Renaming New York's Amtrak train station

Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum

Help Support Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

CHamilton

Engineer
AU Supporting Member
Gathering Team Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2011
Messages
5,301
Location
Seattle
When (and if) Amtrak's New York City station moves across the street, what will it actually be called?

[On] March 27, [2003,] Michael Bloomberg, then just two years into his 12 year mayoralty, announced that, one day, when the train station expanded, "We will honor [sen. Moynihan's] larger than life dreams and their ultimate realization by naming the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Station in his memory."
More than a decade later, though, there is no building (or even part of a building) named Moynihan Station. What's the hold up? How do you rename a building, anyways?
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO RENAME A BUILDING?
 
Considering that in actuality it will just be yet another concourse for the same of Penn Station underneath, I guess they can call it Moynihan or whatever. It will be primarily for Amtrak's use and hence will be the lesser used of the four concourses of the Penn Station, namely 1. LIRR, 2. NJT East Side, 3. NJT/Amtrak West Side and 4. Amtrak Moyniha/Farley, and this is before Penn Station gets its 5th concourse which will actually be associated with additional platforms, unlike the Moynihan/Farley concourse, and that would by Penn Station South/NJT.
 
Sports teams need to take lessons from this! Who in the world knows what and where "Commercia Park" "BankAmerica Park" etc. etc. ad nauseum is?

At least Wrigley Field, Soldier Field,Fenway Park, Lambeau Field, Dodger Stadium and Yankee Stadium are still with us!

Spare us if we ever have Chase Union Station, First Fidelty Grand Central Terminal, Budweiser Station,Wal Mart Depot etc etc.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Sports teams need to take lessons from this! Who in the world knows what and where "Commercia Park" "BankAmerica Park" etc. etc. ad nauseum is?

At least Wrigley Field, Soldier Field,Fenway Park, Lambeau Field, Dodger Stadium and Yankee Stadium are still with us!

Spare us if we ever have Chase Union Station, First Fidelty Grand Central Terminal, Budweiser Station,Wal Mart Depot etc etc.
Come on now Jim,

I would have thought that you in your infinite knowledge would have known that Wrigley Field was the first of the major league parks to take on a sponsor's name. Did you ever chew any gum?

Also in Chicago we have a major league stadium by the name of US Cellular Field and US Cellular does not even serve the Chicago Metro area.

We also have a train station named after a governor that has not been convicted (yet)!
 
Well Al, I knew about Wrigley's gum, but at least he owned the Cubbies and didn't call it Juicy Fruit Field!

I'm surprised by the US Cellular deal, it brings to mind Houston where the Lastros new Field was first named Enron Park after the Energy Criminals, then changed to Minute Maid Park although Lemons and Oranges have never been known to grow in the Bayou City!
 
At least one would hope that the stadium authorities are getting paid for naming rights. Not true in Seattle.

SEATTLE - Key Bank is getting free publicity on Seattle's biggest arena.

The Seattle Center confirms the city has not received a dime from Key Bank for the naming rights to KeyArena since 2010. That's when the bank's contract with the city ended and it stopped making payments.

But the signage has remained.
Of course, this is the town where were still paying bonds on the Kingdome for many years after it had been imploded.
 
If they ever actually build it (sigh) I think the Moynihan name will stick.

Penn is a pretty irrelevant name now that the Pennsylvania Railroad is gone *and* the station serves trains to Long Island, New England, and upstate NY, but it'll probably hang around for a while meaning "not Grand Central".

For a long time after the official name change, people called what is now Metra Electric "the IC line". But that changed over time. People finally call Millenium Station in Chicago by its official name (it took a long time) rather than by the old name.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
If they ever actually build it (sigh) I think the Moynihan name will stick.

Penn is a pretty irrelevant name now that the Pennsylvania Railroad is gone *and* the station serves trains to Long Island, New England, and upstate NY, but it'll probably hang around for a while meaning "not Grand Central".

For a long time after the official name change, people called what is now Metra Electric "the IC line". But that changed over time. People finally call Millenium Station in Chicago by its official name (it took a long time) rather than by the old name.
There's a tendency for the "new" name to win out after generational turnover, but for something major that's usually what it takes. Even then, if the new name is a kludge or horridly unpopular either the old one will stick around or a nickname (often insulting the new name) will stick.
 
