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January 30, 2008
Opposition to Taxbreaks for Ratner: Letitia James and David Yassky Team Up
Daily Gotham
Seems Councilmembers Letitia James and David Yassky are teaming up to oppose the massive tax giveaways to developer Bruce Ratner.
From the press release:
Today at the Finance Committee hearing, the committee will review and vote on Proposed Resolution 90, which asks the State of New York to end the twenty-year-old property tax exemption for Madison Square Garden. If the Council thinks subsidizing MSG is a bad deal fort the City and State, they should take another look at the tax breaks and subsidies being offered to the proposed Atlantic Yards Development: they are even worse.
Council Members Yassky and James will introduce an amendment to Res. 90 that includes language condemning public financing of the Atlantic Yards Development, and asking for these breaks and subsidies to be withheld. The arena component alone is slated to receive hundreds of millions in public funds: $100 million from both the City and State, as well as roughly $500 million in effective property tax exemption, and another $100 million saved from the issuance of tax-free bonds to finance the arena. These numbers do not include additional hundreds of millions of dollars that will go towards the residential and commercial components of the project.
NoLandGrab: It's amazing how some City Councilmembers oppose the property tax exemption for Madison Square Garden while shovelling money down Bruce Ratner's gullet.
What's the worst thing that can happen if the City reverses the deal for subsidies and tax exemptions for Bruce Ratner's Nets arena? It's not as if Ratner will threaten to move the team to New Jersey.
Posted by lumi at January 30, 2008 8:01 PM