Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park in 2021: questions persist over timetable, accountability; new branding for towers; "affordable" = middle-income; arena claims promo space; Nets (& unvaxxed star) make headlines
My 2021 preview focused on question marks regarding the project timeline, the future of Site 5, the affordability of new housing, and overall accountability, plus the re-opening of the Barclays Center. Most of those question marks persisted, and some answers we got were dismaying. A 2021 surprise: new neon signage (+new sponsor) Though construction proceeded steadily on four towers, doubts mount regarding crucial aspects of the project, notably the two-phase platform over the two-block Vanderbilt Yard, a precursor to six towers and completion of the project, including the 8 acres of open space. And that shadows developer Greenland Forest City Partners' professed--and diminishing--path to meeting the May 2025 deadline for 2,250 units of affordable housing. We got some belated information--no thanks to the developers or the state overseers--about the affordability of the next two towers, B15 (662 Pacific St.) and B4 (18 Sixth Ave.): all affordable units will be aimed at middle-cla