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December 19, 2009
Atlantic Yards Report: Hired Help Versus Chains of Justice
Bernard King, off Ratner's payroll, now hopes Knicks sign LeBron James
Brooklyn-born basketball star Bernard King, a three-year Net and six-year Knick, was once a paid booster of the Nets' Brooklyn move, but was dropped after he was accused of spousal abuse. (He avoided jail time and battery charges by agreeing to counseling.)
Now, he tells FanHouse:
King doesn't work for the Knicks, anymore. He lives in Atlanta, where he owns a company that works with businesses to help cut energy consumption. Yet he still follows NBA basketball closely. After scoring more than 19,000 points in his career, it's tough to stop.
"Once a Knick, always a Knick," he said. "I know if they sign LeBron, I'll be back there in New York at the games a lot more. A franchise can be rebuilt quickly through free agency, and the Knicks might be one of those now."
So Bruce Ratner just rented King's support. Well, he still has King's brother Albert on the payroll.
NYC EDC's Pinsky: "increased competition for bids almost always means better rates for the public"
In the latest edition of City Hall News, Seth Pinsky, president of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYC EDC) pens a piece headlined During A Crisis, Construction Spending Can Buoy New York's Economy.
The key passage:
While, of course, the primary goal of our capital spending is to renew the city’s infrastructure and put people back to work, in recent months, we at the New York City Economic Development Corporation have become aware of a secondary benefit of our new-found market position. Specifically, we have begun to see a rise in the number of bids—and bidders—chasing the $2.5 billion in capital projects that we plan to manage over the next five years. Besides the more than 9,800 jobs these projects are expected to create, this is also great news for taxpayers, because increased competition for bids almost always means better rates for the public. Over the long run this will result in projects completed more quickly and more efficiently.
(Emphasis added)
Almost always apparently means, say, Willets Point but not Atlantic Yards or the key public component thereof, the Vanderbilt Yard.
Coming Sunday: chains installed at Freddy's in the event of eminent domain
At noon tomorrow at Freddy’s Bar & Backroom, "chains of justice" will be installed:
An overwhelming number of Freddy's Bar patrons plan on chaining themselves to the bar if Scrooge Ratner and Grinch Paterson's Atlantic Yards Project attempts to shutdown and demolish Freddy's Bar and Backroom. This Sunday, December 20th, we are installing chains onto the Bar itself for just such a purpose.
Posted by steve at December 19, 2009 8:10 AM