Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn

The Atlantic Yards Fight Goes On Despite Court Ruling Today

I just got an email from Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn that New York's high court ruled today against property owners and tenants challenged the state's use of eminent domain to seize their homes and businesses for the enrichment of developer Bruce Ratner and his Atlantic Yards project.

Indeed, it was a 6-1 decision in the Court of Appeals, where they ruled that the state agency's determination to take the plaintiffs property had a rational basis under state law.

TODAY AT 12:30 PM, the plantiffs, Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, members of the community, attorneys and elected officials will hold a press conference about the ruling and the fight against Atlantic Yards.

The press conference will be held in front of Freddy's Bar in Brooklyn at 485 Dean Street at the corner of 6th Avenue in Prospect Heights.

Daniel Goldstein, lead plantiff and spokesman for DDDB is not deterred.

"The fight against the Atlantic Yards project is far from over. The community has four outstanding lawsuits against the project and, meanwhile, the arena bond financing clock ticks louder and louder for Ratner. While this is a terrible day for taxpaying homeowners in New York, this is not the end of our fight to keep the government from stealing our homes and businesses,” he is quoted as saying in the DDDB press release.

"Governor Paterson and Mayor Bloomberg now need to decide if they want their legacy to be the next New London—a dust bowl in the heart of Brooklyn caused by the abuse of eminent domain, because that will be the outcome if they allow the property seizures and final clearance for Ratner's unfeasible project."

Needless to say, Borough President Marty Markowitz, who vigorously supports the Ratner's Atlantic Yards Project, was pleased by the news:

“The ruling by the State Court of Appeals reinforces previous decisions supporting the numerous public benefits of the Atlantic Yards project—during these difficult economic times and into Brooklyn’s bright future—including the creation of affordable housing, solid union jobs and permanent employment opportunities for Brooklynites who need work. Today’s decision from our state’s highest court marks what amounts to the final step in the legal process to make it happen. Finally, we will bring a national professional sports team and a world-class facility back to our borough after 52 years! Brooklyn ’s shovels are, and have been, ready. So, let’s pick them up and get to work!”

Jezra Kaye: Atlantic Yards is a David Vs. Goliath Fight

I loved this note today from my friend Jezra Kaye. In addition to being a longtime opponent of the Atlantic Yards Project she's a wonderful public speaking coach and speech writer.

Dear Friends,

Last week, while I was delivering a new speech in Belgium, my neighbors marched for the 5th straight year to save our community.

We have until December 31st to stop New York State from seizing private property and spending hundreds of millions of our dollars on an arena almost no one wants.  And, in the latest twist, the prime recipient of that largesse would be (you can't make this stuff up) Mikhail D. Prokhorov--reportedly the richest man in Russian--who's trying to buy the team that would play 6 blocks from where I live.

This has always been a David vs. Golaith fight, and we would never have made it this far without your support.  If you are able to DONATE for this fifth and final time, any amount is important and appreciated.

Thank you for helping us win!

Jezra

Gilly Youner: Walk Don't Destroy Walkathon on Saturday

Coverage of MTA hearing/Vote on Atlantic Yards, With Video

The board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority met yesterday and voted 10-2 to allow Forest City Ratner to stretch paments for the Atlantic Yards over 22 years. Norman Oder at Atlantic Yards Report has coverage of the hearing and a video. Here's an excerpt:

A warning by veteran Assemblyman Jim Brennan that they were squandering their assets, a recommendation of caution by the Straphangers Campaign, and even a request by the Atlantic Yards-supporting Regional Plan Association that the deal be renegotiated, the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday voted 10-2 to allow Forest City Ratner to stretch payments for the Vanderbilt Yard over 22 years, at a generous interest rate, and to build a smaller railyard worth $100 million less than originally promised. A diminished temporary yard could persist  more than twice as long as originally planned.

Ratner Gets New Deal From the MTA

The Brooklyn Paper reports on a MTA finance committee meeting this morning, where the MTA decided give Bruce Ratner a good deal.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will move ahead with a massive public bailout of the struggling Atlantic Yards project, changing the project’s financing to save developer Bruce Ratner hundreds of millions of dollars.

The MTA’s finance committee met this morning to discuss a new deal for the developer, who had originally promised $100 million for rights to build over the Vanderbilt railyards in Prospect Heights, but would now pay just $20 million up front for the prime eight-acres.

The remaining $80 million would be paid out, at 6-1/2 percent interest, over the next 22 years, said MTA Chief Financial Officer Gary Dellaverson, who presented the package to the committee.

Ratner had originally gotten the railyard rights for less than its MTA-appraised value because he also promised $345 million in infrastructure improvements to the MTA facility.

Under the new deal, which is expected to be rubber-stamped by the full MTA board on Wednesday, Ratner would make just $147 million in railyard improvements.

Times on Ratner: A Stunning Bait and Switch

In yesterday's New York Times Nicolia Ouroussoff wrote a scathing piece about Forest City Ratner's decision to change architects on the Atlantic Yards Project. Read this excerpt from Ouroussof's harsh assessment of the situation over there, which he characterizes as a "stunning bait and switch."

Whatever you may have felt about Mr. Gehry’s design — too big, too flamboyant — there is little doubt that it was thoughtful architecture. His arena complex, in which the stadium was embedded in a matrix of towers resembling falling shards of glass, was a striking addition to the Brooklyn skyline; it was also a fervent effort to engage the life of the city below.

A new design by the firm Ellerbe Becket has no such ambitions. A colossal, spiritless box, it would fit more comfortably in a cornfield than at one of the busiest intersections of a vibrant metropolis. Its low-budget, no-frills design embodies the crass, bottom-line mentality that puts personal profit above the public good. If it is ever built, it will create a black hole in the heart of a vital neighborhood.

