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April 2, 2010
Special Report: Questioning the Status of the Lighthouse Project
Let There Be Light(house)
Islander fans clinging to the idea that their favorite hockey team will end up at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn would do better to hope for a Sunday visit from the Easter Bunny — at least no one's published evidence that the Easter Bunny doesn't exist.
Meanwhile, the only words from Queens and Brooklyn are from inconsequential mouthpieces in each district, such as Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and the Queens Chamber of Commerce President. Not one word has come from the horse's mouths except when Bruce Ratner said that it was "unlikely" when citing the Isles to Brooklyn scenario. That could be a clear indication that Wang and company have no interest there and might have shutdown shop until Queens begins in earnest down the road. However, even though Brooklyn has many natural disadvantages, it has one major advantage: the arena is financed and currently under construction. After the painful Lighthouse process, with a better-funded opposition beginning to sharpen its knives in Queens, would Mr. Wang really want to go back to that well?
NoLandGrab: "Unlikely" is one of the truer words Bruce Ratner has ever uttered. And the arena is not yet under construction, nor is it fully financed yet, since arena infrastructure bonds remain unsold.
Posted by eric at April 2, 2010 10:22 AM