Ouroussoff, Tell Us How You Really Feel
New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff doesn’t mince words in reviewing the new design for the Atlantic Yards Arena. “The recent news that the developer Forest City Ratner had scrapped Frank Gehry’s design for a Nets arena in central Brooklyn is not just a blow to the art of architecture,” he writes in today’s…
New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff doesn’t mince words in reviewing the new design for the Atlantic Yards Arena. “The recent news that the developer Forest City Ratner had scrapped Frank Gehry’s design for a Nets arena in central Brooklyn is not just a blow to the art of architecture,” he writes in today’s Arts section. “It is a shameful betrayal of the public trust, one that should enrage all those who care about this city.” But wait, there’s more: “In a stunning bait-and-switch, Forest City Ratner has now decided that it can’t afford an architect of Mr. Gehry’s stature. Neglecting to tell the public, the firm went out months ago and hired Ellerbe Becket, corporate architects known for producing generic, unimaginative buildings. And although it has refused to release details of the design, the renderings, obtained by The New York Times, tell you all you need to know.” Indeed they do.
Battle Between Budget and Beauty, Which Budget Won [NY Times]
“maybe we can get further downgraded to a Wal-Mart and a homeless shelter”
Either of those uses would provide far more benefit to Brooklynites than a tax-subsidized arena for a professional sports business.
“We should leave it at that.”
Agreed.
I disagree- you would.
I also want to clarify what i meant by “splitting” neighborhoods”. I never said neighborhood would be joined, but over time neighborhoods grow and spread out. New communities develop and grow, businesses come in.At one time many neighborhoods were small villages or towns that out grew their borders. the history of Brooklyn, in fact all of NYC, certainly shows that. AY w wasn’t planned to be part of the urban landscape, but apart from it. It was more like a fortress in concept. That’s my take on it.
also agree with ENY’s post at 12:47.
I think there has been plenty of hyperbole on all sides. I can only tell you what I’ve heard from friends and what I’ve read. I NEVER said your views weren’t valid (that’s hyperbolic as well) – but i think both sides have very different views of what constitutes realistic. Just because my viewpoint doesn’t agree with yours, its a matter of opinion, not validity.
And no- I’m not particularly turned on by the big guy little guy concept (a hyperbolic assumption on your part 🙂 – but yes, i do admire DDDB for taking ratner on. If you’re denying ratner had no help and went through the proper channels and followed all the rules, then I have to wonder why. For all intents and purposes, the neighborhood that is in his footprint is gone. Public streets will be demapped. there seems to be a whole range of problems and issues pro AYers seem to want to sweep under the rug but the biggest complaint I have with them is that from the get-go, instead of listening to why people are against it, they blow it off as NIMBYISM. And that’s been the attitude all along- that there is no validity to worries about density, or the size and scale? What about the trains, the streets, etc.
I think we won’t agree on any of it except to say that we both think there were merits to the project (and it may surprise you that I do see some) but we seem to differ on whether or not the good outweighs the bad. We should leave it at that.
i do agree with ENY that the AY area wasn’t really coming back on its own, and that the idea of “joining” the neighborhoods is kind of a fiction. the mall, one hanson, the nature of atlantic ave, and the other big, unfriendly either underused or coldly developed plots on either side of atlantic between PH and FG/CH make it somewhat impossible.
but i don’t agree with ENY’s perspective about what a basketball arena “should” look like. the urban context of the location already gives this arena a much stronger likelihood of holistic success than arenas and stadia that are built on the outskirts of cities (the suburbs or exurban no-man’s land) and realistically inaccessible by anything else other than private cars. but projects like pac bell park and coors field have absolutely relied on the space looking like something different, something to respect and enjoy. yeah, they look like *sports complexes*, and they still work. it doesn’t need to be frank gehry, and maybe even shouldn’t be. there are many redesigns that could do it. never say never, i suppose, but this pile looks less like a fun place i want to go than that the pathmark across the street decided it needed a few more windows.
i happen to be a basketball fan, and as a family-type person i’ll be glad to have another venue for family events so that a trip to the circus or to whatever doesn’t necessitate an hour subway ride. but FCR already has already revised its predictions and is now saying that the arena itself won’t be profitable (again, due to increased credit costs), at least not for a long time. the success of the project, financially, aesthetically, and for the community relies on the arena bringing something more – it either needs to create intimacy itself, or inspire it through contrast. this rendering does neither.
I was on the fence about this whole project from the get go and wasn’t a huge fan of the gehry design but this thing is UGLY. And now I am against – both because it is ugly and because of the “bait and switch”. I hope it never gets built.
bxgrl, I couldn’t disagree more with what you’re saying. The neighborhood is not “destroyed.” Such hyperbole! Also, who said Ratner was “the savior of Brooklyn?” I think you’re using provocative words to improperly characterize a group of people whose opinions are based on their realistic view of this project. Our views are just as valid as yours. Furthermore, I think you (and others) are particularly turned on by the idea of “little guy vs. big guy.” That’s great, but if in the end no one is better off, what exactly has the little guy won? I certainly don’t feel “steamrolled,” and while there were aspects of the project I think could and should have been done better, I thought overall it had merit.