[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 82 (Thursday, April 29, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22674-22675]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9843]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration


Moynihan Station Development Project

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), U.S. Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of availability of and public comment period for the 
Moynihan Station Development Project Environmental Assessment.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Railroad Administration announces the availability 
of the Moynihan Station

[[Page 22675]]

Development Project (Project) Environmental Assessment (EA) for public 
review and comment. The EA was prepared pursuant to the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq., the Council on Environmental Quality NEPA implementing 
regulations, 40 CFR parts 1500-1508, and the FRA NEPA procedures, 64 FR 
28545 (May 26, 1999). FRA is the lead Federal agency and the New York 
State Urban Development Corporation d/b/a the Empire State Development 
Corporation (ESDC) is the lead State agency.
    ESDC, its subsidiary Moynihan Station Development Corporation 
(MSDC), and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) have 
proposed to redevelop the James A. Farley Building and its Western 
Annex into a new intermodal transportation facility, to be called the 
Daniel Patrick Moynihan Station (Moynihan Station). Moynihan Station 
would be one component of the Project that would also include the 
commercial redevelopment of the Western Annex and the construction of a 
1.1 million square foot mixed-use building fronting on the east side of 
Eight Avenue between West 33rd and West 34th Streets utilizing 
development rights associated with the Farley Complex.

DATES: FRA invites interested Members of Congress, state and local 
governments, other Federal agencies, Native American tribal 
governments, organizations, and members of the public to provide 
comments on the EA, which is available at http://www.empire.state.ny.us/Subsidiaries_Projects/MSDC/MSDC.html or by 
request from MSDC at the address listed below under For Further 
Information. The 30-day public comment period begins on April 28, 2010 
and ends on May 28, 2010. FRA and ESDC will consider all comments 
received or postmarked by that date in preparing the Final EA. Comments 
received or postmarked after that date will be considered to the extent 
practicable.
    On April 28, 2010, ESDC and MSDC, in accordance with the New York 
State Urban Development Corporation Act (UDC Act), will be holding a 
public hearing to consider the proposed draft March 2010 Phase 1 
Amended General Project Plan. The hearing will be held at the James A. 
Farley Post Office Building, located at 380 West 33rd Street, Room 
4500, New York, New York, 10199 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Although FRA and 
ESDC will not be presenting the EA at this hearing and oral comments on 
the EA will not be accepted, it is an opportunity for interested 
parties to learn more about the Project.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted in writing. Written comments may 
be submitted to ESDC and MSDC at 633 Third Avenue, New York, New York 
10017, attention: Rebecca Pellegrini. Written comments will also be 
accepted at the April 28th public hearing.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding the 
EA or the Project, please contact: Ms. Rebecca Pellegrini, Moynihan 
Station Development Corporation, 633 Third Avenue, New York, New York; 
or by e-mail at [email protected] with ``Moynihan Station 
Development Project'' in the subject heading, or Mr. John Winkle, 
Transportation Industry Analyst, Office of Passenger Programs, Federal 
Railroad Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE., Room W38-311, 
Washington, DC 20590 (telephone 202 493-6067), or by e-mail at 
[email protected] with ``Moynihan Station Development Project'' in 
the subject heading.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    I. Description of Project. The approximately 1.3 million square 
foot Farley Complex occupies a ``superblock'' from West 31st to West 
33rd Streets and from Eighth Avenue to Ninth Avenue. Built over the 
Pennsylvania Station (Penn Station) rail facilities, including the 
westernmost portion of most of the passenger platforms and other rail 
yard facilities, the Farley Complex is integrated into the larger Penn 
Station Complex.
    Penn Station is the busiest transportation facility in the United 
States, accommodating over 530,000 daily passengers, including 
intercity passengers riding Amtrak, local commuter rail passengers, and 
subway riders. It is, however, plagued with design problems. As a 
result, it is difficult to navigate and has passenger facilities that 
do not meet current industry standards related to safe egress times and 
universal accessibility. The station, already operating above its 
design capacity, is projected to experience a growing passenger load as 
development continues in the surrounding neighborhoods.
    To address the larger issue of inadequate capacity at Penn Station, 
ESDC, MSDC and FRA have proposed a program of improvements at the 
Farley Building that will relocate Amtrak's intercity passenger rail 
operations to a new Moynihan Station to be constructed within the 
eastern portion of the Farley Building. This work will significantly 
improve access to, and egress from, the platforms and the connections 
between Penn Station, the Farley Building, and the existing New York 
City subway lines.
    The project as currently envisioned will take place in two phases. 
Phase 1 work, which is primarily below street level, will consist of 
expanding and extending the existing West End Concourse so that it 
spans all existing tracks (with new access to Eighth Avenue), expanding 
the existing 33rd Street Connector, adding several platform ventilation 
elements, and adding several entrances to the new Moynihan Station. 
Phase 2 will consist of development of the Station itself, including 
the Train Hall, concourse and street-level portions of the Station, 
reactivation of currently-unused Platform 12 for passenger use, and the 
non-Station commercial development of the Farley Complex.
    II. Previous Environmental Reviews. The development of plans for 
improved New York City passenger facilities has been underway since as 
early as 1991 when Amtrak began planning for a new intermodal 
transportation facility. The potential availability of the Farley 
Complex led to additional efforts to devise plans that incorporated 
passenger rail facilities in the Farley Complex. A series of 
environmental reviews have accompanied the various proposals for 
improvements to the Penn Station facilities and site, including most 
recently the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that was issued 
by ESDC under SEQRA in August 2006. That EIS evaluated the impacts of a 
larger project that included relocating Madison Square Garden to the 
Farley Building and renovating Penn Station itself. Those elements have 
subsequently been dropped and this EA addresses the Project as 
currently defined.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on April 23, 2010.
Mark E. Yachmetz,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Development.
[FR Doc. 2010-9843 Filed 4-28-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P