But what’s most offensive about the design is the message it sends to New Yorkers. Architecture, we are being told, is something decorative and expendable, a luxury we can afford only in good times, or if we happen to be very rich. What’s most important is to build, no matter how thoughtless or dehumanizing the results. It is the kind of logic that kills cities — and that has been poisoning this one for decades.

Petition to Prevent Fed Stimulus Money For Ratner

Sign the petition to prevent federal stimulus money from going to Ratner and the Atlantic Yards Project.

To New York State Governor David Paterson:

I oppose the use of federal stimulus money to fund the Atlantic Yards project. The design, schedule and benefits of the project have clearly departed from what were disclosed to the public in 2006. Any allocation of stimulus to Atlantic Yards at this point would not only further reduce the project's already unacceptable standard of accountability, it would deprive the people of New York City investment in urgently needed public works. I therefore urge you to reject any request for stimulus funds to be granted to Atlantic Yards.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Today: Atlantic Yards Eminent Domain Court Argument

Here's today's media alert, press release or whatever you want to call it from the folks over at Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn:

The challenge, by nine brave home and business owners and tenants, to New York state's use of eminent domain to take the their properties for developer Forest City Ratner’s Atlantic Yards development proposal will be argued in court on Monday, February 23.

Forest City Ratner cannot build its floundering project without these plaintiffs’ properties.

Monday, February 23. 10am*
Supreme Court, State of New York. Appellate Division**, Second Department
45 Monroe Place. Brooklyn, NY.

The lawsuit was filed on August 1st, 2008 and fully briefed at the end of December.
All briefs in Goldstein et al. v Empire State Development Corporation can be found here.

On his Atlantic Yards Report Norman Oder has an extensive preview of the arguments and issues discussed in the briefings

(*Note: The court has the argument listed as the 7th on the docket, so we do not know precisely when it will be argued. But we advise showing up by 10 if that is possible for you, but later is okay if that is not possible. **State law requires all eminent domain challenges to go directly to the appellate division. This case is not an appeal.)

Other Pending Legal Challenge

The legal challenge to the state’s environmental review and approval and in particular New York State’s determination that the proposed Atlantic Yards project site is “blighted” is awaiting a ruling of an appeal. That appeal was argued over five months ago, on September 17, 2008. A ruling for plaintiffs in this case would mean the project could not go forward.

More about this case is at: www.dddb.net/FEIS/appeal.

Ratner Wants Bailout Money for Atlantic Yards

Check out the press release on the Develop Don't Destroy Website about Ratner's efforts to secure some federal bailout money for the ailing Atlantic Yards project. DDDB charges that this would turn Atlantic Yards into "the poster child for misuse and abuse of the recovery bill."

Read this excerpt and go to DDDB for the rest..

Developer Forest City Ratner (FCR) is reportedly lobbying federal and state officials for a bailout to further prop up its heavily subsidized and massive $4 billion Atlantic Yards proposal.

FCR is attempting to get a piece of New York State's share of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka the "Stimulus Bill"). Former New York Senator Al D'Amato is lobbying on the developer's behalf; presumably, other lobbyists are hard at work talking with the Paterson Administration as well.

Bailing out the Atlantic Yards project with federal stimulus funds would turn Ratner's project into the poster child for misuse and abuse of the recovery bill. The project, of course, is already subsidized to the hilt at the expense of the city, state and federal taxpayer, including the developer's effort to secure a triple tax-exempt arena bond with a federal subsidy estimated to be worth $165 million.

FCR, apparently, is attempting to secure stimulus funds by claiming Atlantic Yards is a "transit project," since they are obligated to construct a new rail yard. They are arguing that this work is worthy of prioritization by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which will oversee the disbursement of a reported $1.3 billion in stimulus funds.

Bailout $ for Ratner's Atlantic Yards Project?

So Ratner is lobbying to secure some bailout money to fund the Atlantic Yards project. Is that what you call a shovel ready project?

This idea iis inciting major conflict in the Brooklyn community.

Atlantic Yards booster, Marty Markowitz, is all over it and supportive of the idea: he wants Forest City Ratner to receive a portion of the stimulus package to get the $4 BILLION moribund project going again.

Plans to build a Nets basketball arena and something like 17 apartments and office towers were recently scaled back due to the state of the economy.

Anxious to get things back on track, Ratner and Markowitz eager for government handouts. Markowitz told NY1 yesterday:

"It has all the earmarks of exactly all the kinds of projects that Congress is looking for and President Obama is looking for. It will put people to work immediately and it will benefit the community at large," Markowitz told NY 1.

Critics of the plan like Daniel Goldstein of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn think that federal bailout monies would be better used for affordable housing.

 Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn sent out this email yesterday urging opponents of the plan to let their feelings be knowsn.

If you feel as outraged as we do that there is even the thought that it would be appropriate to bail out private developer Forest City Ratner with stimulus money, you can make your opinion known to our Congressional members. Let them know this would be an obscene use of the federal stimulus funds, is unacceptable and would undermine the stimulus plan. Also let them know that the provision that prohibits stimulus funds for stadiums must explicitly include a prohibition on arenas as well, which are equals in the boondoggle category:

New Blog on the Block: Atlantic Yards Death Watch

Check out the new blog: Atlantic Yards Death Watch. Bruce Ratner has been talking for years about "breaking ground" on his Atlantic Yards project.

"He can talk all he wants, but we're on a deathwatch..."

