(np) Penn Station redivivus?

[Michael Bailey]

I'm guessing this did not happen?

http://mas.org/index.php?s=penn+station
dude, maybe it did (or will, or is in progress)

http://www.rngarchitects.com/penn.html
In 1963, the demolition of Pennsylvania Station sent shock waves
through the hearts of Americans that still reverberate through our
culture. Today, President Clinton has the opportunity to repair that
egregious mistake and facilitate the creation of a world-class
transportation hub in the underutilized landmark General Post Office
Building in New York City. The Municipal Art Society of New York, a
leading civic voice in historic preservation and urban planning, has a
plan to do just that.

The Municipal Art Society proposes a full conversion of the James A
Farley Building into a new facility that will include a dramatically
expanded Amtrak and commuter rail station, a terminal for the future
rail links to John F Kennedy and Newark Airports and additional civic
and commercial uses that befit this remarkable building. Inspired by
the pioneering vision of Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the
Municipal Art Society devised this plan under the direction of its
chairman, Philip K Howard, and an ad hoc committee of trustees.

Built in 1914 and expanded in 1936 by the esteemed architectural
partnership of McKim, Mead & White, the James A Farley Building was
designed as a companion to the firm's ill-fated Pennsylvania Station
across Eighth Avenue. The Farley Building has a monumental eight-acre
footprint directly over the Northeast Rail Corridor in the heart of
the Midtown South Business District. It is the only publicly-owned
site into which Pennsyl- vania Station can expand its growing
ridership and the only prospective site contiguous with the existing
station facilities. With the expansion of New Jersey Transit (18% in
the last two years) and increases in Long Island Railroad and long
distance rail traffic, Amtrak is compelled to find a new facility to
accommodate this growth.

Long ago, when mail distribution was primarily by rail, the James A
Farley Building was the largest mail sorting facility in the United
States. It is now used for storage, mailbox repair and bulk sorting
operations that can be better accommodated elsewhere. The Upper
Manhattan Empowerment Zone, at the physical heart of the Postal
District, is ready, willing and able to accommodate these activities.
Relocating these industrial operations will remove 1,000 trucks per
day from Ninth Avenue and allow neighboring developments to access the
station directly from the western facade.




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