Endangered AY
This morning the Times has a couple articles about Atlantic Yards that more or less boil down to the following: Aspects of the mega-project aside from the Nets arena are likely to be delayed or go unrealized; Forest City Ratner has not been able to lure an anchor tenant to Miss Brooklyn, his planned office…
This morning the Times has a couple articles about Atlantic Yards that more or less boil down to the following: Aspects of the mega-project aside from the Nets arena are likely to be delayed or go unrealized; Forest City Ratner has not been able to lure an anchor tenant to Miss Brooklyn, his planned office tower; and Frank Gehry’s overarching vision for AY will be severely compromised if all that’s built is the arena. In one article, Charles Bagli includes snippets of an interview with Bruce Ratner in which the developer concedes that construction of Miss Brooklyn will not begin until a tenant has been secured for the office tower; Bagli also notes that the three residential towers surrounding the arena, which are slated to have 1,000 units of housing—including many affordable units—may not happen anytime soon, since developers are finding financing harder to come by. Ratner still sounds cautiously optimistic about the first phase of AY, though. It’s not going to happen in a nanosecond, he tells the Times. I hope it’s not going to be drawn out. I’d hope that the first residential building will be done within six months of the opening of the arena, and a second one a year after that. In the second article, architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff says the possibility that all we’ll be left with is a Nets arena “feels like a betrayal of the public trust.” Ouroussoff calls on Frank Gehry to walk away from the entire development: “by pulling out he would be expressing a simple truth: At this point the Atlantic Yards development has nothing to do with the project that New Yorkers were promised. Nor does it rise to the standards Mr. Gehry has set for himself during a remarkable career.”
Slow Economy Likely to Stall Atlantic Yards [NY Times]
What Will Be Left of Gehry’s Vision for Brooklyn? [NY Times]
Ratner Admits Major AY Delays, Rising Arena Cost [AY Report]
Miss Brooklyn & Housing to Die as Arena Lives? [GL]
Bullet Points of Bagli Article [No Land Grab]
Photo by threecee.
And many people are not anti-all-development, they just think that what Ratner has built so far in Brooklyn pretty much sucks. I mean, MetroTech is a good example. I’m not saying it didn’t bring in revenue for the city, but it was designed to be DEAD after 6 PM and on weekends. And it is so totally boring and creates a deserted creepy area after hours. Atlantic Mall serves a purpose but is also ugly as sin.
Anyone who is going to have a huge construction site across the road for years on end is going to have the value of their property affected. Seems obvious. And don’t fret, pro-development folks, some big stuff will get built eventually. Times Square redevelopment was supposed to happen in the early 80s but got put off when the economy tanked, only to come to fruition in the late 90s when it there was huge money to be made and financing available.
It is clear now that Ratner should have hired Ghery to design his Atlantic Mall, and why the heck didn’t he build a tower at that site? It’s one of the ugliest buildings in Brooklyn and the density is unacceptable. That was basically his first big F-U to Brooklyn (one of many and more to come). People blaming anyone other than the Rat himself need to open their eyes.
I’m a broker and sold at least one property because the owners were convinced there’d be some negative “AY Effect”. Other clients of mine mentioned the possibility and were obviously concerned about it, but their simply mentioning it doesn’t make me inclined to say that they were selling “because of” AY.
On the other hand, I know one client who definitely did sell for this reason, and if there was one there were probably others.
Anyone who doesn’t understand the power of BAM is an ass-hat!
And blame here should be focused squarely on Ratner, in fact, this now potentially provides him with the convenient way out of affordable housing, as it was his plan all along to never build any. Too bad he owns the Nets because i’m sure they’d jump otherwise.
10:21 is right. Most of the anti-AY crowd is anti-AY, NOT development in general over the yards. This was simply the wrong project brought forth in the wrong way.
9:34 So what if it takes another 10 years, if what is finally built is good? Do you not understand that whatever is built there will likely last 100 years at least? I’d like to see a worthwhile project go ahead tomorrow if possible, but keep in mind, when you’re talking land-use, neighborhood character, and development, 10 years is a drop in the bucket.
And 10:00, only old people are anti AY? Really? I’m 34, and most of my friends are around my age or younger. The ones that I’ve discussed AY with are overwhelmingly anti-AY.
Karma indeed.
Housing crisis or not, the affordable housing was always going to find a way to ‘fall through the cracks’.
I agree with 9:54 — park, please.
The Nets play in front of thousands of empty seats in Jersey for the same reason they will in Brooklyn. There’s not enough of a nearby business community that will buy tickets for corporate entertaining. Taking clients to the Garden makes sense for a NYC law or advertising firm. Taking them to Atlantic Yards doesn’t.
I’m all for the arena, but if you think it is going to help the surrounding area take a look at the area around MSG. Total wasteland with millions of bums sleeping everywhere.
The bigger issue here is that Ratner’s inability to get financing will scare off lenders financing all the smaller condo projects. They’re going to start pulling out in droves and all those would-be towers will never happen–at least not until the next boom.