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November 23, 2009

Bloomberg Editorial Disses Yards Arena Design

yards-rendering-112309.jpg"The result still smacks of hack expediency. One of SHoP’s overlapping metal bands thins as it arches into a broad porch over a bleak plaza, where Gehry had planned to build a high, glass-walled public space. Instead we would have a toad hunkering at one of the most important intersections in Brooklyn, that of Flatbush and Atlantic avenues Fans would stand soaking on the plaza on rainy days. The broad cineplex-look entry awkwardly squeezes into a much tighter gathering space and concourse. The secondary entrances have shrunk to the size of subway holes." — Bloomberg




Posted by Brownstoner at 10:14 AM | Comments (24)
Categories: Architecture, Atlantic Yards

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Comments

How did the Staten Island ferry end up there?

Posted by: dittoburg at November 23, 2009 10:16 AM

Was this written by Mayor Bloomberg or one of the Bloomberg service staff writers?

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at November 23, 2009 10:17 AM

This is not our Mayor's editorial.
It is the editorial of James S. Russell, who is the U.S. architecture critic for Bloomberg.com. "The opinions expressed are his own."

Posted by: Pigeon at November 23, 2009 10:43 AM

Was the way that quote was sourced intentionally provocative, or just very sloppy?

Posted by: altervoce at November 23, 2009 11:08 AM

Neither provocative nor sloppy (but I'm not the post author...).

Bloomberg is a well-known financial news source, and has been for years (since well before the founder became mayor). Citing it as "Bloomberg" is very common, just as one may cite "Forbes", "Newsweek", etc.

Posted by: be_rude at November 23, 2009 11:35 AM

Exposes the whole Emperor's New Clothes that is AY. I love the toad hunkering down image- SHop seems to be one of those firms that specializes in trendy, - it's all about the hype.

Posted by: bxgrl at November 23, 2009 11:37 AM

Looks like a Spameteria

Posted by: transittillie at November 23, 2009 12:19 PM

ah, if only the Mayor would read his own news service...maybe someone with a Bloomberg terminal could send him a message...

Posted by: slopenick at November 23, 2009 12:58 PM

I like it.

Posted by: Xander Crews at November 23, 2009 1:01 PM

You are incorrect, be rude.
In NYC, when a news report says "Bloomberg," it is read to refer to our mayor. Moreover, if someone says "Bloomberg," it is heard to refer to our mayor.

Posted by: Pigeon at November 23, 2009 1:08 PM

I like it too. If it looks like a toad all the better; I like toads. It's just sour grapes, this criticism from this camp.

Posted by: traditionalmod at November 23, 2009 1:29 PM

"...where Gehry had planned to build a high, glass-walled public space. Instead we would have a toad hunkering at one of the most important intersections in Brooklyn..."

Of course that wasn't good enough for some of the project's more Oderous critics, so this is what we get. Once again, great job Norman!

Posted by: lalaland at November 23, 2009 1:36 PM

Well you know, the SHoP design is barely begun - little more than a rendering at this point, and they really are an interesting firm as designers. I would hope that if SHoP ever actually has to design something to be built in that location, it would be better than the fig-leaf of a rendering, (which Ratner was forced to provide in a rush to cover up the embarrassing fiasco of the Ellerbe Becket airplane hanger "design.") But as good as SHoP is, any arena in that location will be subject to the unavoidably true criticism that an arena is not a good contextual fit.

Posted by: architect66 at November 23, 2009 1:50 PM

why don't we just take the money (is there any?) for this pointless project and pay off the city's debt?

Posted by: ftgreenepark at November 23, 2009 2:07 PM

I knew what the 'Bloomberg' citation referred to and I'm an idito. <-- Case in point.

As for the editorial - stop pulling your punches and tell us how you really feel!

Posted by: young archi at November 23, 2009 2:15 PM

I think the arena design is very interesting and fresh. Shop's work is usually pretty good stuff. But architectural critics are in the business of not liking much of anything. It is one of the reasons they are so supremely irrelevent.

Posted by: Minard Lafever at November 23, 2009 2:42 PM

It's not that I (and thousands of others) don't like the building lalaland. It's that I don't like paying for it. Gehry wasn't the issue. The $2 billion we were giving Ratner to, ahem, build affordable housing was.

If I'm being robbed I'd rather I get robbed for a lower amount. Even if it gets spent on something that looks like this.

Posted by: Johnny at November 23, 2009 3:18 PM

Well, he's a well paid architectural critic despite being "supremely irrelevant>"

Architect66- I'll grant they are interesting but overall their work leaves me cold.But I'm not a fan of building exteriors that look like cheese graters. There are others I like much better- including much of Gehry's work, actually.

Posted by: bxgrl at November 23, 2009 3:25 PM

@Pigeon - Um, no, I'm not "incorrect"

I agree with your interpretation that most folks in the city hear/assume/read "Bloomberg" as a reference to the mayor, but the point remains that it is also common to cite 'Bloomberg' News articles that way.

Don't assume it was an editorial decision to be provocative just because you're not familiar with the convention.

Posted by: be_rude at November 23, 2009 3:45 PM

bxgirl - I like how SHoP is focused on the process of design, fabrication, and construction. In a product oriented world, that is not so typical. Agree about the effect of the cheese-grater like renderings for the "arena" - but they've done some really fine non-cheese-grater-like in the city, (porter house, mulberry street apartment building).

Posted by: architect66 at November 23, 2009 3:53 PM

architect66- I'll look at those. Thanks.

Posted by: bxgrl at November 23, 2009 6:30 PM

Architect66 is correct - any design will be slammed by the anti-AY crowd simply because they don't want an arena there.

Posted by: Big Jugs at November 23, 2009 7:11 PM

Don't slam the George Forman Grill! You get grease all over the place!

Posted by: altervoce at November 23, 2009 9:32 PM

Here to make you sad, BJ. I like this design better than the other two. But I still don't want public money and eminent domain used to build it. And, to correctly quote Architect66, that is not the right spot for a stadium.

Posted by: Brooklyn Chicken at November 23, 2009 10:13 PM

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