Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report

The increased popularity of the WNBA (featuring marquee rookies like Caitlin Clark) and league-leading New York Liberty has led the team to open up Upper Bowl seats in the Barclays Center for every game (and an average attendance of 12,646 , second in the league, a 60% jump over last year). Numerous sports celebrities were in the audience yesterday. It's also led the team to increase ticket prices significantly for next year. A letter from CEO Keia Clarke claims the decision "is based on what the market is calling for and we believe it will ensure tickets belong to the most loyal Liberty fans."  What? Well, she said "prices for the Upper Bowl will start at $25"--it's unclear what seats and for what games--and that "our longest-tenured season ticket members in non-premium seats" will see per-game price increases capped at 25%.  That means season ticket holders for four years or a more, according to Sports Business Journal, a very small group. (Th

Weekly Digest: Getting the New York Arena Market Wrong (in Philly). Link here . What lessons does the Barclays Center have for a new arena? Well, context is key. Plus more (low-key) Brooklyn news.

Dog treats at the door One of the two restaurants in the base of the 595 Dean towers, visibly in the works since last April at least ( link ), is expected to open Thursday, Sept. 12. From Eater's NYC’s Most Anticipated Restaurant Openings of Fall 2024 : Zwann Grays, a star sommelier, was once Olmsted’s wine director. Now, she is leading the beverage side of another Prospect Heights restaurant, Nin Hao , where she pairs wines with Fujianese cuisine. Nin Hao is owned by Evan Toretto Li, who was involved in opening MáLà Project, and has brought along Kim Hui Teo as executive chef, an alum of Tim Ho Wan and Red Farm. 609 Dean Street, between Carlton and Vanderbilt avenues, Prospect Heights Yes, they're giving out handmade dog treats via a dispenser at the door. The New York Times's clarified  that it would open Sept. 12: To Prospect Heights, where Chinese restaurants are in short supply, comes the seafood-driven fare of Fujian. Evan Toretto Li has brought in the chef Kim Hui T

As indicated by the September 2024 event calendar ( link ) and the post on Twitter/X at right, this week the Barclays Center practiced a bit of synergy, installing a Brooklyn Nets/New York Liberty monster truck on Ticketmaster Plaza to promote two monster truck arena events on Sept. 28. So there you have it, a monster truck painted Nets black on one side and Liberty green on the other. Plus various logos, images, and slogans. Both sides got "light it up" and "strong," but I think only the Nets side got "wow." Plus the all-important signifiers "Dean Street" and "Atlantic Avenue," where, presumably, such monster trucks would provoke consternation. All told, a bit more sophisticated, I suspect, than the "Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live Glow Party" that is aimed at kids. Check out this video for an example. It's another example of using the branded "public" plaza for promotional purposes. The truck, from two angles

The current developer behind Pacific Park, Greenland USA, has been financially struggling, with six tower sites in foreclosure, and has not had much reason to promote the project for a while. In fact, its website, at least for several months, has been dead. Click on http://www.pacificparkbrooklyn.com/  and, as shown below, the result is that "This account has been suspended." The last update to the website's press release page , according to the Internet Archive, is Sept. 26, 2018,  Greenland Forest City Partners, TF Cornerstone and Brodsky Organization Announce Partnership to Advance Next Phases of Development of Pacific Park . The last update to the website's news page , according to the Internet Archive, cite's Curbed's May 11, 2019 article,  A guide to the major megaprojects transforming New York City . Then again, Greenland USA still owns the rights to Site 5 and the unbuilt flagship tower once slated to loom over the arena, and has planned a giant projec

Following up on my coverage yesterday ( link ) about a consultant's dubious report on the concert market, I took a look at Pollstar's 2023 ranking of ticket sales for the world's busiest arenas. Notably, the Barclays Center showed a significant drop, to 25th worldwide, with 726,548 tickets sold, even trailing the Prudential Center in Newark. Madison Square Garden sold 1,985,832 tickets. Barclays from 2013-18 had maintained a top-ten position in Pollstar's rankings (based on ticket sales) slipped to 11th in 2019, rose to 5th in the truncated 2020 calendar, and fell to 26th in the Covid-shortened 2021 calendar. Note that in 2019, when Pollstar reported on both ticket sales and gross revenue in the same chart, Barclays ranked 11th in volume but, by my count, third in revenue. In 2020, it was fifth in tickets and third in revenue. In 2021, it was 26th in tickets and 24th in revenue. Revenue is different That said, higher ticket prices meant both Prudential and Barclays ra

Consultant's Dubious Philly Arena Forecast Relies on NY-Area Venue Fictions ( link ) Dishonest and deceptive, CSL ignores competing arenas, MSG renovation, new-venue bump, and post-pandemic surge.

Build More Homes for Families , real estate developer and former Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen wrote June 26, 2024 for Vital City: The average two-bedroom apartment in New York now rents for $5,145 per month . That means a family needs to earn at least $200,000 in order to “afford” that apartment without being rent-burdened (rent burden is defined as spending more than 30% of income on rent). But the area median income for a family of four is only $155,300 , a whopping 25% less than what they need.  Indeed, see the rising Area Median Income in Ben Keel's graphic below. The line for 100% AMI, as of 2024, now rises slightly about $150,000. What about those needing help? Others, she notes, can't afford to move out, but can't afford to stay. But we're not building for them, either: A review of affordable apartments — by which I mean housing that is income-tested and rent-restricted — completed in New York City in the last five years shows tha