The City Council Committee on Land Use voted Monday to back a new operating permit for Madison Square Garden. But it is only for five years, a blow to James Dolan, the owner of MSG.

"This will give us the opportunity to come up with a lasting solution for Penn Station," Councilman Erik Bottcher, a Manhattan Democrat, said.

What You Need To Know

  • The City Council Committee on Land Use voted Monday to back a five-year permit for Madison Square Garden
  • The key vote on the committee, Councilman Erik Bottcher, said he backed the short-term permit because of the growth of passengers using Penn Station
  • The permit vote moves onto the full City Council and a review by the mayor before it is granted

Bottcher was the key vote — his district includes the arena and Penn Station. He cited the growth of passengers using Penn Station beneath the arena and the increasingly complex work it takes for MSG to put on concerts and sporting events.

"Five years will set a clock, get us to the table and create the pressure for us all to come up with a solution," Bottcher said.

The vote comes as Gov. Kathy Hochul is trying to salvage her plan to renovate Penn Station after a developer backed out of building new skyscrapers that were supposed to finance the construction.

Five years is half as long as the 10 years City Hall sought, while MSG officials sought a permit to let the arena stay put permanently.

In a statement, an MSG Entertainment official said City Council contributed to the erosion of the city with its vote, saying that "a short-term special permit is not in anyone's best interest and undermines the ability to immediately revamp Penn Station and the surrounding area."

Layla Law-Gisiko, a member of Manhattan Community Board 5 who has been pushing officials to move the Garden, said a permit under 10 years offers leverage to officials seeking to renovate Penn Station.

"Leverage for getting them to agree to some modification, to some commitment of funding, to some commitment of land so that Penn Station can be fixed," Law-Gisiko said.

But it is unclear if opponents of MSG will ever see the arena leave its perch atop the rail terminal.

"I still believe that the ideal scenario would be for Madison Square Garden to relocate. Is that going to happen right now? I don't know. But we shouldn't wait — we have to start now on redeveloping Penn Station," Bottcher said.

The permit vote moves onto the full City Council and a review by the mayor before it is granted.