URGENT
The plan to demolish the Penn Station neighborhood promoted by Governor Kathy Hochul and the Empire State Development Corporation (ESD), is backward and deeply flawed. Not only does it destroy blocks of a unique New York neighborhood, Penn Station itself would remain buried beneath Madison Square Garden. The Hochul/ESD plan is “lipstick on a pig,” as Penn Station’s essential transit operation would remain unchanged subjecting tens of thousands to crowded and dangerous conditions.
With the Hochul/ESD plan, thousands of apartment dwellers and small business owners would be displaced. Historic buildings, many of them irreplaceable (including the fabled Hotel Pennsylvania), would be demolished. New York City deserves a great train station with modern transit operations—we have that plan, and our plan does NOT call for the wholesale destruction of a neighborhood. It does not displace hundreds, and it does not demolish our architectural heritage.
We see the Hochul/ESD plan for what it is. A cynical land grab in exchange for political contributions. It is corrupt, and places the wants of billionaires over the needs of the public good. It is a vulgar development strategy without regard for public benefit and we wholeheartedly oppose it.
PLEASE HELP OUR EFFORT
There now exists a once in a century opportunity to not only restore Penn Station to its rightful place, but to make it the centerpiece of a coordinated and fully modern transportation system built for the needs of the 21st Century.
Join our movement!
Our Proposed Modernization of Original Penn Station
A reimagined 8th Avenue facade, reflecting a new level of activity west of Penn Station, at a rebuilt but modernized McKim, Mead and White Station. Terraces, rooftop restaurants and green spaces and more would make this a centerpiece in the neighborhood, city, state and region. Penn Station should define our better selves in the context of this great city and not be an also ran in a race to mediocrity. It could combine the best of Rockefeller Center and Grand Central Terminal and far more easily than some would have you think.
Steps off Seventh Avenue, the arcade of shops once again brings essential retail to Penn Station.
Who needs light and air? We do! Rethinking Penn Station’s original carriageways, at 31st and 33rd streets, creates an open arcade with integrated pedestrian ramps to solve Penn Station's circulation issues.
Dream no small dreams for they have no power to move the hearts of men.
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
José Hernández, Experience Penn Station.
MISSION, NOT IMPOSSIBLE
ReThink Penn Station NYC is the only organization dedicated to the reconstruction of original New York Penn Station—thoroughly modernized and updated for the 21st century as the best solution to the dilemma that is today’s catastrophe of station. Why? Because the original remains unsurpassed by any concept yet to be presented. We do not support rebuilding out of nostalgia, but for the benefits to be gained in economy, environment and yes, aesthetics—New York architectural aesthetics. We are at risk of losing our unique New York-ness. Rebuilding original New York Penn Station is an affirmation of that—it’s also a testament to the vitality and resilience of our city in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. New Yorkers have for too long suffered with a substandard, subterranean after-thought of a station buried beneath a basketball court. We can suffer no longer, and will not wait another minute. The time for action is now as our window of opportunity is closing fast due to powerful real estate interests who have the ear of the Governor. If we let them, they will sell our city right from underneath us, and will again plunder our architectural heritage. We can stop them, but we need your help!
INFRASTRUCTURE IS SEXY
ReThink Penn Station’s mission shares a symbiotic relationship with ReThink NYC’s visionary plan for the transformation of New York’s regional rail system. Known as “through-running,” ReThink NYC’s plan turns New York’s antiquated system of centralized trains, into a modern, unified, and infinitely more fluid system that is not only co-anchored by New York Penn Station, but is part of larger decentralized system of transit hubs spread across the region. It simplifies, standardizes, and democratizes the system. Get on a LIRR train in Mineola, and travel all the way to Connecticut. Board a NJT train in Newark, travel to Westchester or upstate. Want more facts on through-running and why we think it’s the best plan for New York, click here.
CONTEXT IS IMPORTANT, GIVE ME SOME HISTORY
The Time Is Now
Help us to help rebuild the original New York Penn Station, updated for the 21st century, into a destination that makes us all proud—a destination in service to the interest of all New Yorkers.
We the citizens of New York deserve no less.