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December 17, 2006

We've Got Some Questions

Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn has a lot of questions and is unable to receive answers, even with Norman Oder's detective work and FOIA requests. Here's a taste:

QUESTION:
The proposed rezoning of the Lower East Side and East Village of Manhattan defines affordable housing with a income band cap at 80% of Area Median Income (AMI), or $56,000 for a household of four. Atlantic Yards has a cap of 160% of AMI, or $113,000 for a household of four. 51% of the “affordable” units in Atlantic Yards would be for households earning above 80% of AMI.
-Why is the income cap so high in Brooklyn and so relatively low in Manhattan?
...
QUESTION:
What is the total public cost of the project including both as-of-right and extraordinary costs?

The ESDC memo summarizing the economic impact analysis of the project is incomplete and lacks a full accounting of the public costs. Without accounting for numerous, significant public costs, the net revenue projection is significantly overstated.

QUESTION:
What is the net revenue return for the city and state of New York (just this week it was disclosed that revenues have been cut by nearly 33% and still doesn't include substantial public costs)?

The public has yet to see the developer’s 20-year pro forma financial projections, as required by the MTA’s RFP for the Vanderbilt Rail Yard (the competing bidder, Extell, submitted detailed projections. FCR’s submission to the MTA is here:
www.dddb.net/php/press/budget/proForma.gif

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UPDATE! DDDB has found one answer:

Did you know that the public is paying entirely for the construction of the arena?

Yes. Instead of paying property taxes, Forest City Ratner (FCR) will pay for the arena construction bond with Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILOTS). How will FCR cover the costs of those PILOTS? Simple: with things like luxury box suites, concessions, arena advertising and arena naming rights. The developer puts up NO money for the arena construction. This is called a shell game.

Posted by amy at December 17, 2006 7:42 PM