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Testimony of May 31, 2006 The New York Building Congress is pleased to endorse the General Project Plan for the proposed Moynihan Station Civic and Land Use Improvement Project. The Building Congress, New York’s largest and most diverse coalition of the design, construction and real estate industry in New York City, is committed to supporting sound public policy and productive capital spending. Our members are keenly interested in mass transit investments and the impact of such investments on the City’s current and future economic development. The General Project Plan effectively addresses those interests, and the Building Congress strongly supports the Plan’s comprehensive initiative for transforming the current Farley Post Office building into a new, state-of-the-art transportation hub – the Moynihan Station. The current Pennsylvania Station, located beneath Madison Square Garden, already operates at capacity in serving the most congested commuter rail corridor in the nation. Every day, overcrowded platforms and passageways make circulation within Penn Station difficult, even dangerous, and emphasize the inadequacy of Penn Station to meet passenger needs. The problem will only get worse as the population of New York City continues to grow and the number of people using the Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit increases. As detailed in the recent Building Congress Electricity Outlook Report, New York City’s population is projected to grow to 8.4 million by 2010, a gain of over 400,000 since 2002, and to reach over 9.3 million by 2025, for a total gain of 1.28 million or 16 percent since 2002. Total jobs in New York City are expected to reach 4.46 million in 2010, a gain of 315,000 jobs, or 7.6 percent, since 2002. By 2025, total employment levels are forecast to reach over five million, for a total gain of 887,300 jobs, a 21 percent increase over employment levels in 2002. With this level of growth, the General Project Plan addresses the infrastructure investment necessary to support New York City’s increasing commerce, residents, jobs and tourism. The Moynihan Station will improve circulation and relieve overcrowding in the existing Penn Station, while allowing for greater accommodation of trains into and out of midtown Manhattan. Furthermore, restoration and transformation of the landmark Farley Post Office will enhance the aesthetics of the surrounding area and boost economic development by moving commuters west of Eighth Avenue. Other significant immediate and long-term economic benefits of the Moynihan Station to the New York City region and New York State include the creation of both interim jobs and income from the construction of the Project and approximately 3,300 permanent jobs once the Project is complete. In addition, upon completion of the Project, the City and State can expect to collect $50 million per year more in tax revenue than would be collected without the Project. These benefits could be enhanced considerably by the more recent proposal to expand the Project to incorporate relocating Madison Square Garden to the back of the Farley Post Office and redeveloping the existing Madison Square Garden site with a large mixed-use project and an improved and redesigned Penn Station. The Building Congress believes this larger development plan makes sense conceptually and presents a golden opportunity for New York to set its sights high. No grand project is without complications, however, and an ambitious, well-conceived plan to realize the full potential of Moynihan Station through the relocation of Madison Square Garden and a redesigned Penn Station should not be restricted by special interests or narrow vision. This larger development plan deserves serious consideration, and the Building Congress urges the Empire State Development Corporation and Moynihan Station Development Corporation to explore it further through a Supplemental Environment Impact Statement. |
