‘Port Authority Bus Terminal: Fixing NYC’s Most Hated Transit Hub’ Webinar

Just steps away from Times Square, one of New York City’s most revered tourist attractions, sits a hulking, alien-looking structure so loathed that it was rightfully dubbed New York’s “most hated building” according to Failed Architecture. This is the story of how the Port Authority Bus Terminal — the biggest and busiest bus stop on earth, which serves over a quarter-million New Yorkers, commuters, and long-distance travelers — came to be, and what can be done to fix it.

Join New York Adventure Club as we explore the past, present, and future of Port Authority Bus Terminal, which opened as a central bus terminal in 1950 to handle the growing interstate bus traffic causing chaos in New York City.

Led by urbanist and preservationist Adrian Untermyer, our unique look at one of New York’s largest transportation hubs will include:

• A deep dive into the political, corporate, and architectural conditions that led to the Port Authority’s creation
• An overview of how the bus terminal exists and functions today
• The story of how Adrian helped create the Performing Arts Stage (aka “Fishbowl”) in 2016, a beloved performing arts space within the terminal that’s used to enhance the commute of the 200k+ passengers that pass through each weekday
• The current push to replace the Port Authority, featuring a special look at “Green Station,” Adrian’s concept for replacing the obsolete facility with New York’s first “Transit Park”

Afterward, we’ll have a Q&A with Adrian — any and all questions about Port Authority are welcomed and encouraged!

Can’t make it live? Don’t worry, you’ll have access to the full replay for one week!

See you there, virtually! $10.

*Immediately upon registering, you will receive a separate, automated email containing the link to join this webinar

**For the best possible viewing experience, please ensure you’re using the latest version of your internet browser — Google Chrome is the most compatible. Exact technical requirements and a webinar user guide will be shared in the automated confirmation email upon registration.

***A full replay of the experience will be available to all registered guests for up to a week

About Adrian

Adrian Untermyer is an urbanist, preservationist, musician, and advocate. Untermyer began his career with the Urban Justice Center in New York City, and moved on to serve as Deputy Director of the Historic Districts Council from 2015 to 2017.

Untermyer’s writings on planning, preservation, transportation, and other urban issues have appeared in The New York Times, Gotham Gazette, and elsewhere, and his article proposing a new unified metropolitan railroad for Greater New York is set for publication in the Transportation Law Journal this year.

He graduated from the University of Colorado School of Law in May and will begin a judicial clerkship with Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Margaret Cangilos-Ruiz of the Northern District of New York in September of 2020.