5.21.23 - Manhattan boro prez Mark Levine proposes leaving The Garden alone, razing theater to build new Penn Station entrance instead
' Madison Square Garden should stay put and have its theater demolished instead to make way for a “grand” new Penn Station entrance on Eighth Ave., Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine proposed as part of the arena’s ongoing permit process this week — a plan closely mirroring a scheme by Italian firm ASTM that has been gaining traction in recent months.
Levine is set to formally make his recommendation Monday, the latest step in the lengthy land-use process MSG is undertaking in the hopes of getting a special operating permit in perpetuity. Its current 10-year permit expires in July.
Levine is proposing a five-year extension during which time plans for transforming Penn Station — located directly beneath MSG — could be solidified. His recommendation, though strictly advisory, is a significant development in the Garden’s permit saga.
Instead of granting a permanent license, as MSG wants, or moving the Garden entirely — which the local Manhattan Community Board 5 voted unanimously to recommend last month — Levine is suggesting leaving the arena in place but demolishing its 5,600-seat theater. That would allow for two new “grand train halls” along Eighth Ave. and mid-block entrances.
“We should stop waiting and build a great Penn Station now,” he told the Daily News. “We can do that by building next to, around and under the arena. And I want to use the special permit process to help make sure that happens.” '