NEW YORK CITY-Two separate City Council committees backed City Council Speaker and mayoral candidate Christine Quinn's position and voted on Wednesday to grant a 10-year special permit for Madison Square Garden.
The votes were a victory for transit advocates and environmentalists and a resounding defeat to the Dolan family, which controls Madison Square Garden, who wanted to have the special permit run in perpetuity.
The council's Zoning and Franchises Subcommittee approved the measure by a vote of 7-0, and the full Land-Use Committee voted 18-1 in favor of the decade term on the special permit.
Last month, the ciity's Planning Commission called for a 15-year term on the permit. However, the City Council Speaker and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer called for the term to be reduced to 10 years.
Those who have argued against a longer-term permit for Madison Square Garden are hopeful talks can resume to relocate the arena so that Penn Station, located underneath the entertainment and athletic arena, could be rebuilt and expanded. See story in Crain's New York Business.
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John Jordan
John Jordan is a veteran journalist with 36 years of print and digital media experience.
