Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report

Can Public-Private Development Projects Be Fixed? Well, Maybe. ( link ) But it requires better monitoring, new procedures (approve in phases?), and better execution. Plus, legislators and the public must step up. The press, too. 

Previewing Panel on "How to Fix Public-Private Development" ( link ) One of the panelists wrote "No More Atlantic Yards!" Well, some things might be done now, but it takes political will.

Workshop on Public Realm, Retail, and Community Facilities Crowdsources Input, but Some Big Gaps ( link ) Would "signature open space" be "transformative," given boost in apartments? How long would it take? What about loading docks, parking issues, Site 5 retail/hotel (& LED lighting), and value of arena plaza?

Early December Digest and Workshop Preview ( link ) Bigger buildings, more open space proposed. Design changes aimed to speed construction. Doubts about affordability. What public resources sought? Tonight, public input on streetscape, retail, etc. 

So, are any of the various "Brooklyn Ascending" ownership entities--ten of which are apparently part of the Atlantic Yards deal, as I wrote --involved in any property transactions? Yes, indeed, according to the city's Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS) database, with transactions involving the parcels on the Vanderbilt Yard. From REO to Mezz For example, one recent  document  memorializes a transfer from Brooklyn Ascending REO JV to Brooklyn Ascending Mezz.  REO JV, the grantor/seller, may involve the U.S. Immigration Fund (USIF) and Fortress Investment Group, which held collateral to six railyard (B5-B10) sites after developer Greenland USA defaulted on loans from immigrant investors under the EB-5 investor visa program. That default led to a foreclosure, with Cirrus Workforce Housing ultimately taking over financial control of the project, with a USIF affiliate and Fortress remaining passive partners. The grantee/buyer, Brooklyn Ascending Mezz, likely re...

At Advisory Board Meeting, New Focus on Affordable Housing ( link ) Negotiator of original ACORN housing deal points to unmet promises regarding level of affordability and family-sized units. What are the costs to make it work?

I recently wrote : Does anyone, outside of the principals, know the ownership stakes in Brooklyn Ascending Land Co., LLC, the legal entity that apparently owns Atlantic Yards while the “permitted developer,” a team involving funder Cirrus Workforce Housing and the development company LCOR, steer the project? Well, I haven't been able to drill down on that. But I have found, in both New York State and Delaware databases, a good number of entities that seem to have a role in the project. In New York A search of the Division of Corporations of New York State's Department of State turns up three limited liability companies (LLCs) with the name "Brooklyn Ascending" as part of their name. (For the purpose of acronym avoidance, I'm cutting "LLC" from their formal names.) Well, Brooklyn Ascending Developer (formed 5/8/25) and Brooklyn Ascending Site 5 Developer (formed 9/9/25)  are both domestic limited liability companies (LLCs). They're represented by the...

As Developers Propose Much Larger Buildings, Their Renderings Distort Reality ( link ) Images downplay proposed changes while inflating what's been approved. The claimed 20% increase in bulk translates to 46% at the railyard but 71% at five sites (or 99% at four?).  

Questions for the Atlantic Yards CDC Meeting ( link ) Was the "Feasible Alternative" depicted feasibly? (Not quite.) Do new developers seek just a 20% increase in bulk, & should they get it for free? Why no plans for lower-income units?

The Barclays Center last week released its December 2025 calendar of events: 13 ticketed events including six Brooklyn Nets games, six concerts and a women's college basketball tournament--but no New Year's Eve show. That said, there is an unspecified "private event" on New Year's Eve, lasting from 8 pm through 12:30 am. It's unclear whether it's a large event, like a worship service or a private concert, or whether it's a small event confined to one of the arena's premium spaces. If it's a large event, they should let neighbors know, given the possibility of crowds. This is the second year of the Shark Beauty Women’s Champions Classic , a doubleheader again featuring women’s college basketball teams from UConn, Tennessee, Iowa & Louisville. (Shark Beauty sells hair care tools.) December 2024 In December 2025, there were 15 ticketed events including five Brooklyn Nets games, two college basketball tournaments, and eight concerts--but no New...

