NEWARK, NJ | Penn Station Renovation

[chris08876]

First Phase of Newark Penn Station’s $160 Million Overhaul Begins

A major investment in one of the busiest transit hubs in the United States has started in earnest during the dog days of summer and upgrades to the facility are slated to continue over the next half-decade.


Late last year, Governor Phil Murphy announced a massive plan to revitalize the aging Newark Penn Station. The 86-year-old facility is set to undergo a state-funded $160 million improvement project that aims to “restore Newark Penn Station to its full glory as the centerpiece of the region’s transportation network.”

The first phase of renovations kicked off earlier this month at a price tag of $30 million. It is focusing on aesthetics and includes work such as restoration of the waiting room benches, installation of brighter lighting, improved HVAC and air handling, and fresh paint and re-tiling in various areas throughout the station.

Updates to the property’s bathrooms are also planned, as is a deep clean of the property’s Art Deco limestone exterior.

NJ Transit recently tweeted some images of the ongoing work at the station currently taking place. Later portions of phase one will include improved drainage in bus lane areas plus upgraded wayfinding signs.

Later phases of the renovation are aimed at improving the station’s openness and overall commuter and visitor experience. A major goal is to make Newark Penn Station more of a destination by adding additional dining and shopping in the concourse area.

Opened in 1935 and listed on both the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places, Newark Penn Station is the seventh busiest rail station in North America. The property was visited by about 50,000 commuters daily before the COVID-19 pandemic and provides service via NJ TRANSIT commuter trains, the Newark Light Rail, the PATH, and Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor line.

The overhaul of Newark Penn Station is the latest transit-centered revamp taking place in the Brick City. The Port Authority is currently rebuilding Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport into what will be the region’s most modern facility. The entirety of that project is slated to be up and running by the end of 2022.

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Jersey Digs

[chris08876]

Credit: NJ Transit via Jersey Digs

[chris08876]

$110M Bridge Connecting Downtown Newark and Ironbound Moving Forward

Officials in Newark are once again looking to move forward with a proposed pedestrian bridge that has been envisioned for the state’s largest city for well over a decade.


The Mulberry Commons pedestrian bridge project, which is slated to allow Newarkers, commuters, and visitors to walk between the Ironbound neighborhood, Newark Penn Station, and the existing Mulberry Commons park, is referenced in an ordinance that was introduced by the Newark Municipal Council on September 15.

The proposed legislation estimates the cost of the proposal at $110 million. It calls for authorizing municipal subsidies to “fund deficiencies in a debt reserve fund” related to mass transit access tax revenue bonds in order to finance the proposal and “pay the principal of and interest on” up to $15 million worth of project notes

The first phase of Mulberry Commons opened in 2019 near Ironside Newark and the Prudential Center, but the existing former railroad bridge over McCarter Highway and the lower part of Newark Penn Station remain fenced off and inaccessible to the public.

The pedestrian bridge project would make up the second phase of Mulberry Commons if completed and involve the removal of the bridge that is currently unutilized. NJ Advance Media reported last year that part of the funding is expected to come from a commuter parking tax and that the new bridge would include an indoor area with retail space along with access to the platforms at Newark Penn Station.

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Jersey Digs

[SEFTA]

great to see this

[James Bond Agent 007]

I used to go through this station every day when I was commuting to school at Rutgers-Newark in 1982-83. It could have used a renovation back then, and I'm sure even moreso by now.

[chris08876]

Some additional info: https://www.nj.gov/governor/news/new...0210827a.shtml

NEWARK – The Murphy Administration and NJ TRANSIT continue to advance the $190-million renovation and revitalization of Newark Penn Station with today’s release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Master Planning, Conceptual, Preliminary, and Final Design, and Construction Assistance Services. In December, Governor Phil Murphy joined NJ TRANSIT President & CEO Kevin Corbett community leaders and municipal, county and state officials to announce this major investment that will breathe new life into the 86-year-old station and it’s surrounding area in the downtown of the State’s largest city.

“Newark Penn Station is a focal point of the Northeast Corridor and is a gateway to our state for many travelers,” said Governor Murphy. “This major renovation and restoration project is an important step in the continuing revitalization of Newark. With this significant investment, our state’s largest city will greet commuters and travelers in a manner worthy of it’s great history and stature.”

“The release of this RFP helps us ensure that the enduring legacy of Newark Penn Station be protected while simultaneously improving and renovating the station to fit current customer needs,” said New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner and NJ TRANSIT Board Chair Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti. “Thanks to Governor Murphy’s dedication to improving public transportation in New Jersey we are closer to restoring and modernizing this timeless transportation marvel than ever before.”

“Through the release of this RFP, we will transform Newark Penn Station – building on the significant work already underway as part of master plan that focuses on both state-of-good-repair work and major infrastructure improvements to enhance every aspect of the customer experience,” said NJ TRANSIT President & CEO Kevin S. Corbett. “NJ TRANSIT thanks both Governor Murphy and Commissioner Gutierrez-Scaccetti for recognizing the urgent need to restore Newark Penn – one of the busiest, most historic, and most vital multi-modal transportation hubs in our region – to its former glory.”

