State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, a Democrat from Manhattan, is considering proposing a bill to prohibit any public buildings within the state from being named after individuals convicted of serious crimes. This move is seen as a response to recent intentions by the Governor to rename New York City’s Penn Station as “Trump Station.”
According to Politico, the proposal stems from Governor Hoch’s recent comments that if President Trump could push forward the long-delayed renovation project for Penn Station, she would not rule out renaming the transport hub as “Trump Station.”
“I believe that public officials convicted of serious crimes should not have buildings named after them in the state or city government,” stated Hoylman-Sigal in an interview with the New York Post on Monday. His district covers the area near Penn Station. He added, “We must hold government officials to the highest standards, and the names of public facilities should reflect those values.”
Trump became the first U.S. president to be convicted last year, with a New York City jury finding him guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in relation to hush money payments involving an adult film actress.
The suggestion to rename Penn Station as Trump Station originated from negotiations between Trump and Hoch over the billion-dollar reconstruction project. The talks eventually collapsed, with Trump stunningly announcing the transfer of project oversight from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to the federal government.
Subsequently, Hoch also announced the withdrawal of the state government’s promised $1.3 billion funding, stating that since the federal government had taken over, the responsibility for completing the project should also be borne by the federal government.
Hoch told reporters last Friday (April 25) that her current concern is whether the reconstruction project can be completed, rather than whether the station will be renamed “Trump Station.”