New Rochelle puts new train station on express track

BY PETER KATZ Pkatz@westfairinc.com

In addition to being a busy commuter station for Metro-North, the New Rochelle train station serves as a stop for Amtrak trains on the Northeast Corridor en route to Boston and Washington. The station promises to become even more important as development continues in the city and when Metro-North starts service to Penn Station on Manhattan’s West Side via New Rochelle.

The city has initiated a comprehensive redesign of its transit center and has brought in architecture and planning firm FXCollaborative to work on designs for the project.

“New Rochelle’s Transit Center is at the very heart of our community: the focal point of the most ambitious downtown development in New Rochelle’s history, and our chief connection to the larger world, from the core of New York City to the entire Northeast Corridor,” Mayor Noam Bramson said in a May 9 announcement at City Hall. “The daily experience of thousands of residents and commuters, both train and bus, is shaped by the station’s condition.”

Bramson acknowledged that the condition of the train station, first constructed in 1887, leaves a lot to be desired. He described it as hidden below grade with entry points that are obscure or unattractive, poorly connected to nearby neighborhoods, challenging to navigate especially for pedestrians and, aside from trains either speeding through or stopping to pickup and discharge passengers, mainly inactive.

Bramson said that the City Council voted unanimously to begin a comprehensive redesign to create a new New Rochelle Transit Center.

“This would be exciting under any circumstances, but is especially important at this moment in our history,” Bramson said. “As New Rochelle experiences the fastest growth in all of New York, it is vital that we have a transportation center that befits a thriving city, meeting the needs and expectations of current and future generations.”

Bramson pointed out that for thousands of arriving visitors the train station forms the first impression of the city.

“In just a few short years, Metro-North will begin service to Penn Station, making New Rochelle the community closest to Manhattan with direct access to the east and west sides,” Bramson said. “That’s a game-changing opportunity for our city to welcome many more travelers from far and wide, but one that also requires planning and intentionality to meet the moment.”

John Schuyler, a partner in FXCollaborative, said, “As we think about what does success look like for this project, it’s not going to be just making a great transit center. Yes, you may want to go there for the bus; you may want to go there for the train. We think this is going to be where you want as a custodian of assets, First does to go just to be at this place, this place where everybody wants to go and to linger. You want to go there throughout the week ... you want to go there throughout the year.” and attend various activities

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Schuyler said they hope to create a center where people will want to go to shop at specialty retailers, meet a friend for coffee

“To be sure, design is only step one.” Bramson said. “Successful execution will require time and resources. But having proven that we can set big goals and achieve them, New Rochelle is more than up to the challenge.”