Voices from the Atlantic Yards Debate
Last Thursday night, NewsHour with Jim Lehrer ran a segment on the Atlantic Yards debate, interviewing a number of the key players and voices on either side. Here are some excerpts: Marty Markowitz, Borough Pres: Sports have a way of infusing the municipality in which it’s in with that pride, that spirit. And we have…
Last Thursday night, NewsHour with Jim Lehrer ran a segment on the Atlantic Yards debate, interviewing a number of the key players and voices on either side. Here are some excerpts:
Marty Markowitz, Borough Pres: Sports have a way of infusing the municipality in which it’s in with that pride, that spirit. And we have lots of spirit in Brooklyn, you know that. I mean my attitude is if you don’t live in Brooklyn, forget about it.
Bertha Lewis, Acorn: It’s the most far-reaching housing agreement that’s ever been reached in this country. No one else has 50-50 — no one. It’s exhilarating and it is scary
Candace Carpenter, DDDB: They are asking for $2 billion in subsidies, which are taxpayers’ money, that will be utilized to line Ratner’s pockets. And we don’t have any input.
Laetitia James, City Council: It basically says things like good faith effort. It says things like, “we will try.” It says things like “we will consider.” It says things like “we will work with the government.” That’s not an ironclad agreement.
Jim Stuckey, FCR: There might be a need for eminent domain; there might be a need for condemnation; that is something that the state will decide.
Vince Burns, Tenant: If they wanted to take down my building to put in a police station or school – I’d had to leave where I am because I love the place — but I’d understand that – I mean, that’s fine — but this project is about one very wealthy man who wants to become wealthier by, you know, kicking me out.
Developing Brooklyn [PBS NewsHour]
ANON 1202,
636 Pacific w/ Daniel Goldstein;Spalding Building w/Vince Burns and another owner;the Carpenter’s Union Building on Dean Street; Freddy’s Bar;473 Dean st. w/rent stabilized tenants;The Mobil Station on Flatbush avenue;Henry Weinsteins building on Pacific and Carlton;one family owned building on Vanderbilt ave.;auto dealer shop on Vanderbilt;Simon Liu’s business which employs 20 people on Dean st;666 Pacific st; 493-495 Dean street family owned;489 Dean street owned by family;parking lot on 6 ave; building next to Freddy’s bar and ther’s probably more I’m missing. ALL OF THESE WOULD HAVE TO BE DEMOLISHED BY EMINENT DOMAIN!!
David: Where did you find that link? There is no link to that from any of his top-level pages. Maybe he toned down the rhetoric for the election. The only links I found were to buy his DVD.
Anon: Here is one of the owners in the footprint commenting on what Ratner owns and doesn’t from “nolandgrab.org”.
Weinstein appeared before the ESDC, hoping to obtain an explanation of how the Draft Scope EIS states that Bruce Ratner controls the leases on three of his own properties. “Forest City Ratner Properties has maliciously claimed to have control of three properties which I have owned for over twenty-five years”
I’ve tried asking before but nobody seems to know.
But at this point how much ’eminent domain’ would be required for Ratner’s current plans?
I’ve heard that most of the private property is already bought up or has option to buy.
So which properties would need to be ‘condemned’?
Any of it on the actual arena sight itself?
http://rentistoodamnhigh.org/page12.html
What I think makes sense, and what is going to happen after the Senate approves and the President signs into law new anti-eminent domain abuse measures, is that Ratner builds a smaller development that comprises only the actual rail yards. This is what Marshall Brown and the Atlantic Yards Development Workshop suggested and Extell proposed in their offer to the MTA. Everyone wants something to happen on that site, they just feel cheated by Ratner and his bait-steal-and switch. I’m not anti-development, hell, I’m a developer. I’m anti-over development and eminent domain abuse.
You have a right to say a lot of things. I went to Jimmy McMillans website, and there aren’t any links to the racist comments you mentioned. It looks to me that if he did say them, he wasn’t actively campaigning with them. I also live two blocks from “Ground Zero” of the Atlantic Yards, and being active in the block association, I have talked at length with a number of my neighbors. No one I have ever met in person is in support of Ratner and his full bore Eminent Domain project.
Shahn you certainly have a right to vote for any racist moron for any reason that you wish- including a catchy party name – of course I have the right to say that anone who votes for a candidtae soley because of the party name is a moron.
I also think you are living in a bubble if you believe that MArkowitz and Bloomberg won in Brooklyn yesterday soley with votes outside of Downtown area – what you and many of your anti folks dont seem to realize is that many of us (who live nearby Atlantic Yards) SUPPORT the project
I think everyone knows that Bloomberg winning was a foregone conclusion, so any vote for Mattera, etc. was mainly a protest vote. I have the right to vote for or against anyone or anything for any reason I so choose. While voting for a party solely because I think their name is funny isn’t exactly a great use of democracy, in an election where any vote other than Bloomberg (R) or Ferrer (D) is a protest vote, I think it was a nice use of my protest. Clearly, this doesn’t mean I’m supprting some anti-semitic idiot who has no hope of ever moving his agenda forward. That said, all of the people who support Marty Markowitz and Mayor Bloomberg and live outside downtown Brooklyn cast their votes for Ratner when both of them won re-election tonight. Too bad that those who make the decisions about downtown Brooklyn are elected by a lot of people that don’t live there. Here’s hoping that the Senate and the President get on board this bill from the House banning federal funding from state and local governments that use eminent domain to take land for commercial interests.
Looks like Mattera- the anti-Ratner candidate received only about 18000 votes.
Doesn’t seem that the resentment to Atlantic Yards proposal is too significant. Loud yes. But large no.