NEW YORK CITY-The Municipal Art Society hasn't made a secret of the fact that it wants Madison Square Garden moved, but the group has come up with a new set of compelling reasons to relocate the entertainment venue.
In a new report, MAS says the relocation of MSG—and development of a newly created site—would spur a boom of 20 to 30 million square feet of office, residential, hotel and retail development, assuming the area would be rezoned. The shift would also enable the creation of a new Penn Station, as the Garden's current location essentially makes any upgrade to the train station impossible.
“Such a project would immensely contribute to the long-term economic health and competitiveness of the city, benefiting both public and private interests well into the future,” a summary of the report states.
In fact, MAS asserts, development surrounding a next generation Madison Square Garden could fund construction of the venue. “A Penn District could add billions of dollars of revenue to the city of New York through real property tax and other payments. Bonds could be issued against such revenue streams to fund capital costs for needed improvements.”
“Based on a number of given assumptions, the summary says, “the net present value of the bonus payments alone from the proposed Penn District would be an estimated $1.3 billion, at a 6.5% discount rate.”
Ownership of Madison Square Garden must find a new spot for the venue anyway: the City Council, as well as Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, previously voted to give the arena only another 10 years in the location. That decision was a sharp contrast from the wishes of facility executives, who had requested a special permit to keep the space open in its current location in perpetuity.
MAS, in its report summary, encourages developers to act quickly. “A new Penn Station is the compelling infrastructure and development project of our era—now is the time to make it happen.”
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Rayna Katz
Rayna Katz is a seasoned business journalist whose extensive experience includes coverage of the lodging sector, travel and the culinary space. She was most recently content director for a business-to-business publisher, overseeing four publications. While at Meeting News, a travel trade publication, she received a Best Reporting award for a story on meeting cancellations in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