Atlantic Yards Eminent Domain Case Filed on Friday

On Friday nine property owners and tenants—with homes and businesses New York State wants to seize for developer Forest City Ratner's Atlantic Yards project—filed a petition with the Appellate Division of New York State Supreme Court seeking an order rejecting the Empire State Development Corporation's (ESDC) findings and determination to seize their homes and businesses by eminent domain. The case will probably go to court in January 2009. Here's the press release from  Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn:

"New York Courts have a proud history of interpreting the New York Constitution as providing greater protections for individual rights than the federal constitution.  This case presents an opportunity to continue that tradition by declaring that the New York Constitution prohibits the government from seizing private homes simply to turn them over to a developer who covets them for a massive luxury condominium project," said lead attorney Matthew Brinckerhoff of Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP.  "We are confident that the court will see this for what it is:  government officials bending to the will of Bruce Ratner, allowing him to wield the power of eminent domain for his personal financial benefit."

Facing the seizure of their homes and businesses, the petitioners have alleged five claims against the ESDC— the condemning authority utilized by Forest City Ratner to take the petitioners' properties and give them to Forest City Ratner. The five claims are that the ESDC's determination to forcibly seize the properties should be rejected because:

1. It violates the public use clause contained in the Bill of Rights of the New York Constitution.
ESDC's claims of public benefit are a pretext to justify a private taking.

2. It violates the due process clause contained in the Bill of Rights of the New York Constitution.
The public process was a sham.  The outcome was predetermined in a back room deal between Ratner, Pataki and Bloomberg.

3. It violates the equal protection clause contained in the Bill of Rights of the New York Constitution.
By singling out the petitioners, for unequal, adverse, treatment, and selecting Ratner as the recipient of irrational largess, the ESDC violated the petitioners' right to equal protection under the law.

4. It violates the low-income and current resident requirements of the New York Constitution.
The New York State Constitution provides that no loan or subsidy shall be made to aid any project unless the project contains a plan for the remediation of blight and the "occupancy of any such project shall be restricted to persons of low income as defined by law and preference shall be given to persons who live or shall have lived in such area or areas."
The Atlantic Yards project is not "restricted to persons of low income" and no preference has been given to "persons who live or shall have lived in such area."

5. It violates the "public use, benefit or purpose" requirement contained in New York's Eminent Domain Procedure Law (EDPL).

ESDC's determination that petitioners' homes and businesses will serve a "public use, benefit or purpose" has no basis in fact or law.

The petition to the Court for the case, Goldstein et al. v. Empire State Development Corporation, can be downloaded at: www.dddb.net/eminentdomain

New IRS Rule May Delay Atlantic Yards

An excerpt from story on NY 1:

Brooklyn’s Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner downplayed Friday’s reports that a proposed Internal Revenue Service rule might stall the vast construction project.

The IRS proposal would tighten the rules governing the use of tax-exempt bonds, a planned centerpiece of the arena's financing plan.

Analysts say the rule could jeopardize financing for the project, including a new Nets arena, before developers are even able to begin.

However, Ratner says the arena will go ahead.

June 16, 2008 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Friday, April 04, 2008

Demo in Front of Brooklyn Museum Draws 100 Protesters

About 100 protesters showed up in front of the Brooklyn Museum last night to protest the museum's $1,000 a plate Brooklyn Ball, which was honoring Bruce Ratner. This from Norman at AY Report:

Maybe it was the parade of limousines and SUVs bringing well-dressed guests--at $500 to $1000 and more a plate--to an event that protesters likely arrived at via the 2/3 subway line. Maybe it was a sense that Forest City Ratner, however stalled in its plans for most of Atlantic Yards, is in the driver's seat, with most elected officials yet to challenge the developer. Maybe it's that demolitions promise increased blight around the Atlantic Yards footprint. Maybe it's just the accumulation of grievances.

But the protest organized by Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn last night outside the museum was notably angry, with some 80 people gathering at one point, many chanting "Ratner is a liar" and "Shame on you" at vehicles coming to drop off their passengers. (More people arrived later, as others left, so total attendance probably topped 100.) Taking off from the museum's function, several people carried signs calling Ratner a "con art

I am awaiting my pictures from my exclusive AY demo photographer. Coming soon.

April 4, 2008 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Friday, February 01, 2008

CIRCUIT COURT RULES AGAINST HOME AND BUSINESS OWNERS AND TENANTS

Hot off the press release presses, here's the latest news from Develop Don't Destroy.

New York, NY— The Second Circuit Court today ruled against 14 homeowners, business owners and tenants in their appeal of their lawsuit alleging that New York State's use of eminent domain to take their properties for Forest City Ratner's Atlantic Yards project violates the United States Constitution.

Plaintiffs' attorney Matthew Brinckerhoff said, "Today's decision is disappointing. We disagree with its conclusion. We intend to ask the US Supreme Court to hear our case, and will continue to pursue every avenue available to prevent the unlawful seizure of my clients' homes for Bruce Ratner's enrichment. The court today affirmed that the government is free to take private homes and businesses and give them to influential citizens as long as one can imagine a conceivable benefit to the public, no matter how small or unlikely it may be. Indeed, it does not matter if all evidence points to a secret back room deal. All corrupt politicians need do to insulate themselves from judicial scrutiny is claim a benefit to the public. This is wrong. It should trouble all citizens who, unlike Bruce Ratner, lack the power and money to coopt the governments' power of eminent domain for their private use. We believe that the United States Supreme Court will welcome the opportunity to clarify this area in light of its widely criticized Kelo decision."

Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn legal director Candace Carponter said, "Our support of the fight of citizens to live safely in their homes, and operate safely in their business, will continue. We maintain that the government's motivation in using eminent domain for Atlantic Yards is not to benefit the public, but rather, to benefit a single, very rich and powerful developer. The seizure of our neighbors' homes and businesses is at the very foundation of the Atlantic Yards project. It is a foundation that must not stand. Now is the time for our elected leaders, who have frequently expressed grave concern about the abuse of eminent domain, to publicly stand in defense of everyday Brooklynites and New Yorkers."

The 2nd Circuit Court's opinion on the case, Goldstein v. Pataki, can be found at:
http://www.dddb.net/php/reading/legal/eminentdomain

February 1, 2008 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (1)

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

A THEATRICAL VERSION OF THE ATLANTIC YARDS BATTLE

The Daily News reports that The Civilians, a performance group that combines investigative reporting with stories, song and dance, will prepare a play or musical about the Atlantic Yards Project for their 2009-2010 theater season.

Here's what I want to know? Who's playing Bruce Ratner? Frank Gehry? Daniel Goldstein? Lumi Rolley? Norman Oder?

Read more here.

January 29, 2008 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (1)

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

REACTION FROM DEVELOP DON'T DESTROY ABOUT HEATH'S DEATH

Heath Ledger was a member of the Advisory Board of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn. Not only was he a brilliant actor but his heart was in the right place when it came to development issues in Brooklyn. DDDB has nice condolence note up on their website:

  We offer our condolences to all of Heath Ledger's loved ones. Our heart goes   out to his young daughter. His passing is very sad news.
 
Heath was a member of our Advisory Board. He was not afraid to speak out against the entrenched power and corporate back room deals that the Atlantic Yards represents. He felt passionately that this project was wrong for Brooklyn. DDDB thanks him and celebrates his life.
 
We are grateful that Heath chose to contribute to our efforts, and hope to honor his memory through our ongoing work.

January 23, 2008 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

DOCTOROFF SAYS: FOES OF ATLANTIC YARDS ARE RIGHT, ULURP IS THE WAY TO GO

Develop Don't Destroy sent out this press release yesterday. Atlantic Yards Report and No Land Grab have coverage as well.

NEW YORK, NY — In a just-released interview with the New York Observer's Matthew Schuerman, outgoing Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Dan Doctoroff makes a breathtaking admission, saying, "I am a huge believer in the ULURP process. If it happened again, and the state were to ask if I would encourage them to take Atlantic Yards through the ULURP process, I would say yes."

Forest City Ratner's Atlantic Yards project bypassed ULURP with the active consent and support of Doctoroff and Mayor Bloomberg. ULURP, the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, is the city's public review process for real estate development and rezoning which includes hearings and votes held by community boards, the borough president , the city planning commission, city council subcommittees, and the full city council, ending in a vote by the council. The Atlantic Yards project received a zoning override by the state and bypassed the charter-mandated ULURP in favor of oversight by the unaccountable and unelected Empire State Development Corporation and the three men in a room—Pataki, Silver and Bruno.

"Of course Mr. Doctoroff is right. As we and so many other have been saying for so long now, Atlantic Yards should have gone through the democratic process known as ULURP; nearly all of the project's myriad problems stem from the bypass of ULURP," said Develop Don't Destroy Brookyn (DDDB) spokesman Daniel Goldstein.

December 12, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Friday, November 30, 2007

COUNCIL OF BKLYN NABES ASK: WHAT MAKES BROOKLYN DIFFERENT FROM NEWARK?

The Council of Brooklyn Neighborhoods, a coalition of community groups, along with several local pols renewed their demands for an independent security study of the Brooklyn Atlantic Yards project yesterday because it was revealed recently the basketball arena would be situated only 20 feet from both Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues.

This fact, which was revealed in a New York Times interview with a Forest City Ratner official last week, is a bit concern to local groups.

So what does Newark have to do with this?

Apparently, police in Newark recently closed two streets adjacent to the Prudential Center arena during events out of concern that a vehicular terrorist bomb could inflict significant damage upon the arena and its occupants. The streets ordered closed in Newark lie more than 20 feet from the arena’s walls.
This is from the CBN press release:

The Newark police department’s decision to close streets after the Prudential Center was approved and built, along with the NYPD-mandated redesign of already-approved plans for the World Trade Center ’s Freedom Tower , which increased building setbacks from 25 feet to 90 feet, are clear evidence that design and security are closely interconnected. The Prudential Center illustrates how security problems can radically alter the surrounding environment, while the Freedom Tower presents an example of significant changes to building design. Both scenarios appear possible in Brooklyn .

“The public must have the benefit of an independent and transparent inquiry into the design of the Atlantic Yards project and its arena, and the management techniques that will be put in place to ensure security at the site,” said Therese Urban, co-Chair of CBN. “Street closures would wreak havoc, and turning the arena into a bunker as a security ‘compromise’ would cheat Brooklynites of the ‘world-class’ design we’ve been promised.”

November 30, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thursday, November 29, 2007

CALL FOR INDEPENDENT SECURITY STUDY OF ATLANTIC YARDS

This from Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn:

12:00 Noon
BROOKLYN, ATLANTIC YARDS LAND GRAB
PRESS CONFERENCE CITY HALL STEPS

Elected Officials and the Council of Brooklyn Neighborhoods Renew Call for Independent Security Study of Atlantic Yards

State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, State Assembly Member Joan Millman, a representative of State Assembly Member Jim Brennan, City Council Members Letitia James, David Yassky and Bill de Blasio, and representatives of the Council of Brooklyn Neighborhoods (CBN) will hold a press conference on the steps of City Hall to renew a call for an independent security study of the planned Brooklyn Atlantic Yards project, and especially its basketball arena, in light of this week’s revelation that portions of the glass-walled arena and other adjacent glass-walled buildings would lie a mere 20 feet from heavily trafficked Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues. Newark police officials recently mandated the closing of streets adjacent to that city’s new Prudential Center during arena events; those streets are approximately 25 feet from that arena’s walls.