Who Owns What In the Project? What Are the Project's Real Variables? ( link ) When I asked about ownership, I got the runaround. Previously, a risky structure undermined the project. Plus: doesn't public investment require more financial transparency?

"Public-private development is failing the public. How can we fix it?" A virtual panel discussion on that topic is set for December 15 at 7 pm, sponsored by The City Club of New York , the Atlantic Yards advocacy group BrooklynSpeaks , and Voices of the Waterfront , which has challenged, and is responding to, the Brooklyn Marine Terminal redevelopment plan.  Register here . The description: City and State governments increasingly rely on public-private development partnerships to provide public goods such as affordable housing, open space, and job creation. But recent experience with approved projects like Penn Station and Atlantic Yards , as well as questions about proposed projects like the Brooklyn Marine Terminal , raise concerns about major development projects not meeting their stated public commitments. Join us for a discussion of why it has been difficult to realize commitments for public benefits from government-sponsored development projects, and what can be done t...

OK, the agenda for the Dec. 2 meeting of the (purportedly) advisory Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation has been posted online . (Here's info on meeting attendance, broadcast, and public comments.)  The agenda includes not only an update on the community engagement plan--the first of four workshops was held Nov. 18--but also a development team presentation. Here's the slideshow from the first workshop, and my coverage , including video. Let's see if the development team faces any questions about, say, their  apparent expectation that they should get additional development rights for free, whether they could deliver "abundant" green spaces if the population outpaces it, or whether they plan any low-income housing . The presentation Nov. 18 didn't offer the public any opportunity to question the developers.

Developers' Affordable Housing Rhetoric Suggests Low-Income Units Not a Priority ( link )  Promised faster buildout would dampen increases in base rents, but skyrocketing Area Median Income has taken its toll. Lowest 1-BR rent: $2,430? Most "affordable" households earning $100K+?

With barely a calendar week--and only a few business days--of notice, Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority that oversees/shepherds Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park, has announced a meeting Dec. 2 of the (purportedly) advisory Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation (AY CDC). The meeting will be held in Brooklyn at the Shirley A. Chisholm State Office Building, 55 Hanson Place – 3rd Floor Conference Room. The AY CDC is supposed to meet at least quarterly; the previous meeting was Oct. 9 , so they're ahead of schedule, apparently because the project has begun to ramp up. Presumably Directors will be told of the new developers' "feasible plan" to complete the project, with details revealed at a workshop Nov. 18, the public response, and the plans for further "community engagement."  The next three meetings are precursors to a Memorandum of Understanding signed by Cirrus Workforce Housing and LCOR with ESD about project outlines and public su...

Does More Open Space Mean Better Open Space? Maybe Not, If Population Outpaces It. ( link ) More acreage would come with a larger percentage increase in apartments. Still, a better layout would help.

New Developers Apparently Expect 1.6M Square Feet in Additional Air Rights for Free ( link ) "Today's context," they say, justifies bigger buildings. But the 2005 appraisal and bid for MTA development rights, in a different context, envisioned less bulk. Value of boost: $320M? 

New Developers Seek to Supersize Project: Total 9,000 Units, Instead of 6,430. Taller Towers (and One Subtraction) Allow More Open Space. ( link ) 1.6M more square feet (value: $320M?) sought, said to make project & affordability viable. Changes could mean faster buildout. Would bulk increase be just 20%? (Nope.)

November Digest and Meeting Preview: New Development Team, Light Penalties, Murky Plans ( link ) Will "Community Engagement," starting tonight, help shape a new plan or ratify what's already cooking?

The BrooklynSpeaks Advice on Tomorrow's Meeting--and What's Missing ( link ) The coalition has worthy words on affordable housing, density, open space, and accountability. But it shouldn't ignore the concessions likely sought, the trade-offs, and the bad faith.

