WNBC's Gabe Pressman, in a 6 July 2007 column, [Will Moynihan's Dream Come True?] joins with Senator Moynihan's widow, Liz, and daughter, Maura, in supporting the Vornado and Related Companies [unnamed in column] plan for development. He also dismisses unspecified criticisms from 'civic groups' in a manner that would probably not please the civic-minded senator.

Pressman acknowledges the contributions of Senator Moynihan:

The late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan had a dream to convert the old Farley Post Office on Eighth Avenue into a new Penn Station. Moynihan, a scholar, an intellectual and a man who never shirked a fight for a good cause, deplored the fact that the old Penn Station had been destroyed to make way for Madison Square Garden. Whenever he recalled how the wrecker's ball had destroyed the beautiful facade of the old Penn Station, it made him angry.

He continues:

Moynihan also deplored the seeming inability of New York to undertake grand projects. But now, after many stops and starts, the future of the station that will be named after the late senator seems assured. His widow, Liz Moynihan, told me: ''If it doesn't happen now, it never will. This is the best chance we'll ever have to rebuild the West Side."

He cites the support of Governor Spitzer and Mayor Bloomberg for this plan:

New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg are strongly behind this plan -- and, in celestial terms, they are two key stars that need to be aligned. But there are a few other problems that may hold things up. The developers have some reservations, but it appears that ultimately they'll go along with the grand plan. Also, some of the civic groups that deal with major changes in New York's landscape have been nitpicking on some minor details.

Finally, he offers his support and dismisses any criticism of the plan:

But it's time to brush aside all the naysayers and nitpickers. It's been 44 years since this architectural homicide took place.

It's good that Pressman finds this an exciting project and that he respects the contributions of Senator Moynihan and his family. Let's just be sure that his rejection of criticism does not impair the quality of this development. Open the review process to the sunlight of public review and ensure that the new Penn Station does not suffer from the assaults that buried the current Penn Station under Madison Square Garden.

The New York Times editorial [Senator Moynihan's Legacy] asks New York Governor Eliot Spitzer to respect the legacy of Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and the history of the Farley Post Office. It starts with the recent good news:

For years now, plans and sometimes mere illusions about ways to replace New York City's dismal and disheartening Penn Station have been debated, mostly behind closed doors. Now comes the good news that developers Stephen Ross and Steven Roth will finally make public their proposal to revive the drab area around Penn Station and create a grand new terminal, named for the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.

They then raise the critical question for all concerned about this development:

When the plan is revealed New Yorkers should focus on one concern: whether the historic public spaces are being shortchanged once again in favor of private developments.

They also point out the less than promising news that has been leaked so far:

With each bit of news that seeps out about these plans, it looks more and more as though the Garden will be allowed to take over most of the magnificent Farley building, including its dramatic stairway entrance and the elegant lobby that stretches along most of a city block. One main wall of the central terminal might also be used for Garden advertising.

Let's join the Times in opposing what could be a terrible fate for the New Penn Station:

One can only imagine Senator Moynihan's eloquent disappointment if he thought that the Farley building he worked so hard to protect would not be a soaring entrance for the trains and the city but a route through a public treasure to a privately owned coliseum.