OPPOSITION MOUNTS FROM ALL DIRECTIONS TO GOVERNOR, ESD, AND VORNADO’S DEEPLY FLAWED PENN STATION PLAN
The disastrous Penn Station Proposal and its proponents are finding there is “nowhere to run to, nowhere to hide…..”
The evidence is as follows:
Exhibit A:
Tweet by Michael Kimmelman on June 15. Kimmelman is the architecture critic of the New York Times.
Exhibit B:
Tweet by Eric Bottcher on June 15. Bottcher is the Councilmember for the Penn Station neighborhood.
Exhibit C:
Public Advocate and gubernatorial candidate Juumane Williams on WNYC’s Brian Lehrer show said, “This administration is trying to push through a deal that’s really a sweetheart deal to actually build more office towers. And not just office towers, but luxury office towers.”
Exhibit D:
Senators Liz Krueger, Leroy Comrie, and Brad Hoylman schedule a State Senate oversight hearing on Penn Station Redevelopment for Friday, June 24.
Exhibit E:
Empire Station Rally and Press Conference, Wednesday, June 15.
Neighborhood icon and music instructor, “Stevie” Marshall of Music Street, with blind musician, Anthony Stewart, addressing Wednesday’s rally on 30th Street.
- Photo by Richard James
Speakers on the steps of John the Baptist Church. The Coalition presented residents and small business owners who would be evicted if the Hochul Plan is approved and 30th Street and other parts of the neighborhood reduced to dust. On the far right of the above picture is Empire Station Coalition Co-Coordinator and Human ScaleNYC Head, Lynn Ellsworth, who had been interviewed by WBAI the week before in an especially poignant interview.
Co-Coordinator Sam Turvey and head of ReThinkNYC, also spoke at the rally. Sam was quoted extensively in Our Town, June 18, "Battle Lines Over Penn Station."
"Think Big, Act Fast: Vornado’s Shameful Land Grab Must be Blocked", by Pamela Wolff, appeared in the Chelsea Community News, June 18. Fox News Coverage of the June 15th press conference and rally also featured Lynn Ellsworth and Eugene Sinigalliano, a longtime 30th Street resident. Exhibit F: Banners Displayed at Press Conference/Rally The railings outside the St. John the Baptist Church were festooned on June 15th with banners; among them:
- Cartoon by the Real Deal, quote from Steve Roth.
Exhibit G:
Stickers worn by Demonstrators on the 15th (already a collector’s item):
Closing Remarks:
The tide is beginning to turn.
We must continue to protest, write, call, and testify at every opportunity.
The opposition has money and the ability to corrupt. We have the people and the principles.
We have far better ideas for how to equitably use Penn Station’s renovation to benefit all who live and work in the region.
Our proposals are not the purview of a favored few who have bought their way to a seat at the table to promote their private interests.
ReThinkNYC is a New York City-based non-profit organization specialized in transportation infrastructure and how it relates to complex urban, governance and socio-economic issues.
