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October 14, 2010
The Story Behind the Atlantic Yards Green Card Controversy
NY Observer
by Matt Chaban
In The Observer's profile of Atlantic Yards watchdog Norman Oder, the master blogger laments how the mainstream media has ignored his biggest expose to date: plans by the state and developer Forest City Ratner to essentially sell green cards to Chinese investors in exchange for backing the arena-cum-condos project on the edge of brownstone Brooklyn.
If you are generous enough to lump The Observer in with the rest of the MSM, then — full disclosure — we have fallen short, too. But for two brief mentions, the Real Estate Desk has yet to take a serious look at the EB-5 saga. Perhaps it is time to address this "dereliction of duty," to quote Mr. Oder, and closely consider this latest twist in this most tangled of projects.
...[I]t is not clear that Forest City Ratner or the state are doing anything illegal here. Just because Mayor Bloomberg, Marty Markowitz, Jay-Z and the Nets are shilling for this project (as hilarious graphics Mr. Oder turned up show) does not mean they are doing anything wrong. In fact, it tends to fit with the behind-the-scenes, bending-the-rules nature that has plagued the project from its inception.
Then again, his frustration with the media for ignoring the story is understandable. Illegal or not, the papers have written about far more minor infractions by developers, politicians and joe sixpacks all over the city. Why they continue to ignore this story is a mystery. Whether they can for much longer remains to be seen.
As Mr. Oder recently told The Observer, he has plenty more bombshells to come. "This story is far from over," he said.
Posted by eric at October 14, 2010 10:09 PM