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June 9, 2011
Old Yankee Stadium and 4 Ballparks That Should Never Have Been Torn Down
Bleacher Report
by Rick Weiner
A column about lost ballparks makes the old Atlantic Yards/Vanderbilt Yard/Ebbets Field replacement error.
As the team's success increased so did the demand for tickets. With a small seating capacity and little-to-no available parking, then-Dodgers' owner Walter O'Malley was prepared to build a new ballpark at the Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn, one that would be able to accommodate the growing fanbase.
Noted developer and then-Commissioner of Buildings in New York City Robert Moses was opposed to O'Malley's plan and instead wanted the new stadium to be built on land in Flushing, Queens.
We all know how this story ends.
NoLandGrab: Yeah, it ends with us pointing out that "Atlantic Yards" is an arena and some 18 acres of vaportecture brought to us by Bruce Ratner, while the "Vanderbilt Yard" is an MTA rail-storage facility. O'Malley actually wanted to build his new ballpark on the site occupied by Bruce Ratner's infamous malls.
Posted by eric at June 9, 2011 9:30 AM