People have been calling Penn Station, Penn Station longer than probably all of us here have been alive and they'll probably be calling it Penn Station long after we're all dead.
 
I still tell Chicago cabbies to take me to "North Western Station" and they always do, without asking what I mean. "Ogilvie Center" just doesn't have the same ring.
 
The matter here is more complicated since apparently it is only the Farley building which will be called Moynihan Station. The entire edifice between 7th and 8th Avenues, the whole underground warren apparently will not change name.
 
it brings to mind Houston where the Lastros new Field was first named Enron Park after the Energy Criminals, then changed to Minute Maid Park although Lemons and Oranges have never been known to grow in the Bayou City!
Well, it does make sense! Don't the Lastros leave a sour taste in your mouth? :p
Hey, the 'Stros are only 1/2 games back at the break, how many years has it been that we could say that?
 
The matter here is more complicated since apparently it is only the Farley building which will be called Moynihan Station. The entire edifice between 7th and 8th Avenues, the whole underground warren apparently will not change name.
Correct or at least that's what the powers that be have been saying since 1996.

it brings to mind Houston where the Lastros new Field was first named Enron Park after the Energy Criminals, then changed to Minute Maid Park although Lemons and Oranges have never been known to grow in the Bayou City!
Well, it does make sense! Don't the Lastros leave a sour taste in your mouth? :p
Hey, the 'Stros are only 1/2 games back at the break, how many years has it been that we could say that?
But their last couple of weeks before the break left a sour taste in their fans mouths. They haven't been able to buy a win lately.
 
They can try to call it whatever they want, but to New Yorker's, it will always be Penn Station.
Just like the Sears Tower. :)
Funny - first time I ever rode a train into Chicago (the 22) I asked the SCA if that building taller than the others was Sears Tower, He looked at me and said in an imperious tone, "Yes, that's the WILLIS tower!"
 
They can try to call it whatever they want, but to New Yorker's, it will always be Penn Station.
Just like the Sears Tower. :)
Funny - first time I ever rode a train into Chicago (the 22) I asked the SCA if that building taller than the others was Sears Tower, He looked at me and said in an imperious tone, "Yes, that's the WILLIS tower!"
He must not have been a born and raised Chicagoan! :giggle:
 
I still tell Chicago cabbies to take me to "North Western Station" and they always do, without asking what I mean. "Ogilvie Center" just doesn't have the same ring.
Well, North Western is still descriptive -- it's the rail lines to the North, West, and Northwest suburbs.

Ogilvie is also a name which doesn't pronounce easily in English; it sounds like a tongue-twister.

For similar reasons, Boston South and North stations can't be renamed; the existing names make too much sense so a change won't stick. And Philadelphia 30th Street station is going to stay 30th Street Station.

Penn Station, however, is a dumb name, which is why it's quite likely to go away. When it told you which railroad you were going to, it was useful; even when it told you that this was where the trains to Pennsylvania were, it was useful. Now it's not useful.

Frankly, I bet a lot of people already call it "the Amtrak station". "New Jersey Transit Station" doesn't roll off the tongue, nor does "Long Island Rail Road Station", which probably accounts for the persistence of "Penn".
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Name it anything just get it done. Penn station is the disgrace of the nation's train system. The solution of using the Farley bldg actually makes a lot of sense. You'd think that between private development wanting to lease space and govt handouts they'd get it done.
 
For a long time after the official name change, people called what is now Metra Electric "the IC line". But that changed over time. People finally call Millenium Station in Chicago by its official name (it took a long time) rather than by the old name.
You mean "Randolph Street?" ;-)

And it is still, and will always be, the I.C.
 
They can try to call it whatever they want, but to New Yorker's, it will always be Penn Station.
Just like the Sears Tower. :)
Funny - first time I ever rode a train into Chicago (the 22) I asked the SCA if that building taller than the others was Sears Tower, He looked at me and said in an imperious tone, "Yes, that's the WILLIS tower!"
An acquaintance calls it "Big Black Willy!"
 
Back
Top