November 29, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (2)

Thursday, November 01, 2007

BROOKLYN MATTERS AT THE OLD STONE HOUSE: NOVEMBER 5 AT 7 p.m.

I got this note from my friend Lumi over at No Land Grab about the Brookyn Matters screening at the Old Stone House. I am embarrassed to say that I havn't seen Isabel Hill's documentary yet. Can you believe that? I will go on the 5th. See you there.

I don't know if you have had the chance to check out Brooklyn Matters yet. It is the documentary chronicling the political fight over Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards arena and high-rise plan. The next screening of the film produced and directed by Park Slope resident Isabel Hill is next Monday at the Old Stone House.

MONDAY
NOVEMBER 5, 7 pm
THE OLD STONE HOUSE
5th Avenue
btw 3rd and 4th Streets

http://www.brooklynmatters.com

I posted info at: http://www.nolandgrab.org/archives/2007/10/brooklyn_matter_12.html

The running time is about 50 mins and is time well spent because you won't get this information from the NY Times or even PBS.

November 1, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sunday, October 14, 2007

SUNDAY MARCH AGAINST THE ATLANTIC YARDS

Here's the press release from Develop Don't Destroy:

BROOKLYN, NY — Opponents of the “Atlantic Yards” plan walked in Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn’s (DDDB) third annual Walk Don’t Destroy walkathon to raise funds for the ongoing, long haul legal battle against developer Forest City Ratner’s unpopular, anti-democratic, and outsized “Atlantic Yards” project and proposed experiment in extreme density, in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. The walkathon is part of the continuing effort to build the community’s legal war chest against the project.

“We are close to marking the 4th anniversary of the struggle against the Atlantic Yards project, a purported ‘done deal’ whose time will never come,” said DDDB spokesman Daniel Goldstein. “Today, once again, we are terribly proud of the community’s support in real dollars and in spirit. Along with so many other contributors, today’s walkers and donors ensure that DDDB will see the legal cases through to victory, so we can start over and develop the Vanderbilt rail yards in an appropriate, sustainable, and democratic manner.”

DDDB relies on the broad community for its support; its legal efforts are funded entirely by the community with over 3,500 individual donors, as well as various fundraisers throughout the year. DDDB’s efforts over the past four years, along with so many other organizations, have been a sustained, truly grassroots community movement, thanks to the community’s ongoing and continually growing support.

October 14, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (3)

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

APPEAL OF THE AY EMINENT DOMAIN CASE IN COURT TODAY

In the courts today, the oral argument on the appeal of the "Atlantic Yards" eminent domain case, Goldstein et al v. Pataki et al, this Tuesday, October 9th at 10am. The owner and tenant plaintiffs are asking the 2nd Circuit Court to simply permit them to prove their Constitutional claims at trial in the Eastern District Court.

Where:
United States 2nd Circuit Court of Appeal at 500 Pearl Street, Manhattan [Map].
Ceremonial courtroom on the 9th floor.
Please enter the building at the Pearl Street entrance.

When:
Develop Don't Destroy suggests arriving by 9:45am in order to get through security in a timely manner.

October 9, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

WALK DON'T DESTROY BROOKLYN THIS SUNDAY

The Third Annual Walk Don't Destroy Walkathon Fundraiser is coming up on October 14th. All funds raised go towards the two eminent domain lawsuits.  Walk Don't Destroy Walkathon fundraiser                    

Walk Don't Destroy Brooklyn 3 on Sunday, October 14th, will be an opportunity to put your feet in motion to help fund the DDDb legal campaign against Bruce Ratner's megadevelopment proposal and eminent domain abuse. DDDb seeks to raise awareness to unite our communities instead of dividing and destroying them. Keep involved, everyone's voice is very important during this important struggle.

You can register here.

                        

October 9, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (1)

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO AT NO LAND GRAB

Lumi sent me word of Future Perfect, a video installation about the Atlantic Yards that will be on view at the DUMBO Art Under the Bridge Festival later this month. No Land Grab has a version of the video on her site.  Check it out.

Edward Purver, along with co-creators Ariel Efron & Christian Croft, conceived of Future Perfect as his thesis project for the Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. The project is posted on the ITP web site, along with a fascinating description of how the project was developed.

For those of you who are interested in checking it out in person, Future Perfect will be running at the d.u.m.b.o. art under the bridge festival, September 28-30. 

September 19, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Monday, July 02, 2007

RESPONSE TO TIMES' ATLANTIC YARD ARTICLE

No Land Grab, the essential Internet portal to all Atlantic Yards information, articles, and press has an assortment of responses to Sunday's New York Times piece. Thanks to Amy over there for putting it all together. Here's a preview:

Over at Atlantic Yards, Norman Oder asks: "What's the bottom line regarding Atlantic Yards, based on today's New York Times article? The issue, to David A. Smith, an affordable housing analyst in Boston who's previously reviewed Atlantic Yards documents (but not the new ones), is the future balance between developer profit and affordable housing, and who gets to decide." Read more at AYR.

Over at Develop Don't Destroy there this: "There are some errors and oddities in the article that strain credulity. One error is that the huge Frank Gehry ego-trip, aka "Miss Brooklyn," will open in 2009. That is pure fantasy, considering the developer is terribly behind schedule due to lawsuits."  Read more at Develop Don't Destroy.

