Ferrer, Then Marty, Speak Out Against Yards' Scale
We have to admit we haven’t found anything to get us particularly excited by Fernando Ferrer. But we were interested to hear him stake out a fairly clear position on the Atlantic Yards project in his conversation with the Daily News: “We’re talking about a lot of mass in that project, a lot of mass….
We have to admit we haven’t found anything to get us particularly excited by Fernando Ferrer. But we were interested to hear him stake out a fairly clear position on the Atlantic Yards project in his conversation with the Daily News:
“We’re talking about a lot of mass in that project, a lot of mass. And if we don’t deal with a lot of the other issues – like traffic, like schools, like police protection, like sanitation and health care – I think we have a problem,” Ferrer said. “We’ve got to make this human-size now,” he concluded. “This can’t be the mother of all real estate deals. If it is that, then, I think it’s wrong.”
He did fail, however, to offer any concrete suggestions for how he would cut the project back.
Within 24 hours Marty Markowitz was following suit, calling for a reduction in size without a reduction in benefits for the community. “The urban design challenge is how do we [preserve] the benefits and downscale the heights of the buildings proposed,” Markowitz said. Where were you six months ago, Marty?
Freddy Fires Net Salvo [NY Daily News]
Beep’s Downsize Call [NY Daily News]
Apartments that only low income people can qualify for are totally bullshit. It’s crazy to reward somebody for making below a certain amount of money.
The point is that the Ratner project will add a lot of free market apartments and as any half brained moron who’s ever taken an economics class knows, the greater the supply, the lower the price, given, of course, that demand doesn’t change.
Long live the free market!
Down with rent control and low income houseing!
If you can’t afford NYC, move to Allentown, PA, or some other cheap place.
No more handouts to the lazy, uneducated, crack dealers!
Supporters of the Ratner development always posit that its either Ratner’s developement or a hole in the ground, which of course are not the only two alternatives. People that are against the Ratner development, by and large, aren’t anti-development, they’re anti-THIS-development. So please, lose that argument.
The low income housing and jobs and even Frank Gehry are all treats that will likely turn into tricks after the project starts. In the end we’ll see how little public good vs. developer gain is had.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the person who built the Atlantic Mall should not be allowed to build another building in this city. If you’ve never been, please go walk the halls. It is architecturally bankrupt and totally disfunctional. Then, please go look at the other fine examples of their “architecture” at: http://www.fcrc.com/projects.asp
They are strip mall developers. Why the press never latches onto this piece of the story, I just don’t get. I wouldn’t let them build me a tool shed.
Do you really expect that Ratner’s monstrosity it going to include housing for the people of Brooklyn who need it? You know he’ll wind up putting in only the absolute minimum number of “low” income apartments required to get tax relief (and BTW, the MINIMUM income required for a “low” income apartment in NYC is $24.7K), and they will be turned over to market rate as soon as the tax breaks are over. And many (most?) of the people against this project are not “wealthy houseowners,” but citizens, many of whom don’t even live in the immediate area, concerned for our city as a whole and fed up with cronyism and underhanded dealmaking.
And I think you’ll agree that piling people on top of each other a la housing projects is not conducive to creating a harmonious neighborhood. The Atlantic Terminal area may not be beautiful (thanks in part to Ratner’s mall horrors), but this solution will create not only increased ugliness but a severe lack of essential services and structures (including health, police, and fire department facilities) necessary to such a population influx.
Where’s Brownstoner? Where are open house pix for the wkend?
I’ll say it again. Downtown Brooklyn is a shithole. The few nice buildings in Prospect Heights that will be lost are not worth saving.
There is not enough housing in this city, and people need places to live. Its time for Brooklyn to turn into a real city, and the only way we are going to give people space is to build up.
All of you wealthy house owners do not have the right to prevent poor schleps like me from getting a decent place in a nice neighborhood.
If anything, they should pass a law such that the MINIMUM size for any multifamily dwelling in Brooklyn should be a FAR of 10.0.
the dutch do everything by committee (the “polder model”) and they use their land wisely. it’s not always bad to talk for a few years to come to a consensus on something that will exist for a century.
I think Brownstoner must be in a long meeting this morning – no new post from him since 8:55.
Borough Pres are largely powerless figureheads and any influence they have is purely personality – which Marty is full of. He doesn’t make the decisions and anti-forces are wasting their time and energy on him.
But I’m another one that sees the project as very positive for the city and mostly positive the neighborhood. Would it look and be designed exactly that way if I were making the choices? – no- but I’m sure 8million different opinions in this town and nothing would ever happen if done by committe.
No, BigBubba, I’m not trying to stir up trouble. I’m just stating my opinion on topics that I feel strongly about, as many others on this board frequently do.
So now even Marty is calling for a reduction in the scale of this monstrosity? Could the Ratner tide be turning?