press conference last week that he was not interested in relocating the venue.
• Creating an overall framework for the development of Midtown West that goes beyond Penn Station and looks at future development and historic preservation in the area.

Cuomo’s plan as it stands now envisions the conversion of the post office building into a 250,000-square-foot train hall known as Moynihan Train Hall, the redevelopment of the LIRR concourses that lie within Penn Station, and the sprucing up of the subway stations that connect to Penn Station.

from
http://ny.curbed.com/2016/10/4/13161650/penn-station-redevelopment-critics-mas-rpa