Typically late, official notes from Quality of Life meeting don't mention the developer's pause on platform, or ESD downplaying fines for absent affordable housing

The official notes for the most Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Quality of Life meetings, typically held bi-monthly until the recent hiatus from September 2022 to February 2023, typically don't arrive for more than a month, sometimes longer, from meeting host Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority that oversees/shepherds the project.

Why the delay? Unclear. (Legal review? Understaffing? Bureaucratic sloth?)

The recently surfacing notes for the 2/7/23 meeting--at this ESD link and at bottom--come with a side of irony, given what we've learned since then.

I pointed out at the time that it was curious that Scott Solish, the point man for Greenland USA, was conveniently absent, which meant the developer didn't have to answer hard questions about the stalled plans for the platform over the Vanderbilt Yard or their presumed effort to avoid $2,000/month fines for affordable units--as of now, 876 (or 877)--not delivered by May 2025.

But the "scheduling conflict" cited in the notes now seems a convenience, as we now know that Solish was making a move to another company, The Brodsky Organization.

About the platform

Also consider these questions about that crucial platform:

Are there any updates on the platform construction? If not, why is platform work listed in the Project’s bi-weekly construction updates?

The response:

There are no updates on the start of the platform construction. The activity continues to be listed in the Construction Alert so notice is provided to the Community regarding any possible work in the area. The Developer is in ongoing discussions with the LIRR regarding the approvals necessary to commence construction.

Those "ongoing discussions" are in doubt, given that, in the most recent Construction Update, potential platform work was omitted for the first time since last May, as I reported.

About the affordable housing penalty

Another question: "Has the Developer proposed changes to the Project $2,000 per month affordable housing penalty?"

The response: "There are no discussions/updates available about the $2,000 per month affordable housing penalty."

That omits the curious phrasing at the meeting from ESD's Tobi Jaiyesimi, who said "the developer may face a penalty of $2,000 per unit that has not met that 2,250 number."

(Emphasis added)

Such phrasing suggests that the gubernatorially-controlled ESD is hardly committed to enforcing the fines.

Discussion at Thursday's ESD meeting?

These all deserve discussion by the parent ESD board, which meets Thursday--but requires public comment on Agenda items by noon Wednesday, as I noted. 

Besides that inability to respond to the board's discussions, potential commenters are hampered by the fact that Agenda (which should be here), hasn't been made public yet. So that deadline is less than 29 hours away.

Next AY CDC meeting

Asked about the next meeting of the Atlantic Yards Community Development Corp. (AY CDC), the response, according to the notes, was, "The next AY CDC Board meeting is expected to be in March."

That today seems in doubt, though it's not impossible to announce a meeting within the next ten days.