If “There Really Is No Accountability,” as Per Former ESD Executive, Why Not Involve Third-Party Experts? ( link ) The first Atlantic Yards Project Director came clean after leaving her post. As new project plan looms, the argument deserves expansion.

Beyond Height & Density, Key Questions About "Pacific Park" Open Space. ( link ) The Pacific Park Conservancy is an unaccountable phantom. Is the new joint venture even involved? Also, shouldn't the arena operator have to pay for a permanent plaza?

The first of four public workshops on the future of Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park is scheduled for Tuesday, November 18 from 6-8 pm, covering the demanding topics of Density, Affordability, and Open Space, as I've written . Yesterday we learned that the second public workshop--and the last one in-person--will be held on Monday Dec. 8 from 6-8 pm, covering Streetscape and Public Realm, Sustainability and Resiliency, Community Serving Retail and Facilities. That's a tight schedule, especially since the incoming master developer, a joint venture involving Cirrus Real Estate Partners and LCOR, have yet to reveal any plans for the site and Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority that oversees/shepherds the project, has only released limited information. While the first workshop will be held at the former Modell's site, now the Brooklyn Basketball Training Center, at 140 Flatbush Avenue across from the Barclays Center, the location for the second workshop is TBA. (The t...

Relative newcomers to Brooklyn usually don't know that, at least until early 2009, when the independent Brooklyn Paper was sold to Rupert Murdoch, presaging future sales until its current ownership by outer-borough behemoth Schneps Media, the publication punched above its weight. It reported skeptically, and in-depth, regarding Atlantic Yards, and its broadsheet print issues made a big splash, especially in Brownstone Brooklyn neighborhoods, before smartphone-based social media took off. Today, though, it's no surprise to see the Oct. 29 Brooklyn Paper puff piece headlined  Meet Laurie Jacoby, the woman behind Brooklyn’s biggest stage: Barclays Center : When the lights go down and the first notes of a concert echo through Barclays Center, there’s one person whose vision and passion have helped make that moment possible: Laurie Jacoby. As Chief Entertainment Officer for Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, Jacoby oversees all programming and live events at the Barclays Center ...

Workshop on Height & Density Ignores Plan for Two Towers Across from Arena, Hints at New Configuration Over Railyard ( link ) While Nov. 18 session purports to solicit public input, state authority overseeing project already supports a giant project at Site 5. Blank map for railyard points to revision of six-tower plan.

Yesterday, with just two weeks' notice, Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority that oversees/shepherds the Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park, announced the first of four public workshops purportedly aimed to share the future of the project, given a new development team for the half-completed project. It will be held across the street from the Barclays Center on Tuesday, November 18, from 6-8 pm, at the Brooklyn Basketball Training Center, 140 Flatbush Avenue, in the former Modell's big-box store. Registration is  here . The meeting location, in fact, is part of Site 5 (with the currently occupied P.C. Richard), which is officially slated for a 250-foot, 440,000 square foot building, according to 2006 approvals, but has already gotten ESD support  for a giant, two-tower project, with one tower 910 feet and some 1.242 million square feet of bulk. (The Brooklyn Basketball Training Center is a temporary youth training facility run by BSE Global, parent of the Brooklyn Net...

The Murky Path to Cirrus's Control of the Remaining Project ( link ) Was the key element debt regarding the B1/Site 5 parcels, or advantageous contract language in the second EB-5 loan? What about the EB-5 middleman? The explanations don't fully make sense.

