PAU imagines the station as a new public commons, a civic space both sober and soaring, an idea born out of architectural restraint during a time that asks us to do more with less. Recycling the superstructure and foundations of the relocated Madison Square Garden allows for the creation of a grand commuter pavilion at minimal public cost and disruption. Architecturally the proposal builds upon the palimpsest that is Penn, with layers of history revealed from McKim’s original balustrades, to the reuse of the original station’s mezzanine levels, to the reimagining of the Garden’s roof as a hovering mural of New York. The structure of the Garden is reclad in a double-skin glass wall that transmits light but not heat. The station is passively heated and cooled, permitting an open entry threshold around the entire perimeter as well as enabling far better emergency egress. Blast-proof glass protects the new station, and in the event of fire, smoke is purged quickly through the oculus in the ceiling.

Reinforcing other proposals that PAU has developed for the area, Penn Palimpsest reimagines the neighborhood as a destination, centered around a grand public space without a grand public price tag: a chance to reaffirm belief in civic infrastructure and shared public realm.