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Grand Central Terminal
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=== Other spaces on the main floor === ====Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Foyer==== The main entrance into the terminal, underneath the Park Avenue Viaduct, opens into the [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis]] Foyer.<ref name="Press 2014">{{cite web | last=Associated Press | title=Grand Central entrance named for ex-first lady | work=The Journal News | date=June 30, 2014 | url=https://www.lohud.com/story/news/2014/06/30/grand-central-entrance-named-jacqueline-kennedy-onassis/11750701/ | access-date=July 25, 2022 | archive-date=July 25, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220725224000/https://www.lohud.com/story/news/2014/06/30/grand-central-entrance-named-jacqueline-kennedy-onassis/11750701/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Johnson 2014">{{cite web | last=Johnson | first=Victoria | title=Jackie Kennedy Onassis Foyer opens in Grand Central Terminal | website=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 | date=July 1, 2014 | url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/jackie-kennedy-onassis-foyer-opens-grand-central-terminal-article-1.1850628 | access-date=July 25, 2022 | archive-date=July 25, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220725224042/https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/jackie-kennedy-onassis-foyer-opens-grand-central-terminal-article-1.1850628 | url-status=live }}</ref> The room is a short passage with a sloped floor and arched shop windows along its side walls. It is adorned with glass and bronze chandeliers, a classical cornice, and a decorative [[Tympanum (architecture)|tympanum]] above the doors leading to Vanderbilt Hall. The tympanum has sculpted bronze garlands and a [[caduceus]] below an inscripted panel that reads: "To all those with head, heart, and hand{{β’}}Toiled in the construction of this monument to the public service{{β’}}This is inscribed." Above the panel is a clock framed by a pair of carved cornucopias.<ref name="Interior10"/> In 2014, the foyer was named for Onassis, former [[First Lady of the United States]], who in the 1970s helped ward off the demolition of the Main Concourse and the construction of [[Grand Central Tower]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Grand Central Entrance Named For Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis|work=CBS New York|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/grand-central-entrance-to-be-named-for-jacqueline-kennedy-onassis/|date=June 30, 2014|access-date=February 15, 2023|archive-date=February 15, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215154149/https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/grand-central-entrance-to-be-named-for-jacqueline-kennedy-onassis/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=40 Years Rescued, 20 Years Renewed |url=https://www.grandcentralterminal.com/celebrates/ |access-date=2023-02-15 |website=Grand Central Terminal |language=en-US |archive-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215155209/https://www.grandcentralterminal.com/celebrates/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cassidy |first=Tina |date=2013-02-05 |title=The Surprising Role Jackie Kennedy Onassis Played in Saving Grand Central |language=en |work=Bloomberg.com |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-02-05/the-surprising-role-jackie-kennedy-onassis-played-in-saving-grand-central |access-date=2023-02-15 |archive-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215155139/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-02-05/the-surprising-role-jackie-kennedy-onassis-played-in-saving-grand-central |url-status=live }}</ref> ==== Vanderbilt Hall ==== {{multiple image|align=left|direction=vertical |image1=Main waiting room, Grand Central Terminal.jpg|alt1=Old image of the ornate Vanderbilt Hall|caption1=Vanderbilt Hall, {{circa|}} 1913 |image2=Tournament of Champions Squash 2012.jpg|alt2=Glassed-in squash court in the Beaux-Arts-style hall|caption2=The [[Tournament of Champions (squash)|Tournament of Champions]] [[Squash (sport)|squash]] championship in 2012}} Vanderbilt Hall is an event space on the south side of the terminal, between the main entrance and the Main Concourse to its north.<ref name="directory" /> The rectangular room measures {{convert|65|x|205|ft}}. The north and south walls are divided into five bays, each with large rectangular windows, screened with heavy bronze grills.<ref name="Interior10">{{harvnb|ps=.|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1980|page=10}}</ref> The room is lit by Beaux-Arts chandeliers, each with 132 bulbs on four tiers.<ref name="RN p. 96" /> Vanderbilt Hall was formerly the main waiting room for the terminal, used particularly by intercity travelers. The space featured double-sided oak benches and could seat 700 people.