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....Will we actually see a "new" Pennsylvania Station to apply a name to...?

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Posted by henry6 on Sunday, September 1, 2013 10:30 AM

Round up the suspects yourself...it is easy.  There is a ton of material written about it in newspapers, news magazines and railfan magazines....use Google, Bing, or the index of your favorite publication or publications.  Politicians and railroaders are all there.

History is written.  Hashing and rehashing is returning to the story time and time again but not being able to change the outcome.

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Posted by NKP guy on Sunday, September 1, 2013 10:11 AM

Sorry, henry6

I want names.  I want accountability.  I want to see what other "great" decisions these men made and how those decisions turned out.  I am more than willing to see it re-hashed yet again.  Certain railroad presidents and high managers frequently get cult-status among railfans (think Al Perelman among many others).  Do they really deserve it?  Why?

The decision to demolish old Penn Station was lousy.  These guys may indeed be dead, but every time I and others use, or even see, the present station WE pay for THEIR short-sightedness and greed.  

London and Paris have never seen it necessary to destroy their major stations.  Why was Penn Station different?  Also, the management officials at the NYC who greedily permitted the Pan Am tower atop GCT made their personal piles of money, but left NYC with a wrecked view up and down Park Avenue, something everyone who sees deplores, yet we're stuck with it for generations.

No, I'd like to see these dead guys re-examined.  After all, if we don't acknowledge our history, how can we lean from it?  Our World War II enemies are all dead, yet we still examine their records and draw our conclusions.

And what's the difference between railroad history and "re-hashing"?

Further, my understanding of the MSG decision is that Mayor Bloomberg, not  Manhattan borough city officials, has the last word, which he's not given yet.  MSG could still win.  

With all due respect, henry6.  

Now, round up the usual suspects.

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Posted by henry6 on Sunday, September 1, 2013 9:53 AM

NKP guy

Step One is to get Madison Square Garden to move.  Until that happens NOTHING will be done at all to make a new Penn Station.  

By the way, which Pennsy management geniuses came up with the idea of demolishing Penn Station?  How about we publish their names here, explore their later careers, and see how wise they turned out to be?

They're all dead.  And we do know who they were. And it has all been hashed and rehashed many times.

MSG has been given 10 years to move.

RIDEWITHMEHENRY is the name for our almost monthly day of riding trains and transit in either the NYCity or Philadelphia areas including all commuter lines, Amtrak, subways, light rail and trolleys, bus and ferries when warranted. No fees, just let us know you want to join the ride and pay your fares. Ask to be on our email list or find us on FB as RIDEWITHMEHENRY (all caps) to get descriptions of each outing.

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Posted by NKP guy on Sunday, September 1, 2013 9:20 AM

Step One is to get Madison Square Garden to move.  Until that happens NOTHING will be done at all to make a new Penn Station.  

By the way, which Pennsy management geniuses came up with the idea of demolishing Penn Station?  How about we publish their names here, explore their later careers, and see how wise they turned out to be?

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Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, September 1, 2013 8:39 AM

The original Pennsylvania Station New York was built with private money, i.e. raised in the capital markets by the Pennsylvania Railroad.  And it was maintained with private money.  That included paying for the heat and light for a lot of architecturally attractive but unproductive space.  This business model worked reasonably well until after WWII, when passenger traffic began the precipitous decline that ultimately helped bring the railroads to their knees and resulted in Amtrak.

Grand Central was saved because of a historic preservation movement.  The cost of saving it, which was the right thing to do, was borne largely by the taxpayers.  The folks who are proposing a replacement for Penn Station New York, as far as I know, have not come forth with a realistic plan to fund it. Private investors are not likely to put up the money.  And getting money out of the debt burdened federal, state, and local governments would be a challenge.

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....Will we actually see a "new" Pennsylvania Station to apply a name to...?
Posted by Modelcar on Sunday, September 1, 2013 8:02 AM

Seems to be some interest of how a new "Pennsylvania Station" would be treated regarding it's name.  But first, is there any evidence of movement to ever see a new revised structure..{from the old P O building}, or any other efforts of all new construction to make a "new" station a reality..?

It's my understanding Sen. Moynahan was one of the chief initiators of the idea, and I remember {some years ago}, of perhaps the finances had been lined up to actually do construction, but for I suppose many reasons, it never did get a "foundatuion" of start, hence....nothing has been done with exceptions of "drawings"...."Possible plans", and perhaps political chatter....

So....is there any realistic chance that some generation may actually see it really become a reality....? 

Any thoughts...?

Quentin

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