Atlantic Yards, How You've Changed
This chart put together earlier this week by the Brooklyn Speaks coalition pretty much, well, speaks for itself. You can check out the entire presentation here. Atlantic Yards Then and Now [Brooklyn Speaks]
This chart put together earlier this week by the Brooklyn Speaks coalition pretty much, well, speaks for itself. You can check out the entire presentation here.
Atlantic Yards Then and Now [Brooklyn Speaks]
FGC: If you think Albany politicians were NOT lobbied on AY issues (including, obviously, eminent domain) then you are very very far from the epicenter of this debate. It’s easy to pontificate from the sidelines. But many Brooklynites have spent years campaigning around AY issues — and I don’t just mean DDDB members.
Look, here’s the bottom line when it comes to DDDB and the other anti-AY groups. If their ultimate goal was to stop Atlantic Yards, as opposed to spending hundred of thousands of dollars collected from donors pursuing the litigation route, they would have been better served using that same money to lobby Albany and finding a sympathetic advocate (such as Perkins) to change New York’s eminent domain laws (live virtually every other State did following Kelo). In the end, that would have probably been a more successful course of action.
The litigation route was ALWAYS going to lose, whether it took 5 years, 10 years, 15 year…these meritless lawsuits merely delayed the inevitable. I’m not sure how many lawyers are on this blog, but I’m an attorney, and both the case and statutory law in New York State are crystal clear in favor of the State and the Developer in this instance. In going the litigation route DDDB and the other anti-AY groups were hoping for the equivalent of the legal “hail mary”…unfortunately for them, they never got it.
Yet again, well said MM
I grew up in rural NY State, where the only way to get to school was the school bus, or by car, for most kids, it was way too far to walk, unless they lived in town. Now, since they consolidated several towns’ schools into one mega-school, located outside of everyone’s walking sphere, that isn’t even an option. The school buses were paid for by local residents’ taxes. I have no problem having my NYC taxes now pay for Metrocards for students, even though I don’t have kids. How can they expect an average working and middle class family to come up with an additional $100 bucks a month, especially when those who need it most probably have 2 or more kids in the family? A lot of these kids will either not go to school at all, or jump the turnstyle and get a record and a fine, along with not getting to school.
I disagree Rob, most kids use the cards to get to school. Especially those kids who come from far away to go to the high schools of their choice. I wouldn’t want to explain to some kid from ENY who works his butt off and gets into Stuyvesant, or some other good public high school, that he can’t go because his poor family can’t afford the monthy metrocard, because the MTA thinks it’s better to cozy up to uber-rich developers, not school children.
Montrose Morris NAILS IT.
Total lack of public process/transparency = total corporate welfare for developer. At least Bloomberg has been honest in his support for private developers on the public dollar (not that I approve) but it’s really time we fired hypocrites like Sheldon Silver who allowed this to go through on his watch.
Btw, anyone who has used the new Atlantic Ave subway exits may — like me — have wondered why it was built with no escalators. Two tiny elevators but no escalators. Long, steep walk down to the 2/3/4/5 platforms. Then another long walk down to the Q/B/N/R level. Can’t wait to see the beer sodden masses navigate their trips home after a game.
it’s not the MTA’s responsibility to provide students with free metrocards. it’s the state governments! most of those brats dont even use them to actually go to school anyway.
*rob*
Sparafucile- yes, and those of us who pointed out this obvious delusion were slapped down as being just plain wrong. In fact every refutation to the fantasy Ratner was selling only got us labeled “NIMBY.” Seeing it laid out in black and white shows how naked is the emperor in his new clothes.
The MTA will increase fares for the rest of us. And take way student cards. And cut services to the very neighborhoods that AY is located. Remember Alaska’s Bridge to Nowhere? They got nothing on us.
The idea that the arena’s mass transit access would mean little vehicular traffic is laughable to anyone who is paying attention. The Garden, which is right on top of Penn Station, gets over 30% of its weekday patronage, and about 50% of weekend, by private vehicle. Why would the Rat’s Nest, or whatever it’s going to be called, generate less traffic? Our only hope is that events here are as sparsely attended as those at Izod Center.