<ref>{{cite web|title=Attention Railroad Buffs and Architecture Aficionados: Artifacts Sought for Grand Central Terminal Centennial Exhibition|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|url=http://www.mta.info/press-release/metro-north/attention-railroad-buffs-and-architecture-aficionados-artifacts-sought|date=August 2, 2010|access-date=March 25, 2019|archive-date=March 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325190912/http://www.mta.info/press-release/metro-north/attention-railroad-buffs-and-architecture-aficionados-artifacts-sought|url-status=dead}}</ref> As long-distance passenger service waned, the space became favored by the homeless, who began regularly living there in the 1980s. In 1989, the room was boarded up in preparation for its restoration in 1991. During the process, a temporary waiting room was established on an upper level of the terminal.<ref>{{cite news |last=Durkin |first=Barbara J. |date=August 17, 1990 |title=Restoration of Grand Central Waiting Room to Begin Next Year |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-reporter-dispatch-restoration-of-gra/161349872/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241222064906/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-reporter-dispatch-restoration-of-gra/161349872/ |archive-date=December 22, 2024 |access-date=December 22, 2024 |newspaper=The Reporter Dispatch |page=20 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>{{refn|Several of the hall's benches were moved to a smaller waiting room in the Station Master's Office. In 2018, two of the benches were sent on a long-term loan to [[Springfield, Massachusetts]]'s [[Springfield Union Station (Massachusetts)|Union Station]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Goonan|first=Peter|title='A work of art': Springfield unveils restored Grand Central benches at Union Station|newspaper=Mass Live|url=https://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2018/07/springfield_union_station_unveils_restored_grand_central_terminal_benches.html|date=July 16, 2018|access-date=December 14, 2018|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215121355/https://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2018/07/springfield_union_station_unveils_restored_grand_central_terminal_benches.html|url-status=live}}</ref>|group=N}} Around 1998, the renovated hall was renamed in honor of the [[Vanderbilt family]], which built and owned the station.<ref name="nyt19980802" /> It is used for the annual Christmas Market,<ref>{{cite web | title=Grand Central Holiday Fair | website=The official website of the City of New York | date=December 20, 2017 | url=http://www1.nyc.gov/events/grand-central-holiday-fair/160627/37 | access-date=January 1, 2019 | archive-date=February 2, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190202095417/https://www1.nyc.gov/events/grand-central-holiday-fair/160627/37 | url-status=live }}</ref> as well as for special exhibitions and private events.<ref>{{cite web | title=Vanderbilt Hall at Grand Central Terminal | website=NYC & Company | date=January 26, 2018 | url=https://business.nycgo.com/listing/vanderbilt-hall-at-grand-central-terminal/46656/ | access-date=January 1, 2019 | archive-date=February 2, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190202041658/https://business.nycgo.com/listing/vanderbilt-hall-at-grand-central-terminal/46656/ | url-status=dead }}</ref> From 2016 to 2020, the west half of the hall held the Great Northern Food Hall, an upscale Nordic-themed food court with five pavilions. The food hall was the first long-term tenant of the space; the terminal's landmark status prevents permanent installations.<ref name="nyt20160407"/><ref name="closed">{{cite news|last=Passy|first=Charles|title=Grand Central Oyster Bar Closes After Briefly Opening at Limited Capacity|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/grand-central-oyster-bar-closes-after-briefly-opening-at-limited-capacity-11602538446|date=October 12, 2020|access-date=October 4, 2021|archive-date=October 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211004154229/https://www.wsj.com/articles/grand-central-oyster-bar-closes-after-briefly-opening-at-limited-capacity-11602538446|url-status=live}}</ref> Since 1999, Vanderbilt Hall has hosted the annual [[Tournament of Champions (squash)|Tournament of Champions]] [[Squash (sport)|squash]] championship.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tocsquash.com/toc-history/|title=ToC History|website=Tournament of Champions|access-date=December 24, 2018|archive-date=December 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225030706/http://tocsquash.com/toc-history/|url-status=live}}</ref> Each January, tournament officials construct a free-standing glass-enclosed {{convert|21|by|32|ft|adj=on}} squash court. Like a [[theatre in the round]], spectators sit on three sides of the court.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/lynndouglass/2013/01/23/grand-central-stations-glass-box-amazes-again/|title=Grand Central Station's Glass Box Amazes Again|last=Douglass|first=Lynn|date=January 23, 2013|work=Forbes|access-date=December 24, 2018|archive-date=December 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225080841/https://www.forbes.com/sites/lynndouglass/2013/01/23/grand-central-stations-glass-box-amazes-again/#5837a5777467|url-status=live}}</ref> A men's smoking room and women's waiting room were formerly located on the west and east sides of Vanderbilt Hall, respectively.