MTA head says Penn Station partnership with Trump administration would lead to concourse 'tear up'

The chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Wednesday defended the MTA’s decision not to partner with Amtrak and the federal government on the redevelopment of Penn Station, saying that doing so could open the door for developers to "tear up" the LIRR’s recently renovated concourse there.

Two days after Amtrak special adviser Andy Byford sent a letter to MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber reiterating an invitation for the MTA "to become a full partner" in the effort to reimagine Penn Station, Lieber, at an MTA Board meeting Wednesday, said the terms of that offer make it a "non-starter" for the transit authority.

Lieber noted that the Long Island Rail Road — a subsidiary of the MTA — operates most of the trains into and out of Penn, and holds a lease allowing it to operate for another 160 years at the station. But, Lieber said, the "memorandum of agreement" that Amtrak has asked the MTA to sign could negate that lease, and allow developers to tear up the LIRR’s concourse, which has undergone major improvements in recent years, funded by the MTA.

"When you’re a tenant, you don’t want someone to come in to your house, your apartment ... and come in and tear it up as his own," said Lieber.

Lieber also pointed out that the agreement could signal the MTA’s support for efforts to have New York State and New York City help fund the project, which the Trump administration has estimated will cost $8 billion.

The MTA and New York State were leading the planned redevelopment of Penn Station until the Trump administration took over the project last year and handed it to Amtrak, which owns Penn.

Amtrak has said the MTA would not give up any of its tenant rights if it partnered on the project, as NJ Transit has agreed to do. In his letter to Lieber, Byford said the memorandum is "a completely stand-alone agreement and does not water down your lease."

Lieber said the MTA would be happy to weigh in on the plans, but sees no need to formalize its role in the project.

"I’m declining to be the first person in New York real estate history to say I want to enter into a real estate deal with Donald Trump with no lease and no protections," Lieber said.

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.