––The Conservancy sent Governor Hochul a letter and petition last Friday asking for an independent review of through-running at Penn Station. Sixteen colleague groups endorsed the petition, which had more than 2000 signatures.
Proponents say allowing more trains to continue through Penn would unite the region and could avoid the need to destroy adjacent blocks containing affordable homes, local businesses, and architecturally important buildings.
“While added sunlight, new entrances, and escalators are certainly welcome, are we missing the opportunity to bring 21st-century transit to New York?” The petition asks, “Billions of taxpayer dollars are at stake.”
––Senator Schumer recently announced $72 million in federal funding for Penn reconstruction and a similar amount for the proposed underground expansion.
––A City Club session on Penn last Wednesday presented clear statements on the impasse between the railroads and through-running advocates. An Amtrak spokesperson said the railroads “are trying to focus on immediate needs.” Regional rail service, she added, is “a possibility in the future.”
“This is fundamentally a governance problem,” said transit consultant Liam Blank. “There is no one in charge to force this (through-running review) to happen. It’s relying on the goodwill of the railroads to look beyond their individual interests and political constituencies to do something for the region.”
The Port Authority agreed to a peer review of its initial plans for the new bus station. It resulted in an improved plan and answered community concerns.
––Another challenge to the State’s General Project Plan (“GPP”), which still threatens to destroy blocks around Penn for giant office towers, was heard in the Manhattan Appellate Division last Tuesday. The Conservancy submitted an amicus brief supporting the challenge.
“The original purpose of the GPP was destroyed by Covid,” the neighborhood’s lawyer maintained. But the State attorney said the GPP still applied to plans for a $16 billion underground station for New Jersey Transit. He added that “if” there are excess monies generated by future office buildings they could go to the expansion.
––The State and the Railroads maintain improving Penn and building a new underground station are separate projects. By doing this, they are trying to avoid a federal review process and public input, at Penn.
The Conservancy and other groups have written the Federal Railroad Administration arguing that Penn improvements and the proposed expansion are one project, requiring federal review and public input.