<ref name="nyt20160407" /> In 2016, the men's room was renovated into [[Agern]], an 85-seat Nordic-themed fine dining and [[Michelin star|Michelin-starred]] restaurant operated by [[Noma (restaurant)|Noma]] co-founder [[Claus Meyer]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.viamichelin.com/web/Restaurant/New_York-10017-Agern-504291-41102|title=Agern β New York : a Michelin Guide restaurant|website=ViaMichelin|access-date=December 15, 2018|archive-date=August 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808153528/https://www.viamichelin.com/web/Restaurant/New_York-10017-Agern-504291-41102|url-status=dead}}</ref> who also ran the food hall.<ref name="nyt20160407" /> Both venues permanently closed in 2020 during the [[COVID-19 pandemic in New York City|COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref name="closed"/> City Winery signed a lease for both the food hall and the Agern space in 2022.<ref name="Orlow 2022">{{cite web | last=Orlow | first=Emma | title=City Winery Is Taking Over the Former Great Northern Food Hall in Grand Central | website=Eater NY | date=April 27, 2022 | url=https://ny.eater.com/2022/4/27/23043515/city-winery-opening-grand-central-terminal | access-date=April 28, 2022 | archive-date=April 28, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428003144/https://ny.eater.com/2022/4/27/23043515/city-winery-opening-grand-central-terminal | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Yakas 2022">{{cite web | last=Yakas | first=Ben | title=City Winery opening new venue inside Grand Central Terminal | website=Gothamist | date=April 26, 2022 | url=https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/city-winery-opening-new-venue-grand-central | access-date=April 28, 2022 | archive-date=April 28, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428003144/https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/city-winery-opening-new-venue-grand-central | url-status=live }}</ref> The firm opened a wine bar, a quick-service restaurant named City Jams, and a [[farm-to-table]] restaurant named Cornelius in these spaces that November.<ref name="Food & Wine 2022">{{cite web | title=Grand Central Station Is Getting a Cool New Wine Bar | website=Food & Wine | date=November 9, 2022 | url=https://www.foodandwine.com/city-winery-opens-grand-central-6827240 | access-date=November 16, 2022 | archive-date=November 16, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221116140321/https://www.foodandwine.com/city-winery-opens-grand-central-6827240 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Sutherland-Namako 2022">{{cite web | last=Sutherland-Namako | first=Amber | title=Get $5 off wine with City Winery's reusable bottle program | website=Time Out New York | date=September 28, 2022 | url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/city-winerys-latest-location-is-launching-a-reusable-bottle-program-092822 | access-date=November 16, 2022 | archive-date=November 16, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221116140313/https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/city-winerys-latest-location-is-launching-a-reusable-bottle-program-092822 | url-status=live }}</ref> ==== Biltmore Room ==== [[File:Biltmore Room at Grand Central Terminal.jpg|thumb|alt=The square marble-clad Biltmore Room|The Biltmore Room at its reopening in 2023]] The Biltmore Room, originally known simply as the incoming train room, is a {{convert|64|by|80|ft|m|adj=on}} marble hall<ref name="Biltmore2" /> that serves as an entrance to tracks 39 through 42, and connects to Grand Central Madison.<ref name="directory" /> The hall is northwest of the Main Concourse and directly beneath [[New York Biltmore Hotel|22 Vanderbilt]], the former Biltmore Hotel building.<ref name="Biltmore2" /> The room was completed in 1915 as a waiting room for intercity trains, which led to its colloquial name of the "Kissing Room", in reference to the greetings that would take place there.<ref name="Mann 2012" /> As the station's passenger traffic declined in mid-century, the room fell into neglect. In 1982 and 1983, the room was damaged during the construction that converted the Biltmore Hotel into the Bank of America Plaza. In 1985, [[Giorgio Cavaglieri]] was hired to restore the room, which at the time had cracked marble and makeshift lighting. During that era, a series of lockers was still located within the Biltmore Room.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/04/21/nyregion/waiting-room-at-grand-central-regains-sense-of-grandeur.html|title=Waiting Room at Grand Central Regains Sense of Grandeur|last=Tomasson|first=Robert E.|date=April 21, 1985|newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331|access-date=December 14, 2018|archive-date=November 9, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221109230122/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/04/21/nyregion/waiting-room-at-grand-central-regains-sense-of-grandeur.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Later, the room held a newsstand, flower stand, and shoe shine booths.<ref name="Mann 2012" /><ref name="Biltmore1" /> In 2015, the MTA awarded a contract to refurbish the Biltmore Room into an arrival area for Long Island Rail Road passengers as part of the [[East Side Access]] project.