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October 8, 2009
New Atlantic Yards lawsuit to target state
NYPost.com
by Gary Buiso
Community groups will soon file a lawsuit challenging the state’s approval of a modified plan for the Atlantic Yards project, arguing that the Empire State Development Corporation accepted skewed data and failed to meaningfully engage the public during its review of the controversial plan, this paper has learned.
The lawsuit, which has not yet been filed, will argue that Forest City Ratner’s revised project was approved in September without appropriate documentation and data, specifically an alleged under-reporting of traffic impacts. A supplemental environmental impact statement will therefore be warranted, as the project has fundamentally changed in scope, according to Gib Veconi, a member of the Prospect Heights Development Council, one of the plaintiffs in the suit.
Last week Veconi successfully urged the Park Slope Civic Council to agree to be co-plaintiffs on the suit, which is being organized by the umbrella group Brooklyn Speaks. The Manhattan-based Urban Environmental Law Center is expected to represent the plaintiffs.
PSCC President Ken Freeman said his group has been trying to work with the developer to improve the existing project, rather than kill it. “It is with a heavy heart that we are forced to admit that nearly three years later, all our efforts have been in vain. The project has changed significantly for the worse in that time, and our efforts have yielded no concessions.”
Posted by eric at October 8, 2009 4:14 PM