Since its dedication in 1935, Newark Penn Station has been an iconic symbol of both the promise of public transportation and the energy and innovativeness of the city of Newark. This project reimagines this icon, providing customers with a 21st century experience while maintaining the station’s historic grandeur.

Newark Penn Station is listed in the State and National Registers of Historic Places. This project aims to restore the facility and elevate it to its rightful place as the jewel of the region’s transportation network. The redesign and revitalization will also highlight the station’s historic features and its role as an economic and cultural asset to the City of Newark showcasing its close link to the city’s identity.

This project will require the installation of updated amenities, pedestrian spaces, and infrastructure improvements to satisfy customer’s needs. Improvements will also feature improvements for a station modernized in the post-COVID world and will orient the station to meet future transportation needs and climate change challenges. The project exemplifies NJ TRANSIT’s commitment to providing the highest quality customer experience at all times.

NJ TRANSIT seeks proposals from design and construction professionals to restore and modernize Newark Penn Station. The proposals will be judged based on their ability to ensure the station features amenities and functions will meet the modern-day expectations of both customers passing through the station, as well as those of the residents and businesses. This first phase includes a master planning process which will solicit public feedback on the long term future and re-imagining of Newark Penn Station. Proposals shall address contemporary issues such as public health protection, future transportation needs, and climate change challenges associated with the station and its location.

Once a contract is granted NJ TRANSIT intends to enter with a phased approach and will divide the services requirements into various phases. The consultant will perform master planning, conceptual design, design construction documents, and construction plans that address immediate state of good repair needs and long-term capital improvements to Newark Penn Station and present opportunities to better integrate the station within the context of the communities in the surrounding region.

The first phase of renovations will focus on aesthetics such as restoration of the classic benches in the waiting room, installation of brighter lighting, updating of the bathrooms, improved HVAC and air-handling, fresh paint and tile, and a deep clean of the limestone exterior to once again showcase the architecturally significant facade. Longer-term enhancements will focus on improving the station’s openness and overall commuter and visitor experience, including the restoration of the grand waiting hall.

[chris08876]

Parsons Lands NJT Penn Station Newark Revitalization Contract

New Jersey Transit has awarded a Phase One, $9.2 million contract to a consortium of Parsons Transportation Group, Grimshaw Architects and Steer Group to lead the Master Planning and Design portion of the $190 million Newark Penn Station Revitalization project.

The contract, NJT noted, is “an all-inclusive professional services contract to perform Master Planning, Design Services and Construction Support Services as part of a long-term project for the major restoration and renovation of historic Newark Penn Station.” The agency also approved funding for Phase One of the contract, which includes preparation of a Master Plan and completion of a 10% concept design. NJT President and CEO Kevin Corbett said the contract award “will build on the extensive work already under way to restore this vital transit center to its rightful place as one of the crown jewels of New Jersey.”

As part of the master contract, construction plans will be created that address state-of-good-repair needs as well as long-term capital improvements. These plans “will outline present and future opportunities to better integrate the station within the framework of the growing needs of its surrounding communities,” NJT said, adding that the first phase of renovations “will focus on aesthetics, and longer-term enhancements will focus on improving the station’s openness and overall customer and visitor experience. This major investment will … help spur economic prosperity by providing the opportunity for additional dining and shopping in the concourse area.”

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https://www.railwayage.com/passenger...tion-contract/

[Busy Bee]

^ A great sign. Grimshaw is probably one of the finest transport architects on the planet.

[chris08876]

[NYguy]

Newark Penn, though compact, makes very efficient use of its space, with its multiple forms of transit. It really is a gateway to Newark.

[C.]

I wish this could be part of the conversation. It would make the commute to Newark so much easier.

Extend the Newark AirTrain to Newark Station.

Newark Station is being modernized
The Newark AirTrain is being rebuilt as the old one is obsolete
The Port Authority is looking to extend PATH to the Newark Airport Amtrak station

Stars would be aligned to kill three birds with one stone.

[chris08876]

Newark’s Preservationists Fooled Again – This Time With Proposed Pedestrian Bridge





The corridors connecting Penn Station platforms to the pedestrian bridge

The proposed $110 million pedestrian bridge is good for Newark — no one is arguing otherwise. Tourists and commuters in Mulberry Commons will have direct access to platforms B, D, C, and E in Penn Station, servicing both PATH trains and Amtrak. It will also be easier – and safer – to reach the restaurants and nightlife in the Ironbound without a Hail Mary sprint across a seven-lane speedway.

But for the second time, a major construction project is happening within a national landmark without following the proper protocol of having it approved by the city’s Landmarks Commission.

It is true that the city presented its plan for the pedestrian bridge at the commission’s last meeting. But only as a courtesy. Co-chair Richard Partyka asked the city’s presenter, lawyer Evans Anyanwu, if any of their suggestions would actually be implemented.

“No,” Anyanwu replied.

What the public has seen of the bridge, has been exciting. The colorful archway has the potential to become another beacon like Sacred Heart Cathedral and the National Newark Building. But the plan is by no means perfect. Despite being located in the city’s Arts and Education District, it is oddly devoid of the talents of local artists, one commissioner remarked.

“This should be a public competition for artists to design this,” co-chair Susanna Holguín-Veras said.

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Jersey Digs