Any New Yorker who has had the misfortune of walking underground into the Chambers Street J/Z station knows the drill: get in and out as fast as possible.
Despite being one of New York City’s most historic stations—and holding a spot on the National Register of Historic Places—the 113-year-old station has effectively become a living monument to decades of transit neglect.
From peeling paint and missing mosaics to walls caked in decades of grime and soot and structural water leaks, it’s earned a reputation as one of the most dilapidated stops in the entire system. But after years of delays, official help is finally on the way…