July 2, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (2)

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

TODAY AT 1 PM: STEPS OF CITY HALL

An Expected Large Crowd of New York City Property Owners, Tenants and Advocates Unite to Fight Eminent Domain Abuse After Second Anniversary of the Infamous U.S. Supreme Court Kelo Decision

TIME/DATE: 1PM. Wednesday, June 27.

PLACE: City Hall Steps. Manhattan.

PARTICIPANTS:
Home and business owners, and tenants from:
Prospect Heights, Brooklyn; Duffield St., Brooklyn; West Harlem, Manhattan; Willets Point, Queens;
Councilmembers Tony Avella and Letitia James;
and activists from:
-- Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn
-- NoLandGrab.org
-- Historic Districts Council
-- Fifth Avenue Committee
-- New York Community Council
-- Society for the Architecture of the City
-- Willets Point Business Association
-- Harlem Tenants Council
-- Coalition to Preserve Community
-- West Harlem Coalition
-- 550 Riverside, 55/69 Tiemann Pl. Tenants Alliance
-- Coalition To Save The East Village
-- Lower East Side Residents for Responsible Development
-- Coalition for a Livable West Side
-- Duffield Street Block Association
-- Green Party of Brooklyn
-- Park Slope Greens
-- United Neighbors for Brooklyn
-- Atlantic Avenue Betterment Association
-- Brownstone Revival Coalition
-- Fans for Fair Play
...and more.

New York, NY -- Marking the second-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's infamous decision in Kelo v. New London, which gave the nod to the City of New London to use eminent domain to take homes for a private development, home and business owners, and tenants in New York City are banding together to raise public awareness that New York City has become one of the worst abusers of eminent domain and that no one's home or business is safe when the City and State continue to "assemble land" for the benefit of private developers.

"Eminent domain abuse is an abuse of our fundamental constitutional rights.  In New York City it's reaching epidemic proportions," said Lumi Michelle Rolley of NolandGrab.org.  "Given its policy of eminent domain abuse, it is no surprise that New York hasn't even attempted to reform its eminent domain laws since the infamous Kelo Supreme Court decision."

"Mayor Bloomberg and the State of New York consistently favor the interest of big developers over that of regular citizens," said Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn's Daniel Goldstein. "The Bloomberg Administration's policy has been to misuse and abuse eminent domain, with the support of New York State; this policy has gone too far. We're taking a stand, not just for ourselves, but also for all New Yorkers who believe in the American dream and the importance of homes and businesses.”

Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn leads a broad-based community coalition advocating for development that will unite our communities instead of dividing and destroying them. DDDB opposes Forest City Ratner's Atlantic Yards' abuse of eminent domain. DDDB has funded and organized owner and tenant plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit charging that eminent domain for Atlantic Yards violates the US. Constitution. Like the other neighborhoods, phony "blight" findings are being used to justify the eminent domain abuse.

Joy Chatel and Lew Greenstein are fighting to save their historic homes on Duffield St. in Brooklyn.  Their homes were part of the Underground Railroad network and are under threat of demolition to make way for a hotel parking garage. A lawsuit has been filed contesting the accuracy of the City's study, which determined that the historical significance of the homes could not be proven.

Property owners and tenants in West Harlem are battling to keep their homes and businesses from Columbia University's expansion of their uptown campus.  Since the project was unveiled the university has refused to take eminent domain off the table.  The application for review under the city's land-use procedure was just approved by the City Planning Commission.

Once again, Willets Point Queens businesses and a longtime resident are under threat of eminent domain.  For decades the City has failed to provide basic services to this neighborhood.  Despite the municipal neglect, the area is the location of hundreds of successful businesses that the City is seeking to displace.

NoLandGrab is an information portal run by several private citizens to increase awareness of the Atlantic Yards fight and eminent domain battles citywide.

June 27, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Saturday, May 19, 2007

NO DECISION ON EMINENT DOMAIN AND MUCH MISINFORMATION

Got this email this morning from Develop Don't Destroy:

Before we go any further we'll state it simply: There was no decision today on the federal legal challenge to New York State's and Forest City Ratner's abuse of eminent domain. Any news reports saying so or implying otherwise are misleading.

There was much confusion (read: underinformed mistakes made) this morning regarding some legal news related to "Atlantic Yards." Each news outlet covering the story got a little piece of it wrong, but the Daily Intelligencer blog of New York Magazine got the story lavishly wrong (they have since corrected their errors and NoLandGrab has reported on the Intelligencer's mistakes).

To cut to the chase: There is NO news on the federal eminent domain lawsuit—Goldstein v. Pataki—filed by 13 "Atlantic Yards" footprint property owners and tenants. That lawsuit alleges that New York State's use of eminent domain for the project is a violation of the United States Constitution. If the plaintiffs win that suit, "Atlantic Yards" as proposed cannot be built as their properites are located where the developer wants to build the project, including the arena. On March 30th in front of New York Eastern District Justice Nicholas Garaufis there was a three-hour oral argument on the defendants' motion to dismiss. Today marks seven weeks since that hearing and both sides await Judge Garaufis' decision. For an in-depth report on the substance of the March 30th hearing, go to the coverage from Atlantic Yards Report.

What New York's press corps was trying to report today was that a Manhattan State Supreme Court case—Anderson v. ESDC—was dismissed yesterday by presiding Judge Tolub. That case involved 13 rent-stabilized tenants who reside in the proposed "Atlantic Yards" project site. They argued that the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) does not have the legal authority to terminate rent-stabilized leases, that that authority is held by the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR). Judge Tolub did not dismiss the case on the merits, but instead ruled that the plaintiffs' claims belong in the Appellate Division where they now intend to go.

