Altus Metal completes bronze restoration at Grand Central Terminal

As part of the MTA Metro-North Grand Central Terminal legacy project, Altus Metal, Marble and Wood has completed an historic restoration of the bronze scroll and inscription emblazoned above the door of the main entry vestibule of the station that leads passengers into Vanderbilt Hall, as well as the area's marble walls and terrazzo flooring. The bronze inscription commemorates the many who labored to construct the site: "To all those who with head, heart and hand toiled in the construction of this monument to the public service, this is inscribed." In July 2014, MTA Metro-North rededicated the area as the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Foyer in honor of her battle to obtain landmark status for the century-old station, a campaign that saved it from demolition. For the inscription, Altus' expert crew of metal craftspeople removed the bronze letters individually with meticulous care to avoid damaging both the wall and the pins attached to the letters embedded in the marble. The letters were catalogued, labeled, and placed in order on special sheeting to avoid any switching of letters. They were then stripped, re-oxidized to the accepted sample color, and coated with multiple coats of clear protective lacquer before being reattached to the original location. Altus' team of marble restoration specialists lightly sanded the marble walls in a process known as diamond grinding, then poulticed the area to remove stains, honed, and polished it. The terrazzo floors were mechanically cleaned. In its June 30 newsletter, MTA.info, MTA MetroNorth noted the remarks made by the many notables who spoke at the rededication ceremony. Among these were Thomas Prendergast, chairman and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, who said, "Grand Central Terminal, as we know it today as one of the world's premier transportation hubs and one of New York's top destinations in its own right, is the product of the men and women who built it. It is also the product of those who overcame great obstacles to preserve it for future generations. The rededication of the Terminal's main entry vestibule to [Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis] is a fitting tribute to the woman who led those efforts, saving Grand Central during one of its most difficult hours." Altus president Lina Gottesman said, "Altus is honored to have had the opportunity to help bring back to life the words that pay tribute to the construction industry's tireless labor force and to restore to its original beauty the lustrous marble that welcomes passengers to the Terminal. We are doubly proud to have played a part in a project that honors Mrs. Onassis for saving one of New York's truly iconic sites." Onassis' much publicized fight in the 1970s led to an historic Supreme Court decision which paved the way for the preservation of other landmark buildings. At the time of her death in 1994, the woman who was herself an icon of New York City and the nation, was remembered at a memorial in Grand Central Terminal.