BrooklynSpeaks sets community forum for June 11, presaging official meeting on traffic June 14, UNITY plan meeting June 15

Beginning in a week, there will be three Atlantic Yards-related meetings, with the latest announced yesterday by BrooklynSpeaks, involving Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, who, it should be noted, is not listed as among those involved in the updated UNITY plan.

Meeting June 11: BrooklynSpeaks

An announcement from BrooklynSpeaks:

Atlantic Yards 2011: Real Governance Matters
A Community Forum
2:00 PM, Saturday, June 11, 2011
Atlantic Terrace
673 Atlantic Avenue
Corner of South Portland St.

It’s been more than a year since Atlantic Yards broke ground, and more than four years since the project was approved. Now construction may take 25 years or longer. Promised jobs and affordable housing haven’t materialized, while hundreds of millions of tax payer dollars have been spent already. And in the near term, most of what Brooklyn may end up with is an arena and a massive surface parking lot.

How did this happen? And, more importantly, what can be done now to ensure that promised public benefits are delivered and construction impacts are reduced?

Join the BrooklynSpeaks sponsors, Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, and other local elected officials Saturday, June 11, 2011 at 2:00PM for a community forum on real reform of Atlantic Yards oversight. Find out what community organizations and local legislators are doing to make Forest City Ratner and the Empire State Development Corporation accountable to Brooklyn and to New York City.

Meeting June 14: Traffic

From the Empire State Development Corporation:

In addition, ESD will be hosting a public forum with Community Boards 2, 6 & 8 on Tuesday, June 14 from 6:30-8:00pm at Borough Hall in Brooklyn to discuss the traffic changes and answer questions from the public.

Here's the community notice posted at AtlanticYards.com.

Meeting June 15: UNITY Plan updated

An announcement posted by Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn:

June 15: UNITY 4 Community Meeting -- We Can Do Better Than an Arena, A Big Parking Lot

Forest City Ratner is constructing the arena, but the rest of the demolished 22 acre site is a big question mark...except for enormous "interim" surface parking lots. We, as a community, need to fix this future for the coming decades.

In order to plan, set a better framework, and change the dynamic for the future development of the site Councilmember Letitia James, Senator Velmanette Montgomery and Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn invite you to UNITY 4, a community meeting on Wednesday, June 15th to discuss the community's plans for the Atlantic Yards site, with the UNITY Plan and its principles as a jumping off point.

Please mark your calendars.

Wednesday, June 15. 7pm
at Atlantic Commons
388 Atlantic Avenue (between Hoyt and Bond)
[MAP]

The meeting will include a presentation by UNITY Plan designers and architects Marshall Brown and Ron Shiffman, a discussion of the current and future status of the site and Q&A with a panel including elected officials. Your ideas, thoughts and input will be invaluable to the meeting.

The UNITY 4 community meeting is sponsored by:
Assemblyman James Brennan, Senator Bill Perkins, Senator Eric Adams, Assemblywoman Joan Millman, Councilmember Brad Lander, Councilmember Stephen Levin, District Leader Chris Owens
Council of Brooklyn Neighborhoods, Pratt Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment, Park Slope Neighbors, Park Slope Greens, Four Borough Neighborhood Preservation Alliance, Prospect Heights Democrats for Reform, Park Slope Civic Council, Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats