AY Owners, Renters File Eminent Domain Appeal
Eleven property owners and tenants within the Atlantic Yards footprint filed a petition yesterday asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their eminent domain case, nearing its 18th month in the judiciary system still without a trial. The case was dismissed twice by lower courts in developer Forest City Ratner’s favor. Since news broke of…
Eleven property owners and tenants within the Atlantic Yards footprint filed a petition yesterday asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their eminent domain case, nearing its 18th month in the judiciary system still without a trial. The case was dismissed twice by lower courts in developer Forest City Ratner’s favor. Since news broke of the basketball arena and high-rise project’s Dec. 19, 2009 kill-date (as long as Ratner stops pursuing litigation or construction matters), a lot of attention has been focused on the ticking clock rather than the people arguing beneath it. Now, about that legal case: In short, it seeks to clarify the Supreme Court’s controversial Kelo v. New London decision in 2005, which allowed the Connecticut city to give a developer private property for the purpose of economic development. In that case, eminent domain was decided by a legislative body, whereas Atlantic Yards was voted on by three publicly accountable politicians, though it went through a lengthy review process. And lead attorney for the plaintiffs Matthew Brinckerhoff said Kelo’s definition of public purpose was vague, leaving the average person vulnerable to having their property handed over to more influential citizens. They want the chance to vet that out more, and further investigate who Atlantic Yards was actually intended to benefit.
Forest City Ratner execs have long called lawsuits and appeals filed by project opponents “delay tactics” that deprive citizens benefits from the project’s arena, affordable housing and jobs. And now Ratner has found himself in credit crunch territory, possibly delaying or killing key components of the project. Lead plaintiff Daniel Goldstein, who owns a condo in the arena footprint, said it’s about their constitutional rights. But as far as the ticking clock, he said this is their last federal appeal, and he expects the court to decide whether to hear it this July. “If they don’t take our case, or take our case and rule against us, then we will go to state court, the appellate division, and raise our state claims.” When asked if they could drag out their case until 2010, after which time Forest City could automatically default if he decides not to continue pursuing litigation, Goldstein said, “We will take our case as far as we can to protect our constitutional rights.”
Ratner Only Required To Show Arena Financing for Eminent Domain Approval[Brownstoner]
Read The Fine Print[Atlantic Yards Report]
Slow Economy Likely to Stall Atlantic Yards [NY Times]
What Will Be Left of Gehry’s Vision for Brooklyn? [NY Times]
Goldstein’s wealth has been covered many times in blogs and the media. It’s a no brainer. Playing the anti-semitism card is a cop out, plain and simple.
Continue with your hairsplitting, because it ensures your continued failure.
D-O-N-E-D-E-A-L!!!
Ratner thinks he is g-damn Mother Theresa for bulldozing other properties to build a sports arena that will lose money, and luxury housing, while pretending to create affordable housing.
Please if that is not praying on the hopes and dreams of people who as you all say are “real” Brooklynites than I don’t know what is. Pretending to care about affordable housing, and the poor black youth and men in the neighborhood, when he lives in the richest district of New York City – who elected him the saviour of the people?
If that isn’t shameful well then…
Goldstein IS a hero! He stands up for the rights of the little guy. So what if he is worth $150 million, does that automatically make him a bad person? I think a lot of personal bashing against Goldstein is based on some of the underlying anti semitism on this board.
It is funny what that guy calls hair splitting when he is taking paragraph by paragraph and trying to make sense…trying to be heard.
How is it splitting hairs to say, that you dear anonymous guest, are perceiving goldstein as a saying he is a victim. he is out on the street because that is how you create action, and when you are a spokesperson, you speak on behalf of people, those people being the over 4,000 petitioners, donors etc who dislike this project, but yes, who don’t have the apparent luxury to be out on the street.
If that is splitting hairs, then get your anonymous behind out in public, state your name.
I repeat, I have never once heard Goldstein cry victim as some poverty stricken person. He is however, if we must use the word victim, a victim of a violation of rights. I don’t care if he is the Oprah, or the richest person on earth, he still has rights. And if that is splitting hairs, then bring it on.
Just because NLG likes to write about things like Downtown vs. PH – does not mean that anyone against this project thinks just like that.
You are the person who has decided that if there is no financial risk then somehow you are not allowed to fight for some thing unjust?
I wish you dear anonymous guest would just answer one damn question. That is, do you really think that this “project” is going to provide housing, for poor people? Do you think that the arena, which is said by RATNER’s company, and any economic study, to not bring profit, will? Do you think that the people who do move in, are not going to be far more “rich” than Goldstein, or what you say he is?
As for this
This reflects your naivete. Renting in a neighborhood, even if for 100 years, entitles one to nothing.
So I guess we should all rollover and just let ratner put his you know what in our you know where?
Split that.
jerk
Just how rich is DG? Prove it.
“I never called anyone an idiot, you make it up that people say people like you are wrong, and yet infact, are you not doing the same thing?”
This is another DDDB tactic – splitting hairs (e.g. the arena is not in downtown Brooklyn, but in Prospect Heights; it’s called the Vanderbilt Yards, not the Atlantic Yards, etc.). I never said that you called anyone an idiot – the term was intended to be descriptive, not literal.
