Anti-AY Lawsuits: And Then There Was One
The legal challenges against Atlantic Yards are dwindling. On Friday afternoon a state judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn and 25 other community groups challenging the project’s environmental impact review statement. In her 71-page decision, Justice Joan A. Madden shot down most of the lawsuit’s claims, which argued that the state’s…
The legal challenges against Atlantic Yards are dwindling. On Friday afternoon a state judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn and 25 other community groups challenging the project’s environmental impact review statement. In her 71-page decision, Justice Joan A. Madden shot down most of the lawsuit’s claims, which argued that the state’s review of the project didn’t fully account for its possible effects on traffic, security and open space. Forest City Ratner, Marty Markowitz and the ESDC hailed the decision. “We are very pleased with Judge Madden’s decision, as it further clears the way for Atlantic Yards and the thousands of jobs, affordable housing units and world-class arena—the Barclays Center—that will accompany the project,” said Forest City chief executive Bruce Ratner. The dismissal means the only major lawsuit still pending against Atlantic Yards is the one challenging the use of eminent domain for the project. DDDB says it plans to appeal Madden’s decision, and that the anti-AY fight still has plenty of life left in it. “We are disappointed by the court’s ruling. But let’s be clear: Atlantic Yards cannot move forward while the thirteen plaintiffs—homeowners, business owners and tenants—are in federal court in a separate case challenging New York State’s unconstitutional use of eminent domain. We expect to prevail in that lawsuit, as well as on the appeal of today’s decision,” said DDDB spokesman Daniel Goldstein.
NY State Supreme Court Rules for ESDC in Atlantic Yards Lawsuit [DDDB]
Atlantic Yards Environmental Impact Review Suit Dismissed [Gowanus Lounge]
Judge Dismisses Challenge to AY Environmental Review [Atlantic Yards Report]
Big Loss for Atlantic Yards Foes as Environmental Lawsuit Dismissed [NY Observer]
Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Seeking to Block Atlantic Yards [NY Times]
Atlantic Yards model from AtlanticYards.com
My favorite smokescreen is the ” it’s on a subway hub. everyone will use the subway to come tothe games or get to work.” If you have never been in the “hub” during rush hour you shouldn’t even type on this forum about the so-called intelligent planning of this complex.
For games and events, the outer reaches of Brooklyn are not that easily accessible by subway because if you have ever looked at a subway map, you’ll see how underserved Brooklyn truly is. Which is why there are so many cars and why- hello!- they get driven. All those Nets fans (aren’t they going to be the Brooklyn team and won’t we all rush to support them?) will not necessarily be able to hop on a train. And aftrer the game, going home? Not that many people relish a long walk late at night- they will bring their cars.
That hub would have to be hugely reconfigured to handle the extra capacity just for the complex alone, let alone on game night. And the bigger problem is that at the present time the system cannot be added to- it operates at maximum capacity now in terms of trains and schedules. You can’t pack the tracks any more. And as for adding new lines- at least 10-15 years. They already did the studies and reports- this is the reality. There are some interesting alternatives- like above ground train lines- but since we are giving all that money to ratner for his AY folly, we obviously don’t have money for that. And of course we are also spending transportation money on a new line to the airport- but forget about the daily back and forth of people getting to work. I guess it’s just not sexy enough to think about. Not like a stadium.
Doesn’t the President have to obtain authorization from Congress to declare war? Didn’t the congress reps read the intelligence reports to authorize the war? Oh if I remember correctly Hillary actually had her staff read the report, she didn’t have the time to read the report. Hasn’t the war been funded for the past 5 years? Seems like more then just Bush & Cheney should be held responsible.
Oh, BrooklynCouch. You need to turn off Fox News and read a real newspaper. Tell the farmers in Thailand and China, who were forced to incinerate millions of chickens, that bird flu fears were overblown. The fastest-growing HIV population in the USA is hetereosexual people of color. Global warming is accepted as fact by the overwhelming majority of scientists, not to mention most grown-ups with high-school diplomas. Bush is the sorriest excuse for a leader this country has had in generations.
And, as Montrose Morris correctly points out above, traffic around AY is, indeed, an unmitigated disaster RIGHT NOW. Anybody who doesn’t grasp that must never drive in Brooklyn. It is hellish. I’ve come up with work-around routes that add a good couple of miles to my trip between Clinton Hill and Fairway/PS/etc just to avoid this area–I never drive anywhere near Atlantic Terminal (blecchhhhhhhhhhh) if I can help it.
