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September 17, 2008
In Brodsky’s report slamming Yankee Stadium deal, major questions implied about Atlantic Yards arena plan
Atlantic Yards Report
Watergate gave us "it's not the crime, it's the cover-up," but in the case of New York City's manipulation of assessed land values to help the Yankees stick taxpayers with a large bill for their new stadium, it appears to be that it is the crime, and the cover-up.
AYR's Norman Oder has the goods on the damning report issued this week by Assemblyman Richard Brodsky, and what it may mean for Bruce Ratner, who's trying to pull the same scam for his planned Nets arena.
Westchester Assemblyman Richard Brodsky yesterday released a report, The House That You Built (PDF), slamming the city on multiple grounds for its management of the Yankee Stadium deal, suggesting the willingness to grant tax-exempt bonds was based on an empty threat--a vague report, backed up without direct evidence, that the Yankees would leave the media capital of New York City for a stadium elsewhere.
Brodsky’s charges drew a fierce rebuttal from the city, which not coincidentally, was followed by an announcement that Seth Pinsky, president of the New York City Economic Development Corporation and the only witness at a contentious July 2 Assembly hearing called by Brodsky’s Committee on Corporations, Commissions and Authorities, had withdrawn from a planned appearance at a Congressional hearing tomorrow on the Yankees deal.
No other city official will take his place. "We have informed the congressman [Dennis Kucinich] that it will not work for us," Pinsky said, according to the New York Sun. "But we remain happy to speak to him about this subject." (Doesn’t Congress have subpoena power?) Nor will the Yankees testify.
AY implications
The absence of any city representative suggests that Kucinich’s committee will have trouble publicly exploring the parallels between the Yankees deal and that planned for the Atlantic Yards arena. While Brodsky’s report doesn’t mention Atlantic Yards, it raises significant questions about the arena deal, notably whether taxpayers are paying for construction and whether the city is willing to manipulate the arena tax assessment to meet requirements for tax-exempt bonds.
NoLandGrab: We have a feeling that Mr. Pinsky's unwillingness to be inconvenienced by an Acela trip to the nation's capital isn't going to bring Congressman Kucinich's investigation to a halt.
And we do find it interesting that Pinsky and the City feel the hearing won't work for them, since we're pretty damned sure that the ripping off of taxpayers doesn't work for us.
Posted by eric at September 17, 2008 8:54 AM