We here at Gothamist deeply appreciate all the effort that New Yorkers put into their Halloween celebrations, whether through over-the-top displays at their homes, ridiculous pet costumes, or the incredible costumes they show off on the subway. Last year, we singled out an adorable boy in a homemade MTA bus who had the most heartwarming NYC-centric costume in the city. This year, we're going in a slightly different direction by giving kudos to a man who made himself an elaborate homemade Port Authority costume. It may not be heartwarming exactly, but it's still very spooky to see such a cursed sight roaming the city.
"My family and friends know me for my cardboard Halloween costumes that are frequently reconfigured boxes," Will Coley, 50, told Gothamist. He's previously constructed other cardboard costumes including tributes to LaGuardia Airport, the MTA and at least one pizza monster. Coley works at social justice nonprofit The Opportunity Agenda, which recently moved two blocks from Port Authority. So he decided to use that hulking behemoth as inspiration.
"We used to be in SoHo so it's been an adjustment getting used to all the determined hoards of people here," he told Gothamist. "When I was thinking of scary places in NYC, the bus terminal was forefront in my mind." It took several days for him to design and make the costume, which includes two levels, a terminal that lights up from within, several Greyhound buses (including a few on his arms), an onramp in the back, and a horde of skeleton commuters.
The back of the Port Authority costume
"The headpiece is nearly steady with the chin strap and the fedora underneath but I need to rig up something similar for the skeleton commuter collar," he said. "I've only worn the costume in the office and posted on social media so far. I had hoped to go to the Halloween parade but the rain might not be the best for the cardboard."
While he's hoping to take a photo in front of the PA later today, he isn't exactly a "fan" of it: "Not for the surcharges they put on the AirTrains at Newark and JFK, that's for sure. I'm also not happy about the unnecessary policing that the PA and MTA are doing that targets people of color and low-income New Yorkers."
But the really important question is: does the costume smell like the real Port Authority? "No it doesn't smell but a friend suggested adding some Eau du Pee.'"