I like the idea of a big, bold stroke of development for Bklyn, and I’m glad it involves a starchitect (even one that I’m kinda tired of), but this development is too big, was rammed down our throats without nearly enough public input, and is being built by a developer whose track record in Bklyn is terrrrrrrible. GO…Bama!
The sad thing is that, according to the ruling and NY State law, all a developer has to is admit their project will mess up our environment and they’ve fulfilled the letter of the law. No need to say how you will make it better, no law to stop you because it will mess things up… you just have to admit it.
So, why bother? It’s a rich man’s world… fuck us for trying!
The SO-CALLED Environmental Impact Study was a sham. It’s like the BS documents your architect gives you for “Scope of Work” or an inspector gives you for your $400 to $500. It was nearly a Paste’n’Print job. Please…
PATHETIC.
If you sent the EIS to Germany and just had one person from an architecture firm and one from an engineering/urban planning firm look at it, they would be appalled…shocked that this BS passes for anything. AND…it is really pure BS when you consider this is “planned†as one of the LARGEST construction projects in US HISTORY, HELLO!
New York is getting so “third world” it’s pathetic.
I lived in one of the largest cities in the so-called “developing world”. It underwent helter skelter development and now everyone’s paying for it (floods because drainage is horrid…floods with poop and rats, okay…TRAFFIC is unreal!)… It is known as the Traffic Jam of The East.
*****
Already, they’ll incrementally increase traffic on Flatbush THIS WEEK.
They’re closing the Carlton Avenue Bridge on Wednesday 1/16/08.
This is a TROJAN WEDGE in the neighborhood.
Drivers currently shoot over Carlton from Flatbush to avoid going to the Tillary BQE entrance. They get onto the BQE further up and avoid the congestion of Flatbush-Atlantic.
I won’t exactly miss the traffic that this creates on Carlton in Fort Greene.
What I WILL MISS is the main pedestrian passageway between Fort Greene and Prospect Heights/Parks Slope. A Trojan Wedge…plan and simple…no need to close the bridge right now, no matter what BS they’re feeding the press on it…if they’re even bothering…
They’re closing the bridge when probably NO work will go on with it for ages. They’ll just be using it:
1) as a PR move to make it seem like “something†is happening;
2) as an incremental way of trying to dull the community, making people rearrange their lives and try to get used to the inconvenience, community displacement, etc. little by little;
3) as a private little parking lot and staging area for themselves.
The CARLTON AVENUE BRIDGE should NOT BE CLOSED now and NOT FOR 3 YEARS as proposed (!!!) so these fools can sit around and do nothing with it and then, maybe build a parking lot platform over the area. During any necessary closing, the minimum requirement should be that a PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE is be built.
Ahh the perfect Anti-AY thread – linking AY and George W. Bush……
I can’t for the life of me think why anyone who knows this area of Brooklyn and has ever taken a train or a bus or a car could ever think that there is no or will be minimal impact to the area. I can’t imagine why the taxpayers should have to cough up anything -let alone 2 billion dollars worth – to build this complex. But it’s pretty obvious FCR has lined more than a few pockets and kissed more than a few butts. I’m all for keeping the construction industry employed but how about the rest of us, and the impact on us?
So far as wanting George Bush for another term- i shudder at the thought. It’s embarrassing for this country to have such a moron as its leader. Wouldn’t be so bad if he was a harmless moron but unfortunately he actually believes he is a capable, competent leader. So brooklyn Couch- since you’re so up for it, why don’t you put your money where your mouth is and join the Army and go to Iraq or Afghanistan to prove how great another term of GWB is? I’ll bet you another one of those armchair warrior/chicken hawk types who love to beat your “manly” chest as long as they don’t have to go. Hmmm….just like George Bush and Dick Cheney.
3:13 – when the you know what hits the fan, traffic wise, that will be Wise Prophet Chicken Little, to you.
“But admit it: the experience of working in a Metrotech building is incredibly depressing”
Why would it be depressing if I were being appropriatelty compensated? I’ve worked in a LOT worse atmospheres in this city (31st and 10th in Manhattan, for example) and as I dealt with it as long as I was being paid. If Metrotech is so abhorrent to you, stay out of there! Problem solved.