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Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park infographics: what's built/what's coming/what's missing, who's responsible, + project FAQ/timeline (pinned post)

So, does an "on-demand sommelier" drive 550 Vanderbilt sales? Nah. But it is *in* a neighborhood.

All publicity is good publicity, especially when your building comes first in a roundup, but there's a certain incoherence to Curbed's roundup yesterday, headlined In New York’s cutthroat residential market, experiences are the new must-have amenity, and subtitled "Perks like a fitness room and a lounge are no longer enough to lure prospective tenants."

Price drops indicated by downward arrow; click to enlarge
Notably, 550 Vanderbilt is a condo building, not a rental. (One other building in Curbed's roundup is a condo; the rest are rentals.)

While 550 Vanderbilt residents might appreciate a "Neighborhood Partner Program" involving local businesses, like gardening classes and "an on-demand sommelier," it's doubtful that the condo buyers who put down deposits two years ago give a fig.

Remember, sales are "slower than anticipated," the developer acknowledged, confirming the obvious. Moreover, the recent price drops for rentals--see StreetEasy graphic at right--surely suggest that price, not perks, is the driving factor.

Building in a "great neighborhood"

Curbed reports:
“You always have to look right outside your door” when it comes to extras for residents, notes Ashley Cotton, Forest City’s executive vice president of external affairs. Cotton says that being part of the Prospect Heights community is one of the reasons why people are buying in Pacific Park, so offering perks that showcase what local businesses have to offer is a win-win. “That’s why you build in great neighborhoods, right? Because they’re full of great people.”
Wait a sec. First, Cotton herself bought in that building--for the perks, for the location, for the price, for the opportunity to help push sales momentum? Probably not the first of those reasons.

Also, Atlantic Yards was supposed to be in Downtown Brooklyn. Then it was supposed to be "Brooklyn's newest neighborhood," a "neighborhood from scratch." The developers of Pacific Park have even claimed Prospect Heights neighbors--and been claimed by one--as part of the new Pacific Park neighborhood.

Now, they're building *in* a great neighborhood? #SMH.

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