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June 22, 2010
Ratner Content to Succeed in the Shadows
The New York Times
by Harvey Araton
It's Bruce Ratner vs. Norman Oder in today's New York Times. Ratner's up first, and gets to tell his own story without any counterpoint. He does say one honest thing, however:
“There’s a bittersweet feeling in having a majority owner in Brooklyn not be us,” he said, acknowledging his many critics will scoff because “when a developer speaks it’s not always believed.”
The other interesting bit in the story involves yet another major blunder by Knicks' owner James Dolan, Ratner's main competition as worst NBA team owner ever.
[Former Madison Square Garden President Dave] Checketts said it was possible that Dolan might have fought the wrong venture when he opposed the Jets’ attempt to build a stadium on Manhattan’s Far West Side. A Brooklyn arena that is roughly the same size as the Garden may pose a much bigger threat, he said.
NoLandGrab: It's safe to say that had Dolan invested a fraction of the $13 million it spent fighting the West Side Stadium in Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn — and had he similarly enlisted the help of his buddy, Shelly Silver — Atlantic Yards would now be one for the history books.
Posted by eric at June 22, 2010 9:58 AM