While we fully support these tenants' defense of their rights, this case has no relationship to or bearing on the federal suit--Goldstein v. Pataki--or the state lawsuit challenging the "Atlantic Yards" Environmental Impact Statement--DDDB et. al. v. ESDC. et. al. Anderson v. ESDC has entirely different litigants and attorneys, is not funded at all by the DDDB Legal Fund and was not organized by DDDB.

May 19, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Friday, April 27, 2007

YASSKY CALLS FOR STATE-APPOINTED CONSTRUCTION SUPERVISOR AT AY

Pols want Ratner to stop Atlantic Yards demolitions. Brooklyn Paper has the story and a slide show.

Stop Bruce Ratner — now — before he hurts someone!

That’s what a coalition of elected officials — some of them supporters of Ratner’s Atlantic Yards mega-development — want Gov. Spitzer to do, one day after hundreds of pounds of debris crashed onto Pacific Street during demolition of one of Ratner’s buildings within the project’s footprint.

“This was a serious accident and we need a state-appointed construction supervisor who is responsible and accountable,” said Councilman David Yassky (D–Brooklyn Heights), one of a handful of elected officials who was scheduled to speak at a Friday afternoon press conference near the site of the accident.

“There should be no construction or demolition activity at Atlantic Yards until that person is appointed,” Yassky added.

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April 27, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (1)

Thursday, April 26, 2007

BREAKING NEWS: PARAPET ON THE WARD BAKERY COMES CRASHING DOWN DURING DEMOLITION

(Brooklyn - WABC, April 25, 2007) - The parapet of a vacant building under demolition as part of the Atlantic Yards project collapsed onto the street in the Prospect Heights section of Brooklyn Thursday morning.

Officials say the parapet on the former Ward Bread Bakery Complex came crashing onto the sidewalk and Pacific Street just after 9:45 a.m.

The parapet is the barrier at the edge of a structure employed to prevent persons or vehicles from falling over the edge.

No workers were reported injured, and there were no pedestrians struck, officials said.

Emergency services personnel are now in the process of evacuating nearly 100 apartments after a parapet fell.

Officials are worried about the stability of the building and the possibility of additional collapse, so they are evacuating the building next door at 800 Pacific Street. There are unconfirmed reports that perhaps 350 people could be displaced.

Pieces of the parapet littered the sidewalk and crashed onto some cars.

The five-story building is slated to be demolished as part of the Atlantic Yards project. Protestors rallied in front of the building on the first day of demolition last month. The protesters said the historic building, built in 1911 and covered in white terra cotta tiles, is example of a "scorched earth" policy that will blight the corridor along the Long Island Rail Road yards in Prospect Heights.

The work at the bakery at 800 Pacific Street will include two months of abatement, including the removal of asbestos, Forest City Ratner Companies said in a statement. When the building is gone in two months, 75 percent of the materials will be recycled, the company said.

Ratner's Atlantic Yards project proposes a sweeping, 24-acre development with a 19,000-seat basketball arena for his New Jersey Nets, residential buildings and four soaring office towers.

The Frank Gehry-designed project would be built over Long Island Rail Road storage yards and is dependent upon the state condemning more than two square blocks of private property and knocking down up to 70 buildings.

April 26, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (1)

Saturday, April 21, 2007

COURT WON'T STOP RATNER DEMOLITION: DEMO SET FOR MONDAY AM

Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn has planned a demonstration to protest the demolition of four buildings on the Atlantic Yards footprint ffor Monday April 23, at 8 a.m. at 191 Flatbush Avenue (between Fifth Avenue and Dean).

The reason: A Temporary Restraining Order to block Forest City Ratner's demolition of buildings within the Atlantic Yards footprint has been denied by Manhattan State Supreme Court Justice Joan Madden.

  The court expressly stated that in making today's TRO decision it was not pre-judging   the merits of petitioners   claims filed on April 5th.

  Forest City Ratner plans to begin demolition on nine buildings during the   13 days between today and the Mary 3rd hearing.

Here's what Develop Don't Destroy had to say in a press release sent to OTBKB and others:
 

Major Legal Hurdles Still Face Developer
  We are confident in the merits of our challenge to the state's approval of the   project and that once our claims are heard we will prevail sending the project   back to the drawing board. It is also clear that as long as owners and   renters challenging the state's right to seize private property by eminent domain   succeed in federal court, the project cannot be built–not the arena or the skyscraper super-blocks.
 
  Because of the irreparable harm these premature demolitions will bring, we call   on Governor Spitzer, Mayor Bloomberg and other elected officials to use the   ESDC's funding leverage to halt the demolitions unless the project is proven   to be legal and finacially feasible.

  All legal papers, a summary of the lawsuit, and the list of co-plaintiffs can   be found here:
http://www.dddb.net/FEIS

   

April 21, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

SAVE SOL LEWITT WALL PAINTINGS

In an email from Develop  Don't Destroy this morning, I learned that there are wall paintings by artist, Sol Lewitt, a giant in modern art, who died on Sunday at the age of 70, on the walls of one of the building sin the footrprint.

644 Pacific Street is in the footprint of Bruce Ratner's proposed "Atlantic Yards" project, specifically in the footprint of the arena itself. In that building, once occupied by one of Mr. Lewitt's studio assistants, are at least two wall paintings by the artist.

The building is in the list of the first round of demolitions the developer intends to begin in the coming weeks. These wall paintings should be photographed for historical documentation and the Sol Lewitt catalogue.

DDDB is calling on Forest City Ratner to ensure that this happens and provide the photographs to the Lewitt collection.

