Madison Square Garden Exec Says Iconic Arena May Move Across Street

Madison Square Garden Exec Says Iconic Arena May Move Across Street

By:  Hellen Zaboulani

New York City’s efforts to move Madison Square Garden may finally be getting somewhere.

For years, MSG owner James Dolan has continuously declared that he will not move the famed sports and entertainment arena, located in Midtown Manhattan above Pennsylvania Station, between Seventh and Eighth avenues. As reported by Crain’s NY, on Wednesday, at a Community Board 5 meeting, MSG Executive Vice President Joel Fisher surprised the crowd telling them that the company may be willing to move the arena after all.  The city has been trying to move MSG out of the space, so that it can use the space as part of the Penn Station expansion.  In 2013, New York granted MSG a 10-year special license to stay put, with the understanding that the company would then relocate the arena.  The Garden has since filed an application for another operating permit, which the city is now considering.

The board meeting had lagged on for four hours of discussions, with board member and neighbors seeming inclined to object another renewal, saying the arena should be moved to make way for Penn Stations renovations.  Fisher, perhaps in a bid to reframe the talks, said that renewing the permit would not mean the arena wouldn’t move eventually. As per Crain’s, he then referred to a suggestion raised previously at the meeting—that the Garden could move across the street on Seventh Avenue— saying that “probably would satisfy us.” “That would satisfy being right on top of a transportation hub,” Fisher said, adding that such a proposal would need to account for construction costs.  He noted that such a plan was never presented to the company.

The comments to move MSG two blocks along the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 32nd and West 34th streets, had been proposed by Stephen Marmon, a member of the public at the meeting, who said the move would ”provide the exact same, heart-of-the-city location”.  The location is now the site of several older office buildings and Hotel Pennsylvania, which will soon be torn down. Vornado Realty Trust has been working on plans to redevelop the area, possibly with new high-rise office towers.

CB5 Chair Layla Law-Gisiko told Crain’s that Fisher’s comments were a shock.  “This was certainly, for us, the first time that we’ve heard MSG express that they would consider this option,” Law-Gisiko said. “It really calls for great optimism and hope that we can reach an agreement that would be satisfactory for all parties.”  She added, “If it were deemed, given the destruction that is being inflicted to our district by Vornado, that this particular superblock becomes a desirable site for MSG, I think it is a conversation that should be had.”

Dubbed “The World’s Most Famous Arena,” MSG first opened at this location in1968.  The 820,000 sq ft indoor arena has capacity for up to roughly 20,000 persons. Dolan owns a majority share of Madison Square Garden Sports Corp, with Silver Lake Partners owning the remaining roughly 10 percent.  The New York Knicks basketball team and the New York Rangers hockey team are subsidiaries also owned by the company.  Though the idea of moving MSG within Midtown’s Seventh Avenue is not novel, for years the talks have focused on moving to non-central locations, including Hudson Yards.   As per Crain’s, MSG’s renewed permit to hold large capacity events will expire in July.  The CB5 board is expected to vote next month regarding another permit renewal, followed by a vote by the City Council.