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December 10, 2009
It came from the Blogosphere...
Reason Hit & Run, Will New York's Highest Court Re-Hear the Atlantic Yards Case?
As I discussed last week and as Jacob Sullum discussed yesterday, last week’s appellate court ruling against Columbia University’s eminent domain abuse stands in stark contrast to last month’s decision by New York’s highest court upholding a very similar eminent domain taking on behalf of the Atlantic Yards stadium project in Brooklyn. But if it was illegal for the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) to condemn private property on Columbia’s behalf based on a highly spurious designation of “blight” (which the court rightly denounced as “sophistry” and “idiocy”), why is it acceptable for the same state agency to use the same idiotic “blight” standards to condemn private property on behalf of real estate tycoon (and ACORN sugar daddy) Bruce Ratner?
That’s precisely what the Atlantic Yards plaintiffs would like to know. So they’ve filed a motion today asking for a rehearing in light of the lower court’s harsh judgment against Columbia and ESDC.
The Brooklyn Blog [NY Post], Atlantic Yards opponents hoping Columbia case blocks state land grab
It might be a long shot, but for opponents of Brooklyn’s Atlantic Yards project it’s at least, um, a shot.
Project opponents today asked the state Court of Appeals to reconsider its Nov. 24 ruling that allows the state to use eminent domain to seize private land for developer Bruce Ratner’s $4.9 billion development in Brooklyn that would include a new arena for the Nets.
Opponents are looking to piggyback off a Dec. 3 appellate panel ruling that shot down another Empire State Development Corp. eminent domain plan – one to seize private land for a Columbia University expansion. They also want the Court of Appeals to delay ruling on the new motion and appeal until it rules on the Columbia eminent domain case, which it will hear in 2010.
...ESDC spokeswoman Elizabeth Mitchell said, "We have not yet seen the Atlantic Yards motion for reconsideration and therefore cannot comment upon it. We don’t comment on pending court matters, but ESDC is confident that we will move forward with development as planned and will accomplish the goals of this important project."
Reason Hit & Run, Daniel Goldstein on Blurry Blight Lines
Over at The Huffington Post, Daniel Goldstein, co-founder of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, mocks the "blight" definition used by the Empire State Development Corporation to condemn property coveted by developers like Bruce Ratner....
WyBlog, Government steps in to prevent lower sports and entertainment ticket prices
We suggested earlier today that, if built, the Bruce Ratner's Barclays Center arena would likely enter into cutthroat competition with Madison Square Garden, the Prudential Center and the Izod Center, but New Jersey blogger Chris Wysocki points out that politicians are on hand to protect consumers from the benefits of competitive market forces.
There are two competing sports arenas in North Jersey. The old Izod Center at the Meadowlands is home to the hapless NJ Nets (at least until Bruce Ratner moves them to Brooklyn) and the new Pru Center in Newark is home to the NJ Devils hockey team. Both arenas compete for concerts and other entertainment events. For example, I recently took Sophie to see Miley Cyrus at the Pru Center and we had a great time.
Outgoing Governor Jon Corzine has now brokered a "deal" to end the competition between the two arenas. In this "deal" all sports would move to the Pru Center and all concerts and entertainment would be hosted at Izod Center. Why? Because the competition for events was driving down ticket prices!
...So let me get this straight. We have 2 venues, each working to bring the best events to our area. They compete based on price, and presumably that means lower ticket prices for the fans.
Government bureaucrats see this as a bad thing. And their "solution" is to have both arenas collude to fix the prices — no more competition — and add a new surcharge to the mix! Everybody wins! Well, except of course, those of us who actually buy the tickets. We get hosed.
Rocky Sullivan's Pub Quiz via Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn, Greetings from Scott Turner: Curmudgeonly Perspectives
Rocky Sullivan's Quizmaster Scott M.X. Turner anoints some holiday weasels.
Weasel Time, it is, then...
Kiki Weaselweghe
The new coach of Bruce Ratner's 2-19 New Jersey Nets took over for his hapless predecessor, Lawrence Frank, when the team was 0-16 -- one game shy of tying the NBA record for most-consecutive losses to start a season. A really dubious record that melds perfectly in Ratner's malfeasant professional acumen.Except Weaselweghe didn't take over immediately. Claiming he wasn't ready -- and that his Cyrano assistant coach Del Harris (who, unlike Weaselweghe, has NBA head-coaching experience) wasn't either -- Weaselweghe let sad-sack assistant Tom Barrise coach the Nets to their record-tying 17th loss and record-breaking 18th loss. It's Barrise's name, not Weaselweghe's, on the record now. Weaselweghe and Harris took over the following game.
...WeaselESDC
Even though court cases remain, even though Bruce Ratner doesn't have the funding or the properties, even though the Atlantic Yards' flimsiness makes a house of cards look like Fort Knox, even though there are no plans for affordable housing or real numbers of jobs except for "hey, we'll get around to it, back off!," the WeaselESDC is forging ahead with evictions of residents and property owners in the Atlantic Yards footprint. Indications are that eviction letters will be posted on Christmas Eve.
Posted by eric at December 10, 2009 5:57 PM