Ratner Sued Over Yards Air Rights
So much for the renter-holdouts being the last thing standing between Bruce and his arena: Yesterday news broke that Peter Williams had filed suit against the New York State Urban Development Corp and Brooklyn Arena LLC, claiming that the State agency had failed to legally acquire the air rights he owned over the building at…
So much for the renter-holdouts being the last thing standing between Bruce and his arena: Yesterday news broke that Peter Williams had filed suit against the New York State Urban Development Corp and Brooklyn Arena LLC, claiming that the State agency had failed to legally acquire the air rights he owned over the building at 24 6th Avenue. (Williams had acquired the rights in 2001 in an exchange but never owned the building.) Williams, who had received a payment for the seizure of another building in the project footprint weeks ago, then went on the Brian Lehrer show yesterday and said, “I’m a capitalist pig. All I want is money.” From a press release:
Indeed, the UDC did not identify Lot 7501 in either its Notice of Public Hearing, pursuant to Article 2 of the EDPL, dated July 24, 2006 (the Notice), or its Determination and Findings, pursuant to EDPL § 204, dated December 8, 2006 (the Determination). Both the Notice and the Determination identified the property subject to acquisition by condemnation by block and lot. Both listed Lots 1001-1021 as the only lots UDC sought to acquire located at 24 Sixth Avenue. Both expressly provided that the street addresses are included for ease of reference only, and that in the event of any inconsistency between the street addresses and the tax blocks and lots, the block and lot information shall control. Because Lot 7501 was never identified, it cannot be, and has not been, taken eminent domain.
Knowing what each day of delay costs Ratner at this point, we suspect the pig will get his capital, don’t you?
B’klyn Arena Opponent Sues for ‘Air Rights’ [NY Post]
Yards Holdout Claims Ratner Doesn’t Own Air Rights [NY Daily News]
Owner of Easement Sues Rater for Money [AY Report]
Photo by Tracy Collins
I think ratner did quite a bit of extortion himself.FSRG’s cynical viewpoint is correct- but it applies to ratner and his friends.
fsrq — Extort is a strong word. And so is “blight.” Neither of these are applicable in this context.
How much do you think the air rights are worth in $/sf?
I am going to interpret the lack of outrage that this guy Williams is trying to use the ED process to extort $ and cause delays that will only hurt the neighborhood as just another example at how 90% of the anti-AY criticism was simply a red-herring tactics to NIMBY a project that the opponents didnt want.
It is sad but true that my cynical view is so accurate: there is no such thing as a principled stand anymore, everything is rhetoric for $, power or fame rationalized by “context”
All this for . . . . . . The Nets?
except like Johnny said, its not Ratner’s money anyway. Its a lot of our money.
He’s hardly a dick….
All the inflammatory rhetoric aside, you have to remember that the property owners are *forced* to sell. They didn’t put their properties on the market like the House of the Day. The HoD owner can just decide to de-list his/her house if they don’t like the offers and try again later. This ain’t the case for the folks in this “blighted” area. I say, more power to them all for squeezing out every cent they possibly can.
pay the dick and start building!!!
I’d admire this guy’s gall more if Ratner was playing with his own money – if he had any of his own money.