Michael Kimmelman endorses HOK and PAU’s renovation proposal for Penn Station, highlighting its superiority over the MTA’s plan in each design and price.
NYT’s Prime Structure Critic Applauds HOK’s Proposal for Penn Station Revamp
Michael Kimmelman, the esteemed structure critic from the New York Occasions, has thrown his weight behind a proposal by developer ASTM North America, alongside HOK and PAU, for the much-needed overhaul of New York’s iconic Penn Station. Kimmelman’s ringing endorsement brings a brand new degree of consideration and credibility to the proposal, painting it as a superior different to the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s (MTA) renovation plan for the nation’s busiest rail hub.
Michael Kimmelman endorses HOK and PAU’s renovation proposal for Penn Station, highlighting its superiority over the MTA’s plan in each design and price.
Kimmelman’s Endorsement and the Imaginative and prescient for Penn Station
In his current July 7 column, Kimmelman singles out the ASTM proposal, co-conceived by HOK and PAU, for particular reward. He believes it deserves the intense consideration of the MTA and New York’s Governor Kathy Hochul. This endorsement may very well be the disruption wanted to shake issues up in Albany and breathe new life right into a drained, overcrowded Penn Station serving over 600,000 day by day commuters.
The MTA is pursuing its personal renovation plan for the station, with an estimated value of $7.5 billion. But, it’s this excessive value, together with much less inspiring design options, which have attracted criticism. In distinction, ASTM’s counter-proposal, seen as an unofficial competitor, envisages a extra interesting Penn Station renovation for a decrease value of $6 billion by a public-private partnership.
Kimmelman’s Viewpoint on the Design Aesthetic and Practicality of the ASTM Plan
Whereas acknowledging value concerns, Kimmelman additionally highlights different standout options of the ASTM proposal. In his column, he appreciates the eye to surrounding streets and sidewalks, the answer for “deeply unsexy back-of-house issues” like storage and loading dock points, and the design of commuter areas.
Even at this early stage, ASTM’s architectural type, impressed by Grand Central Terminal and Schinkel’s Altes Museum in Berlin, though considerably inflexible and earnest, drives residence an essential level, in accordance with Kimmelman. He argues {that a} metropolis gateway of New York‘s stature wants to supply greater than useful facilities; it must also be a public image of satisfaction.
