Legendary New York rock venue Madison Square Garden is facing demolition if a new development plan gets the go ahead.
The £7 billion plan was unveiled by the Empire State Development Corporation on Wednesday (24Oct07), and, if approved, Madison Square Garden will be knocked down and then rebuilt two blocks away.
The arena will need to be demolished so that plans to revamp Penn Station and convert the nearby General Post Office building into another train station can be achieved.
The present Garden hosts approximately 320 events a year but it is best known as the home of the New York Knicks of the NBA and New York Rangers of the NHL.
Many musical acts released seminal live albums recorded at MSG, including Led Zeppelin, Fania All Stars, Bruce Springsteen, Frank Sinatra, Billy Joel, Phish, Elton John, Elvis Presley, Madonna, Mary J Blige, U2, The Rolling Stones, Britney Spears, Shakira, Justin Timberlake, NSYNC, Cher, Christina Aguilera, The Who, Beyonce, Enrique Iglesias, Ricky Martin, and Barbra Streisand. Other artists, such as Pearl Jam, Mariah Carey, and O.A.R. and Marc Anthony have released DVDs showing their live performances at the Garden.
The Garden's current owner, Cablevision, also has plans to build a fifth Garden. If the project moves forward, a new Garden would be built at the western end of the James Farley Post Office/ Farley Annex, on 33rd Street and Ninth Avenue across the street, which is also eyed for a western expansion of Pennsylvania Station."