So, what about the three ballot proposals to speed the approvals of housing in the city? An easy call? After all, it's indisputable that the city--though it would be better to focus on the region, given the recalcitrant suburbs--needs more housing, especially affordable housing, and some Council Districts have been far more welcoming than others. It's easy to outsource conclusions to supporters (like the YES on Affordable Housing coalition, Errol Louis in NY Magazine, and the YIMBY group Abundance NY ), opponents (like the City Council , Village Preservation , and TenantsPac ). or to HellGate's more nuanced A Crash Course in the 3 Controversial Housing Ballot Proposals . I tried to look at the actual language, and it was... confounding. So here's Ballot Proposal 2, according to NYC Votes : What you'll see on the ballot Fast track publicly financed affordable housing . Fast track applications delivering affordable housing in the community districts that produce the...

The Barclays Center yesterday circulated its November 2025 event calendar to neighbors, citing 18 ticketed events in as many days. That includes seven Brooklyn Nets games, and 11 concerts. Also on the calendar: a New York Liberty Holiday Merch Shop, on Nov. 21, and six unspecified private events. The Nov. 10 private event appears to be a press conference to promote a January boxing championship bout.  The Nov. 14 private event is a celebration for the Just Brooklyn Prize of the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation's Social Justice Fund.  The rest? Unclear. They could be small events, or large ones.  November 2024  The November 2024 event calendar  included 17 ticketed events in as many days. That includes six Brooklyn Nets games, nine concerts, and two nights of a college basketball tournament.   The calendar did not include a Nov. 9 concert, R&B Forever Tour , listed on the arena's web site. So there should be ten concerts, not nine, and a to...

It’s not too early to state that the Nets (0-5) are not just a bad team," wrote Substack columnist Steve Lichtenstein Oct. 30. "They are also acutely displeasing to a basketball purist’s eyes." The fan site NetsDaily suggested the Nets "may have one of worst defenses in NBA history." Meanwhile, as NetsDaily editor-in-chief Anthony Puccio observed , "Nets ticket prices seem high for a tanking team. $44 to get in the door; $100+ to sit in the 100s."  Still, the Nets sold out their first two home games, at the new capacity of 17,548 (from 17,732, to account for new entertainment space). Well, surely they want to put a decent team on the floor while aiming for a choice draft spot, but it's a "sports entertainment corporation" (to quote subsidy skeptic Bettina Damiani) first and foremost, so there are different reasons people might attend, including fans of other teams, tourists, and others seeking a basketball experience that, however not...

Forbes' new list of  America's Most Powerful Women in Sports includes two New York Liberty connections, another sign of the team's ascension. Its strategy was to discern categories—owners/investors, business executives, front office leaders, athletes and amplifiers—and then put them in a formula that assessed media mentions, revenue, and more, aiming to list five people per category and no more than two people from the same league in any category.  First among Amplifiers were: #9. Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart Cofounders, Unrivaled; Forward, Minnesota Lynx (Collier); Forward, New York Liberty (Stewart) On the court, Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart are among the best in the game: Collier was the runner-up in voting for the WNBA’s 2025 Most Valuable Player Award, and Stewart won the award in 2018 and 2023. Through Unrivaled, they’re changing the game altogether. Founded by the former UConn teammates in 2023, Unrivaled is a 3-on-3 league offering WNBA players an o...

Waiting for a New Plan. Lots of Big Questions. ( link ) The project is moving ahead, but we don't know the proposed scale, scope, affordability, and design, nor what public concessions the new development team will seek. A new deadline in the 2040s?

An article in THE CITY today, by contributor (and former Crain's New York Business editor and columnist, if you're wondering about any slant) Greg David,  Can Mamdani Make Union-Built Affordable Housing Add Up? , notes that Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani has avoided weighing in on three controversial ballot proposals because he doesn't want to tangle with construction unions, which oppose them. The issues are nuanced and complicated--I'll point to more of the debate in a separate post--but it is true that union labor pays higher wages, and union advocates would like the City Council to retain power, in part to ensure a union presence. Do higher wages make projects more costly? One argument for union labor is that it's higher quality, thus enabling faster, more effective construction. Here's the argument ventilated in the article, though: Anyone claiming that higher priced union workers makes the projects too costly is “a lying silly goose,” said Kevin...