NPR story on Pennsylvania Station
P.J. Hinton
Pennsylvania Station today (5/03/94). It included a description of the
old station's grandeur and a contrasting depiction of the squalor of the
current Penn Station. They interviewed Lorraine B. Diehl, author of the
book <<The Late, Great Pennsylvania Station>>, for some remarks. She
talked about the fate of those stone eagles that were the subject of a
thread on rec.railroad a couple of months ago. They also reported on
Amtrak's efforts to convert the post office adjacent to the original site
of Pennsylvania Station into a reincarnation (or first order approximation
thereof) of the old station. They said the building was built at about
the same time as the old station and it was designed by the same architects.
Right now, efforts are underway to secure the $315 million to carry out the
conversion. The story was one of NPR's better efforts, and I'm tempted
to order the transcript (despite the $10 price tag).
P.J. Hinton
Graduate Student -- University of Notre Dame Chemical Engineering Department
INTERNET: P.J.H...@nd.edu
Frank Wortner
In article <2q5kka$t...@news.nd.edu>, P.J.H...@nd.edu (P.J. Hinton) writes:
|> National Public Radio's program "Morning Edition" ... interviewed
For those of you in the New York City area, Lorraine Diehl conducts tours
of Penn Station on the 4th Monday of each month --- please correct me if
I'm wrong on the day --- starting at 12:30. The tour is free and meets
in front of the 34th Street Partnership booth on the south side of the
main concourse of Penn Station. It lasts about one and a half hours.
Unfortunately, much of the tour is in the imagination, since so little of
the original building survives. Highlights include the service building,
the statue of Samuel Rea, the remaining portions of the carriageways, visible
sections of the original marble floor, and other artifacts that time and
numerous reconstructions have not managed to erase.
--
Frank
dave pierson
> National Public Radio's program "Morning Edition" featured a story on
>Pennsylvania Station today (5/03/94). It included a description of the
>old station's grandeur and a contrasting depiction of the squalor of the
>current Penn Station.
hmmmm? "squalor".... Can't think that that is the right word.
In what context was it considered "squalid"?
I could name some squalid RR stations.
thanks
dave pierson |the facts, as accurately as i can manage,
Digital Equipment Corporation |the opinions, my own.
200 Forest St |I am the NRA.
Marlboro, Mass 01752 USA pie...@msd26.enet.dec.com
"He has read everything, and, to his credit, written nothing." A J Raffles
Tim Kirby
: hmmmm? "squalor".... Can't think that that is the right word.
: In what context was it considered "squalid"?
I don't recall them using the word 'squalid' word but (such as I heard of
the article in question) the description was certainly unattractive, being of
low, ill-lit almost-tunnels beneath a building. The description certainly gave
it a claustrophobic feel.
Tim
--
Tim Kirby --------- Cray Research Inc., Eagan, MN, USA ---------- t...@cray.com
Disclaimer: Cray didn't say this... I did...
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If all else fails, Immortality may always be assured by spectacular error(JKG)
Wesley Kaplow
Tim Kirby <t...@cray.com> wrote:
>dave pierson (pie...@msd26.enet.dec.com) wrote:
>: hmmmm? "squalor".... Can't think that that is the right word.
>: In what context was it considered "squalid"?
>
>I don't recall them using the word 'squalid' word but (such as I heard of
>the article in question) the description was certainly unattractive, being of
>low, ill-lit almost-tunnels beneath a building. The description certainly gave
>it a claustrophobic feel.
>
>Tim
If this question came up only about 1 to 2 years ago, "squalid", dark,
and claustrophobic might have been good adjectives. However,
the MTA, and Amtrak have made some significant improvements that have
(more on the LIRR level) that have completely changed the feel of the
station.
I travel through Penn. Station every week on Amtrak from
Albany/Rensselaer (temporary, I still have my apartment in the Village).
I have been doing this for 2 years, and the changes to the LIRR
level are striking. Clearly alot of money has been alloated, which
is evidenced both in the materials that are being used, and the workmanship
workers. The whole place seems to somehow have gotten alot larger,
which is due to lighting, wall, and ceiling treatments. In short
is it no longer an embarrassment to the MTA, even though the work
has not yet been completed. Also, a challenge to lovers of
the old Penn. Station: There is a subtle memorial to the old station
which consists of two elements. The hint is that it is
new artwork that that adorns the main LIRR level. The questions are:
What does it represent from the original station, and what does it
subtly commemorate?
Answers to follow after I get some responses.
The current reconstruction of the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) portion of
Penn. station is anything but "squalid". The floors have been
replaced with beautiful stone tiles, the walls have been replaced with
marble, the ceiling have been given a "nice" modern treatment (not unlike
some newer airport terminals), the new "Central Corridor" is complete
and has about 7 new elevators to track level. Work on the new 34th
street entrance is progressing, and new escallators steps and wall treatments
have been almost completed on the 7th avenue entrance (the one
that goes down to the LIRR level). New ticket booths are being installed,
and new track information flip signs are already in place.
Now, on the Amtrak/NJT level, things are not squalid, but the work that
Amtrak did about 3 years ago was not of the same quality as the work
going on down stairs. The new ticket counters are nice, and the
ceiling was given a new treatment, and the waiting area was redisigned.
The corridor directly under the Amtrak area has not as yet been
refurbished. It's hard to tell if this area will be renovated.
It may be in that grey area between Amtrak's and the MTA's authority,
although I beleive I say some work start on the north end of the
corridor (I will check next week).
Wesley K. Kaplow
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Troy, New York
AT&T Bell Laboratories
Whippany, New Jersey
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Wesley K. Kaplow
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
AT&T Bell Laboratories