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January 30, 2008
Pullout without penalty? Maybe, but not without pain
Atlantic Yards Report
Bruce Ratner will suffer no penalty from the state should he decide not to build Atlantic Yards, as reported yesterday by The New York Post. Norman Oder contemplates other financial pitfalls.
But the developer wouldn't exactly go away without pain. First, the Nets consistently lose money, and the loss of the Barclays Center naming rights deal would be huge.
And Forest City Ratner would be sitting on a patchwork of property for which it paid generously for under current zoning, but would be a bargain given the expected zoning override that allows for much bigger buildings. But the demise of the project would mean the demise of the bargain and a certain amount of pain.
There's surely much more to the potential scenario; if the project does come closer to stalling, we should expect public officials to be more forthcoming.
Posted by steve at January 30, 2008 6:13 AM