New York City's new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, chose a decommissioned subway station beneath City Hall as the site of his private swearing-in ceremony.
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Zohran Mamdani chose a decommissioned subway station beneath City Hall as the location for his private swearing-in ceremony as New York City's new mayor—a symbolic choice for a candidate on his way to election victory promises such as free public transport.
The Democratic Socialist decided to take the oath of office after midnight on New Year's Eve at the old City Hall subway station in Lower Manhattan to capture the spirit of the city's history of serving working people while signaling the civic priorities of his new administration.
The underground structure, which closed 80 years ago, is renowned for its architectural grandeur with chandeliers, glass skylights and tiled vaulted tunnels.
Mamdani told Streetsblog NYC: who first broke the newsthat when the station first opened in 1904, “it was a physical monument to a city that dared to be both beautiful and to build great things that would change the lives of working people.”
“These ambitions should not be a memory limited only to our past, and they should not be limited only to the tunnels under City Hall: it will be the goal of an administration fortunate enough to serve New Yorkers from the building above,” Mamdani said in a statement to Streetsblog.
Among those invited to the small underground ceremony were the Mamdani family and political ally, New York Attorney General Letitia James, who was to take the oath of office. A public inauguration is planned for this afternoon outside City Hall, followed by a party.
James said on social networks that she had the honor of taking the oath of office in Mamdani at the historic subway station: “Our subway connects us all, and it represents exactly what our next mayor stands for: a city where every New Yorker can thrive,” she wrote.
Old City Hall Station, an abandoned subway terminal in Manhattan, features vaulted ceilings, brass chandeliers and skylights.
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A relic of civic innovation
Trains first departed from City Hall Station on October 27, 1904, the first stop on the city's first subway line. It took passengers as far as the Bronx, the area where Mamdani attended high school.
As cars became longer to make room for the city's growing passenger traffic, they became incompatible with the curved platform design. in accordance with New York Times. City turn off the station in 1945 when service was discontinued permanently on New Year's Eve.
What is now considered a relic of transit innovation was once proclaimed like the “underground cathedral” and the “Mona Lisa of metro stations.”
Station designed by George Hines and Christopher LaFarge with input from Vaulted ceilings of Guastavinohas large brass light fixtures, glass skylights overlooking the park above, and green and cream tiles.
The public can still see the historic tunnels from a train car on Manhattan's 6th Line, where there is a turnaround point that runs through the terminal, or on a tour with the New York Transit Museum.
