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April 5, 2007
It came from the Blogosphere...
Brooklyn Record, A Park Slope Passover Gone Political
Granted, if you're going to a Seder at a place that probably served bacon that morning (rather than spending it with your family in a scrubbed-clean Kosher home), you're probably not all that observant. Still, was it right for the rabbi holding the service to turn a religious event into a political discourse? If any of you were there, how did you react?
Brooklynian, Transportation Alternatives: cruising for parking
"Brooke Lynn Knight" has this to say about "Parking Slope:"
Thank god Ratner has proposed all those innovative ways to alleviate the huge burst of Manhattan-Brooklyn street and subway traffic his project will create, or else the whole area around Atlantic Yards would be likely to become un-navigable and downright unlivable!
Brownstoner, Another Day, Another Atlantic Yards Lawsuit
The Times article focuses more on the lack of financial transparency in the project, namely the fact that no one who signed off on the project ever saw a financial plan for the project. The buck-passing and semantic side-stepping approaches the comical. “We did not receive a document labeled ‘financial plan,’ but the information we received, taken together, constitutes a financial plan,” said ESDC spokesman Errol Cockfield, before adding, "The important distinction is to point out that the project was approved by the previous administration, not this administration." In a statement that says exactly nothing, FCR spokesman Loren Riegelhaupt, said that the company was “not able to make our business plan public” for “proprietary reasons.” Translation: They just didn't want to.
Common Sense, The Barclays Boycott
Last year New York State issued a study to justify its use of eminent domain, claiming Atlantic Yards is blighted. According to a New York Sun report, causes of the blight include “rail yards and a ‘diversity of ownership’ that ‘hindered site assemblage that is necessary for redevelopment.’ ”
Get it?! “Blighted” means your land isn’t being used for what it will be used for after you’ve been ejected! (Duh!)
...
And now the New York Libertarian Party has thrown down the gauntlet, urging folks to boycott Barclays for its collusion in this rotten deal. ...
I almost wish I had money in Barclays, so I could ostentatiously withdraw it.
HoopChina, [流言板]卡特再获总经理支持
继篮网老板布鲁斯-拉特纳 (Bruce Ratner)、主席罗德-索恩 (Rod Thorn) 公开表示会在夏天留下文斯-卡特 (Vince Carter) 后，球队总经理埃德-斯特范斯奇 (Ed Stefanski) 周六晚在和季票持有者聊天时聊天时说他也愿意和卡特续约——如果后者选择在夏天选择成为自由球员的话。
NoLandGrab: WWCS? [What would Confucious say?]
Hartichoked, what's your damage?
A visitor to Brooklyn will make a stop in the footprint:
I will definitely be dropping by Freddy's for a final pint of Brooklyn Lager in a few weeks before Bruce Ratner destroys the Atlantic Yards.
REMINDER: Atlantic Yards doesn't exist yet. Ratner wants to BUILD Atlantic Yards, not DESTROY it. Also, Freddy's is staying put for now since it is a plaintiff in the Federal eminent domain suit. Drop in for a pint in support of their efforts to save one of the best bars in NYC. Just don't ask for Brooklyn Lager — Freddy's dumped its last keg of that bitter brew a year ago.
The Daily Gotham, New Atlantic Yards Lawsuit to be Announced Today
It's never too early to start teaching kids about civic responsibility:
I am home with my son today (no day care) so I may be able to make this!
Press Conference in Brooklyn
Today. April 5. 11:45 AM.
WANDERING MEDUSA, An ad, a hand on a shoulder, and a mid-spring freeze
This morning's news about the latest Atlantic Yards lawsuit reminds one house hunter to stay clear:
Ha! The local morning news is featuring yet another lawsuit on Atlantic Yards, the massive construction project that is just starting (residential, commercial, retail, and a new basketball arena.) I need to find a good map of where it's supposed to go (in the chance that none of the lawsuits manage to hamper its development.) I think the apartment I'm seeing tonight is within a handful of blocks, which wouldn't be ideal, especially during the years of construction and upheavel.
Black Bottom Movement, There Goes the Neighborhood
A harsh look at one of the realities of eminent domain:
Recent examples are Columbia University’s continuous expansion into the historic Harlem community, the Brooklyn Atlantic Yards project, and housing developments in the often blotted out Far-Rockaway. Supporters of eminent domain in true capitalist spirit believe that this principle would in theory attract bigger businesses, hypothetically reduce crime-rates and in general build prettier neighborhoods. The realities of this dense program are often noticeable demographic changes. Low-cost housing slowly fades away. Rental increases and the arrival of wealthier inhabitants force older inhabitants out. Historically black neighborhoods undergo a facelift subsequently undermining a sense of community established by generations before us. Affordable housing and renovation of older buildings is all good but at what cost?
Cats Love Puking, Boo Hoo!
So to make room for the Atlantic Yards, the city wants to tear down the Ward Bread Bakery on Pacific street. No biggie, right? No. Huge biggie. Guess what happened? That’s right, stupid protesters came and said “you can’t tear down that bakery, it’s historic!” Listen, hippies, New York City is a confined space, and we don’t have the resources to keep every abandoned old building that no one cares about until it is torn down. No one’s heard of this bakery, and no one cares about it, and no one cares about you.
NoLandGrab: Call it a hunch, but we're guessing that no one mistakes Evan Jacobs for someone who cares.
The Gowanus Lounge, Atlantic Yards #2: Another Lawsuit to be Filed Today
The suit challenges the "fatally flawed environmental review...and approval" of the 8 million square foot, $4 billion Atlantic Yards plan. The suit also seeks a preliminary injunction to enjoin the project from proceeding, including: demolitions, construction, disposition of public property or commitment and expenditure of public funds.
Posted by lumi at April 5, 2007 11:05 AM