New York Officials Warn $7 Billion Penn Station Plan Could Stick Riders With $6 Billion Gap
Updated
Updated · Streetsblog New York City · Jun 8
New York Officials Warn $7 Billion Penn Station Plan Could Stick Riders With $6 Billion Gap
3 articles · Updated · Streetsblog New York City · Jun 8
Summary
$7 billion in projected Penn Station redevelopment costs has alarmed Manhattan Rep. Jerry Nadler and Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who say Washington has committed only $43 million and could leave commuters and taxpayers covering a nearly $6 billion shortfall.
600,000 daily riders use Penn Station, they said, yet Amtrak serves just 7% of them while the MTA and NJ Transit handle 93% and were largely shut out of redevelopment decisions.
Penn Transformation Partners was chosen as master developer without a full public RFP, complete cost disclosure or hearings, and the officials said all three shortlisted teams had ties to Trump donors and lobbied the White House.
A pending McDowell-Moulton amendment would give Amtrak broader power over development around stations like Penn, potentially bypassing New York taxes, zoning and building rules.
Nadler and Hoylman-Sigal said they will fight the amendment, demand release of project and financing documents, protect MTA leasehold rights and push for public hearings on Penn Station's future.