Above is not a picture of the wall paintings at 644 Pacific Street. It's a picture of a museum retrospective somewhere -- maybe the Whitney.

April 10, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thursday, March 29, 2007

JOIN DDDB IN COURT ON FRIDAY

Let's take some of that NO-WAY ONE-WAY ENERGY and show up for DDDB's day in court. Here's the scoop:

Attorneys representing the 13 plaintiffs in the "Atlantic Yards" eminent domain case will be back in court this Friday, arguing that Goldstein et al vs. Pataki et al should be heard in Federal court rather than at the State level, as Magistrate Judge Robert Levy recommended in a report issued last month. We encourage you all to come out--as you did for the first hearing on February 7th--to demonstrate to the Court how much the community cares about this case and its outcome.

Oral arguments are scheduled as follows:

Friday, March 30th, at 11:00 a.m.*
United States District Court. Eastern District of New York.
225 Cadman Plaza East. Courtroom 4D

* Court dates can change frequently. We will notify you if the hearing is postponed.

The plaintiffs' attorneys believe very strongly that the Federal bench should hear this case, and they're optimistic that presiding Judge Nicholas Garaufis -- who will hear Friday's arguments -- will ultimately agree.

We recommend that you arrive 30 minutes early if you plan to attend the hearing. Please be advised that cell phones, cameras and recording devices are not permitted in the courtroom, and will have to be checked in the lobby. As always, decorum is of the greatest importance inside the courthouse.

We sincerely hope that you will all attend.

March 29, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thursday, March 01, 2007

WHAT THE READERS OF BROWNSTONER MAY NOT KNOW

Reading some comments on Brownstoner, Lumi Rolley, of No Land Grab, noticed that some folks at Brownstoner who read Jennifer Egan's historic Op-Ed didn't believe her assertion that, if built, Atlantic Yards would be the densest residential community in the nation.  But then it dawned on Rolley, The New York Times has never published that fact in it's reporting on the project. Here's what she had to say on her blog:

Commentary, from "Anonymice" on Brownstoner, regarding Jennifer Egan's Op-Ed in the Saturday Times, made us realize that Egan's piece was the very first mention in The NY Times that Atlantic Yards, if built, would be the densest residential community in the nation.

Two commenters posting on Brownstoner found that hard to believe; one even accused Egan of "creating 'facts' out of whole cloth."

This incredulity made us realize that unless these readers were receiving the DDDB newsletter, or were regular readers of NoLandGrab or Atlantic Yards Report, they had no clue.  How could they?  The New York Times never told them.

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March 1, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (0)

Saturday, January 06, 2007

BROOKLYN MATTERS: NEXT SCREENING

The next screening of Brooklyn Matters, a documentary about the Atlantic Yards controversy, directed and produced by Isabel Hill, will be on January 18th at the Municipal Arts Society.

The film features numerous interviews with critical residents, planners, critics, and elected officials portray a scenario in which a cynical developer and corrupt State agencies have hired gullible community allies and a star architect to conceal their true motives. The politics of the Brooklyn-based coalition, Develop Don't Destroy (DDD), are clearly imprinted on the film, although the work is presented as an independent documentary.will be held January 18 at the Municipal Art Society.

Does anyone know the exact address of the Municipal Arts Society? I think it's 51st Street and Madison Avenue right near the Helmsley Hotel.

January 6, 2007 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (2)

Thursday, November 09, 2006

ATLANTIC YARDS REPORT: SPITZER ON AY

This from Atlantic Yards Report:

Spitzer on AY
Spitzer's campaign told The Real Deal that Spitzer seeks more transparency for the Atlantic Yards project, which is proceeding under the auspices of the ESDC. What that would mean exactly is unclear.

Note that Spitzer recently declared that the most recent eight percent cut in the Atlantic Yards project was "appropriate" and sufficient. It seemed clear he had little idea that the project would be as large as initially proposed.

Support for housing

Spitzer's housing policy suggests new roles for the state, which has lagged behind New York City in supporting affordable housing. Advocates want the state to commit much more.

Some excerpts:
We must increase the supply of affordable homes by using three tools that New York State has: land, capital and increased densities where appropriate. First, we must increase the amount of land available for affordable housing. To increase supply, we should take inventory of all public land to determine where building affordable housing might be appropriate, revise the state's Brownfields laws to make it easier to build housing and create a "New York Affordable Housing Land Trust Program"...

Second, we must improve access to capital for homeowners and builders. We need to better leverage current state and federal housing resources and permit the state's housing agencies to use more of their resources for the development of affordable homes. We should also work with the State Comptroller's Office to expand its existing efforts to use a small portion of New York State's pension funds as a source of capital for affordable homes...
 
Finally, we should partner with local communities to encourage reform of zoning laws and permitting and approval processes to allow for higher densities of residential housing and make it easier for sites to become buildable.

Preserve existing affordable housing stock. New York State's affordable housing stock is a precious resource, yet we continue to lose affordable units for a variety of reasons. We must review rent regulations, when appropriate, encourage owners to rehabilitate and maintain our existing affordable housing and develop a strategy of how best to preserve the affordability of housing built under subsidy programs that are soon to expire.

Better administration, better planning and better leadership. Achieving the efficient production of affordable homes requires consolidating the state's housing efforts to eliminate administrative bureaucracy and inefficient regulations, appointing effective leaders to head our housing agencies and engaging in planning that integrates all levels of government more than simply the housing agencies and their programs.

A few billion dollars here, a few billion dollars there. That could add up to some significant changes, and remind people that the Atlantic Yards project would hardly be the only source for affordable housing.

T

November 9, 2006 in Atlantic Yards | Permalink | Comments (1)