« The 2010 NYC Streetsies, Part 2 | Main | Shoplifter Target-ed at Atlantic Terminal Mall »
December 29, 2010
The meaningless of time: how the ESDC claims that a buildout of 25 years, rather than ten, would not significantly affect benefits or impacts
Atlantic Yards Report
Here's the question of the day: Does time have any impact on Atlantic Yards benefits and impacts?
No, says the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC), thus perplexing anyone who's considered such mundane, time-related issues as compound interest or prison sentencing.
Being "reasonable"
Covering the latest ESDC board meeting, as I wrote 12/16/10, ESDC attorney Robin Stout (at 5:10 of the video), uttered what sounded like a zen koan:
"The agreements require the developer, as I said, to use commercially reasonable efforts to achieve a completion date of 2019, but perhaps more importantly, the agreements set a framework, where the market demand for the project's buildings can be expected to bring the project to completion as soon as it is commercially reasonable to do so. The documents separately set out the outside completion date of 2035."
So commercially reasonable means that the developer can get loans and make its profit.
OK, so if the ESDC would accommodate a reasonable situation for the developer, would it thus evaluate the reasonable impacts of that situation or the reasonable benefits that could be expected?
Not quite.
NoLandGrab: Hmm, wonder if the State of New York would consider it reasonable for us to pay our 2010 taxes over the next 25 years or so.
Posted by eric at December 29, 2010 11:21 AM