Supreme Court Won't Hear AY Eminent Domain Case
The Supreme Court announced today that it won’t grant a hearing to a group that sued over the planned use of eminent domain for Atlantic Yards. Eleven property owners and tenants wanted to appeal a lower federal court’s dismissal of an eminent domain case and have the High Court clarify constitutional limits on private-home seizure….
The Supreme Court announced today that it won’t grant a hearing to a group that sued over the planned use of eminent domain for Atlantic Yards. Eleven property owners and tenants wanted to appeal a lower federal court’s dismissal of an eminent domain case and have the High Court clarify constitutional limits on private-home seizure. Now that the eminent domain case is toast on a federal level, the plaintiffs are going to file suit in state court, according to a press release from Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn (copy on jump). “We are, of course, disappointed that the Court declined our request to hear this important case. This is not, however, a ruling on the merits of our claims. Our claims remain sound. New York State law, and the state constitution, prohibit the government from taking private homes and businesses simply because a powerful developer demands it. Yet, that is what has happened. Recent events have revealed that the public, and the Public Authorities Control Board were sold a bill of goods by Ratner and the Empire State Development Corporation. We now know that Ratner’s project will cost the public much more than it will ever receive,” said lead attorney Matthew Brinckerhoff of Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP. “Now we will turn to the state courts to vindicate our rights. We will soon file an action in New York state court under state law as we were expressly permitted to do by the rulings of the federal courts.” A statement from Forest City Ratner is presumably forthcoming.
Update: The Real Estate got the following statement from Forest City chairman Bruce Ratner: We believe, and the courts have repeatedly agreed, that Atlantic Yards provides significant public benefits including thousands of affordable homes and much needed jobs for Brooklyn. We are gratified that the Supreme Court has decided to put an end to this lawsuit. The opponents have now lost 20 court decisions relating to Atlantic Yards and we are now one step closer to making these benefits a reality for the borough and the City.
AY Owners, Renters File Eminent Domain Appeal [Brownstoner]
Photo by dbking.
The United States Supreme Court denied the petition to grant a hearing (cert petition) to eleven property owners and tenants who asked the court to hear their appeal on the Second Circuit Court’s dismissal of their challenge to the use of eminent domain for Forest City Ratner’s Atlantic Yards development proposal in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. The petition asked the Court to address the appropriate constitutional limits on the government’s power to seize private homes for the benefit of powerful real estate developers like Bruce Ratner.
The Court’s denial of the petition in Goldstein et al. v. Pataki et al. does not affirm or deny the plaintiffs’ arguments, nor is it the end of the legal road for the plaintiffs.
The plaintiffs, fighting to prevent the seizure of their homes and businesses for the benefit of Forest City Ratner, will now pursue their eminent domain challenge in state court under New York State law.
“We are, of course, disappointed that the Court declined our request to hear this important case. This is not, however, a ruling on the merits of our claims. Our claims remain sound. New York State law, and the state constitution, prohibit the government from taking private homes and businesses simply because a powerful developer demands it. Yet, that is what has happened. Recent events have revealed that the public, and the Public Authorities Control Board were sold a bill of goods by Ratner and the Empire State Development Corporation. We now know that Ratner’s project will cost the public much more than it will ever receive,” said lead attorney Matthew Brinckerhoff of Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP. “Now we will turn to the state courts to vindicate our rights. We will soon file an action in New York state court under state law as we were expressly permitted to do by the rulings of the federal courts.”
Besides the eleven plaintiffs on Goldstein et al. v. Pataki et al. there are approximately 30 other residents and business owners in the project’s footprint whose properties would be seized for Forest City Ratner’s benefit.
Ironically, today is the 3rd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s extremely controversial 5-4 decision in the eminent domain case Kelo v. The City of New London. The plaintiffs in the Brooklyn case did not seek to overturn Kelo, but rather utilize the majority and concurring opinions to make their case.
The petition and all lower court briefs and decisions in Goldstein et al v. Pataki et al can be found at: http://www.dddb.net/eminentdomain.
everyone knows that at this point the supreme court is a hoax anyway.