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mta.info/news-east-side-access-lirr-long-island-rail-road-grand-central-terminal/2015/02/05/mta-awards|title=news β MTA Awards Contract to Build Long Island Rail Road's Future Terminal Under Grand Central Terminal|date=February 5, 2015|website=MTA|access-date=December 15, 2018|archive-date=December 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181216031708/http://www.mta.info/news-east-side-access-lirr-long-island-rail-road-grand-central-terminal/2015/02/05/mta-awards|url-status=dead}}</ref> As part of the project, the room's booths and stands were replaced by a pair of escalators and an elevator to Grand Central Madison's deep-level concourse,<ref name="Mann 2012" /><ref name="Biltmore1" /> which opened in May 2023.<ref name="City Life Org 2023 e384">{{cite web | title=MTA Announces Opening of Grand Central Madison Escalators and Elevator at 43rd Street into Historic Biltmore Room | website=City Life Org | date=May 8, 2023 | url=https://thecitylife.org/2023/05/08/mta-announces-opening-of-grand-central-madison-escalators-and-elevator-at-43rd-street-into-historic-biltmore-room/ | access-date=July 17, 2023 | archive-date=July 17, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230717204908/https://thecitylife.org/2023/05/08/mta-announces-opening-of-grand-central-madison-escalators-and-elevator-at-43rd-street-into-historic-biltmore-room/ | url-status=live }}</ref> The room's blackboard displayed the arrival and departure times of New York Central trains until 1967,<ref name="nyt19670113" /> when a mechanical board was installed in the Main Concourse.<ref name="Biltmore2" /> ==== Station Master's Office ==== {{multiple images|total_width=450px|float=right |image1=GCT SMO 3.jpg|alt1=Glass door entrance into the office|caption1=Doorway and front desk |image2=GCT SMO.jpg|alt2=Wood benches in the small square waiting room|caption2=Ticketed waiting area }} The Station Master's Office, located near Track 36, has Grand Central's only dedicated waiting room. The space has benches, restrooms, and a floral mixed-media mural on three of its walls. The room's benches were previously located in the former waiting room, now known as Vanderbilt Hall. Since 2008, the area has offered free Wi-Fi.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.mta.info/press-release/metro-north/grand-central-terminals-station-masters-offices-goes-wireless|title=Grand Central Terminal's Station Master's Offices Goes Wireless|date=May 27, 2008|access-date=December 15, 2018|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222514/http://www.mta.info/press-release/metro-north/grand-central-terminals-station-masters-offices-goes-wireless|url-status=dead}}</ref> ==== Former theatre ==== [[File:GCT Central Cellars 3.jpg|thumb|alt=Crowded room of a wine and liquor store|Central Cellars interior; the theater projection window is at the top left]] One of the retail areas of the Graybar Passage, currently occupied by wine-and-liquor store Central Cellars, was formerly the Grand Central Theatre or Terminal Newsreel Theatre.<ref name="Diehl" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://untappedcities.com/2015/04/24/the-lost-movie-theater-of-grand-central-terminal/|title=The Lost Movie Theater of Grand Central Terminal|last=Young|first=Michelle|date=April 24, 2015|website=Untapped Cities|access-date=December 20, 2018|archive-date=December 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181220230857/https://untappedcities.com/2015/04/24/the-lost-movie-theater-of-grand-central-terminal/|url-status=live}}</ref> Opened in 1937 with 25-cent admission, the theater showed short films, cartoons, and [[newsreel]]s<ref name="learn" /> from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.<ref name="RN pp. 177-178" /><ref name="McManus 1937" /> Designed by [[Tony Sarg]], it had 242 stadium-style seats and a standing-room section with armchairs. A small bar sat near the entrance.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gothamist.com/2015/04/22/gct_theater.php|title=Did You Know There Used To Be A Movie Theater In Grand Central Terminal?|last=Carlson|first=Jen|date=April 22, 2015|website=Gothamist|access-date=December 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150428195629/http://gothamist.com/2015/04/22/gct_theater.php|archive-date=April 28, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> The theater's interior had simple pine walls spaced out to eliminate echos, along with an [[inglenook]], a fireplace, and an illuminated clock for the convenience of travelers. The walls of the lobby, dubbed the "appointment lounge", were covered with world maps; the ceiling had an astronomical mural painted by Sarg.<ref name="Diehl" /> ''The New York Times'' reported a cost of $125,000 for the theater's construction, which was attributed to construction of an elevator between the theater and the suburban concourse as well as air conditioning and apparatuses for people hard of hearing.<ref name="McManus 1937" /> The theater stopped showing newsreels by 1968<ref>{{harvnb|ps=.|Robins|New York Transit Museum|2013|pp=179β180}}</ref> but continued operating until around 1979, when it was gutted for retail space.<ref name="RN pp. 177-178" /> A renovation in the early 2000s removed a false ceiling, revealing the theater's projection window and its astronomical mural, which proved similar in colors and style to the Main Concourse ceiling.<ref name="learn" />
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