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November 10, 2010
Atlantic Yards: Judge Slams State Development Agency for "Failure of Transparency"
The Huffington Post
by Norman Oder
In today's New York Times, the Arts section features a long article on a play with music that dramatizes the Atlantic Yards development controversy in Brooklyn, another work from the impressive investigative theater company The Civilians.
Meanwhile, the Times ignores a long-awaited ruling in the last remaining Atlantic Yards lawsuit, which laid bare just how the state cut corners to favor developer Forest City Ratner, allowing a 25-year buildout while insisting the arena-plus-towers project could get done--and bring benefits like new tax revenue and affordable housing--in just ten years.
To the surprise of many, state Supreme Court Justice Marcy Friedman not only ruled for Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn and other project opponents but also slammed the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC), the state's economic development agency, for "what appears to be yet another failure of transparency" and "totally incomplete representations" in legal papers.
The importance of the ruling
No, the decision won't stop construction of the Barclays Center arena, which is already under way and slated to be finished by the fall of 2012. It likely won't impact construction on the arena block, as the Development Agreement the state signed with Forest City Ratner contains specific penalties regarding delays in the first three towers.
However, either the ESDC will have to file an appeal--and be forced to defend some very questionable behavior--or issue more findings justifying its analysis of the entire 16-tower project.
Related coverage...
Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, Court Ruling Ensures History Will Not Forget How Atlantic Yards Went Down
On the Huffington Post Norman Oder explains the significance of yesterday's Atlantic Yards court ruling against the Empire State Development Corporation. The ruling ensures, once and for all, that history will not forget what and how it all went down in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn under the watch of Bloomberg, Pataki, Spitzer and Paterson.
Posted by eric at November 10, 2010 10:40 PM