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Building America’s Future and Building Moynihan Station
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Political leaders across the nation - including the Mayor of New York - are pressing for more federal investment in infrastructure following the bridge collapse in Minneapolis, Katrina, and rising airport and roadway congestion.
In January we posted on the launch of Building America’s Future, Mayor Bloomberg’s coalition focused on increasing investments in the nation’s infrastructure. Their new website says the nation’s infrastructure needs are increasing as federal support diminishes. In fact, state and local governments now account for three out of every four dollars spent by the public sector on infrastructure over the past twenty years.
How much federal support is expected for Moynihan Station? According to updated figures from RPA, the cost of Moynihan Station is officially estimated to be about $3.2 billion:
$2.3 billion for Moynihan East (currently Penn Station), and $900 million for Moynihan West (the historic Farley building). Funding for the Farley building was secured by Senator Moynihan years ago. As for Moynihan East, out of the $2.3 billion price tag, the developers have committed $550 million. The State has committed $300 million, which he is willing to increase if the City will match his contribution. It is reasonable to expect that the federal government will be able to contribute somewhere between $500 and $800 million. Whatever funding gap is left will have to be filled with larger contributions from the developers, the City and the State. This gap is not insurmountable. Here, an exercise in joint statesmanship is required: the City ought to direct some of the Hudson Yards PILOT funding to Moynihan Station and the State should consider contributing a significant share of the proceeds from the sale of the land originally intended for a Javits expansion, to the project. They should also be pushing the Venture for a larger contribution.
Moynihan Station could qualify for up to $250 million in federal funds through historic tax credits if – and it’s a big if - the Garden cooperates on the Farley renovation. The state and developers must not allow the Garden to ruin this funding opportunity.
Moynihan Station is clearly the catalyst for the West Side, so it makes sense to devote proceeds from Javits land and Hudson Yards funding to Moynihan. What about federal support? Is $500 to $800 million a fair share?
In the meantime, we urge Mayor Bloomberg and the Building America’s Future coalition to continue to raise awareness about the environmental, economic development, and quality of life advantages of major transportation infrastructure projects - and especially for Moynihan Station, the most critical infrastructure project in his city.
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