“Like you say, other’s cast him as acting like he would be on the street. I have never once heard anything of that sort come from his mouth.”
Again, this is hairsplitting. While he may have never said he’d be on the street, he’s forever casting himself as a victim or some sort of brave soul that fights corporate crime (even though this process is legal and he and his cohorts have lost every single court battle). This is where his financial status enters the picture. A person as rich as he has the luxury of waging this type of battle (as losing as it is) and therein lies the lack of sympathy – if he does not face a bona fide risk (e.g. bankruptcy, homelessness, etc.), then he turns out to be a petulant whiner intent on blocking a major development project.
While you may have not been paying close attention to this issue for the past four years, many on this board have done so and know that DG is engaging in a losing battle and considers himself some sort of savior to PH. Thankfully, he gets very little attention in the media at this point.
“HOWEVER there were people, renters who lived their for over 40 years, who were not as you say “rich” by any stretch, and that was there home. They were not offered a dime.”
This reflects your naivete. Renting in a neighborhood, even if for 100 years, entitles one to nothing.
A final word on DDDB: from the start, they have chosen contest strategies over negiotiation, a decision that reflects their lack of experience with community organizing and accounts for their woeful lack of success.
11:01 – people criticize Dan Goldstein’s wealth not per se, but because he and others frequently cast him as a victim who is “losing his home”, as though he would be sleeping on a steam grate if NYS seizes his condo. It’s fine to be rich, but to present yourself as “at risk” when you are more than capable of caring for your needs is shameworthy.
Like you say, other’s cast him as acting like he would be on the street. I have never once heard anything of that sort come from his mouth. He has never claimed poverty, or that money was the issue – it is what is wrong with PROPONENTS ( as long as we are labeling people in black and white terms) is that you think it is about money. No, it is about recognizing fraud and bulldozing corporate greed when one sees it. Make no mistake, no one has ever said they will be out on the street. HOWEVER there were people, renters who lived their for over 40 years, who were not as you say “rich” by any stretch, and that was there home. They were not offered a dime.
The claim that Goldstein has played some sort of poverty card, is something that people like you have created. Whether you are rich or poor, there is a concept that we like to think of in this country called rights – rich or poor, we are supposed to have them. So fighting for them is not shameworthy, dear sir.
Remember YOU, and people like you have made the so called NIMBY’s the demons, due to YOUR ego, your small minded way of looking at the world. So keep your finger pointing to yourself. Yes he is loosing his home, but never once have words of being cast out on the street been uttered. Poverty once again has never been claimed. Whether he will be alright, has not been the issue. And that my friend is what you do not get.
Ratner, presents himself as a saviour to the poor. Do you think his intention is to help anyone else but him, his cronies and his family? That is shameworthy, to pretend you are in a sincere partnership with Acorn and the like, when we are all just tools, for his end result, which is more money. And to pretend that he is losing his right to build housing, what a joke. In his own plan, he never intended to build housing first, that is a fact that is out there for the world to see. Do your research.
I never called anyone an idiot, you make it up that people say people like you are wrong, and yet infact, are you not doing the same thing?
Yes I am trolling away, disgusted, it is true.
“The fact that you all stick talk about this like it is about one person, day after day, means you still don’t get it!”
This statement emblifies the attitude of DDDB. To them, there is one correct version of events and anything that deviates from this version is simply wrong. This “anyone who disagrees with me is an idiot” view is what has cost them potential members and sympathizers.
11:01 – people criticize Dan Goldstein’s wealth not per se, but because he and others frequently cast him as a victim who is “losing his home”, as though he would be sleeping on a steam grate if NYS seizes his condo. It’s fine to be rich, but to present yourself as “at risk” when you are more than capable of caring for your needs is shameworthy.
11:14 – for all of your talk about people having nothing to do, trolls, etc., need I remind you that you found the time to post here, as well?
Exactly what kind of work do you viciously psychotically mean tempered people do exactly? Are you working for the city? Are my taxes going towards you sitting on your bum’s posting hate threats all day on a real estate blog? I don’t think you are doing anything too taxing, or too useful for society yourselves, no I imagine you too are sitting at some cush job that affords you the time to jerk around and point fingers and people you have no clue about. I mean really how do you justify, how do you cope with this deep rooted hatred?
Is it a jealousy? What would you do with your “trust fund?” Do you ever stop and think about what the heck you are even saying? Is Jay Z some kind of philanthropic rich hero? No, he is a g-damn rapper!! So really, what the heck is the difference? He ain’t no hero to any hard working striving black youth, no he is a smack my ho up lyricist.
So get it all straight look at yourselves a bit – maybe you are the actual scumbag, and any chance you get to anonymously spit rage, with no facts about other people, you take it and run.
Sad.
As for the Burnham comment way up top ( I have a job you see so I do not have the luxury to troll all day, only by night) g – any one in the financial world knows that the person you ignorantly accuse, was long gone from that company before it fell. If you want to write smut and create lies ( about things that can easily be traced) then it might be recommended that you get a job perhaps at OK Magazine or the like.