With a subway system as lengthy and mysterious as that overseen by the Metropolitan Transit Authority, there are bound to be a few surprises here and there, but investigators were unprepared for what they found in the storage room at Grand Central Terminal below Track 114.

The MTA Inspector General summed it up in a recent statement:

Many a New Yorker has fantasized about kicking back with a cold beer in a prime piece of Manhattan real estate--especially one this close to good transportation … But few would have the chutzpah to commandeer a secret room beneath Grand Central Terminal and make it their very own man-cave, sustained with MTA resources, and maintained at our riders' expense.

Authorities say that three MTA employees, a wireman, a carpenter, and an electrician, had outfitted the room with a futon, a refrigerator, microwave, some exercise equipment, and a large-screen TV, complete with a content-streaming device connected. The room was found after a series of anonymous tips reporting its existence. The three employees have been suspended without pay, pending the results of the investigation. In the interim, MTA officials insist that all of the rooms at Grand Central are under review to ensure their proper utilization.

Possible Preaching Angle:

When people who are commissioned to serve the community end up siphoning off resources for themselves, their selfishness betrays the heart of their mission. God’s people are to act with the highest standards of integrity; otherwise, the mission is compromised.

Source:

Ben Hooper, “New York MTA workers had secret 'man cave' under subway tracks” UPI (9-24-20)