11:21, you know as well as I do that the same jokers that are anti-Atlantic Yards today will be anti-“Unity Plan” tomorrow. These fools are a bunch of trust fund babies with nothing better to do with their time. It’s impossible to build anything in New York City. We all know that without eminent domain, Times Square would still be one giant crackhouse. Guaranteed that if AY collapses, which it well may, the corner of Flatbush and Atlantic will be a whole in the ground for the rest of all of our lives. I’m not sure if AY will happen, but I’m CERTAIN that if it collapses, some group of jokers will come out of the woodwork to form “Stop the Unity Plan Now!”
Right, $40 grand is something to be concerned about but $2 billion isn’t. Ratnerville’s not getting built. The $50 mil we already gave Ratner (for affordable housing no less!) is already coming across as the fraud that it is.
We’re gonna give him the rest of the $2 billion? I think politicians like to get reelected. Any of them try and pass property tax increases while funding Ratner’s handout are gonna get a lot of heat. I can see the stump speeches now – “Tax hikes are good for you. Remember, all we have to do is give this guy $2 billion of our tax money over the next ten years and over 30 years he’s gonna give us a billion dollars back! Vote Quimby.”
Keep adquiring properties and keep demolishing what’s there.
See ya, Danny. Take the three of ya back to the Upper West Side.
And the trustafarians, too.
DDDB are absolutely ridiculous. First, they file a bunch a frivolous lawsuits to delay the project. The obvious goal of their delay tactic was to stretch the outcome out until (i) there was a change in market conditions, therefore making the project financial unreasonable, and/or (ii) there was a change in political climate (at the city or state level or both) which would allow them to lobby for a retroactive review of Atlantic Yards. They are about 75% of the way where they think they want to be. The financial markets are now in tatters and as a result, the cost of building the project has skyrocketed. Furthermore, Bloomberg has another 18 months in office (which we all knew would be the case) and Spitzer got himself booted out of office (which we did not anticipate). From DDDB’s point of view, all they have to do is keep filing their frivolous lawsuits which they know they have absolutely no chance of winning, and hold out another 18 months until Bloomy is gone and there will be a complete 180 degree turn both the economic and political climate. The only problem is (A) none of the political establishment on either side of the aisle has voiced serious antipathy towards the project (even the rally amongst the elected officials last week took a “mend it don’t end it” approach) and (B) it will take a heck of alot for Ratner to walk away from the $400 million from Barclays. Worst case scenario, Ratner only build the arena and scraps the rest of the project by securitizing the Barclays annuity and soliciting financing for the rest (even is this climate, it’s still possible to obtain financing on a 60% loan-to-value). So, this drama will continue to play itself out for at least the next year and a half, and ultimately, we will end up with an arena and 7 blocks of surface parking…courtesy of DDDB.
Worst case the whole boondoggle is already delayed for years by all the opposition. Best case and more likely each day is the whole plan collapses and we do something that makes more sense. Ineffective? Ineffective like a fox!
Ha! Ha! Anyone with half a brain saw this coming from a mile away.
The DDDB crowd is, without a doubt, the most ineffective group of community organizers ever seen. They have stumbled and fallen every step of the way and are 100% guaranteed to fail in state court.
I recently saw a fox news report on eminent domain which mentioned that Daniel Goldstein’s wife is pregnant. This makes my suspicion that they no longer reside in that condo all the more likely. It is doubtful that a pregnant woman would live in a large, empty building just to prove a point. I recall seeing a political donor list where she listed a West End Ave. address – I’d bet that they reside there full-time and only return to Pacific Street for the (now rare) photo-op.
Hey, I wish them well. Now that their silly fight is almost over, they can move on to the more important task of raising a child.
oh, gehry has some beautiful rampage for the old folks.
All DDDB sympathizers continue to write your fund raising checks to Goldstein Inc that way he can continue to pay his girlfriend $40k salary to be a secretary.