Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report

Photo: March 27 As I reported ( link ), the Pacific Park Conservancy, which oversees the 2.7 acres of open space on the southeast block of the project, was said--as of the March 25, 2025 meeting of the advisory Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation (AY CDC)--to have made some improvements. To improve oversight and maintenance, the Conservancy has hired Streetplus , a Brooklyn-based company that works at Union Square Park, Madison Square Park, and other locations. That was according to Anna Pycior of Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority that oversees/shepherds the project. Photo: April 25 Some change From what I can observe, Streetplus, with blue-suited workers in uniforms indicating Pacific Park Conservancy and "Clean Ambassador" (see photo at left) and Safety Ambassador," has made some improvements.  For example, as shown above right, in March one of the entrance pillars to "Pacific Park" was marred by a glued-on poster. Less than a m...

In writing  Is 595 Dean a "Successful Project"?  a few weeks ago, I noted reasons for doubt, including the not-so-affordable "affordable housing": Yes, there are 240 below-market units aimed at middle-income households earning 130% of Area Median Income (AMI), which in most cases is six figures, all thanks to the 421-a tax break. Though “affordable,” given the loose definition applied to income-targeted apartments, they hardly help the people who rallied for the project with great hopes and expectations. Let's drill down on that a bit more. As I reported in April, drawing on a policy brief from New York University’s Furman Center, it's widely acknowledged that the 421-a tax break that enabled buildings with 130% AMI units was too generous. A tiny fraction Take a look at the chart below, from the Furman Center. Only 16.7% of renter households were earning at least 130% of AMI, while only 24.3% were earning at least 100% of AMI and 67.2% earning less than 80%...

This is the second of three articles about the Nov. 6, 2024 Atlantic Yards Quality of Life meeting, sponsored by Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority that oversees/shepherds the project. The first concerned the way the project was framed.  The  third  concerned a presentation by arena operator BSE Global. So, master developer Greenland USA, though it's  about to lose  six tower development sites to foreclosure, is still in the game, with Design Director Jen Kuang--the partial successor to previous point man Scott Solish, who  left in early 2023 --making a presentation about the project, especially the new open space. Looking east to 595 Dean from larger of two dog runs The most significant discussion, as described below, involved policies regarding the noisy dog runs (one for small dogs, one for large ones), where noise disturbs residents of the west side of the 595 Dean west tower. That said, I learned more outside the meeting from both a p...

This is the first of two articles on the Pacific Park Conservancy. The second concerns the Conservancy's record of spending . Perhaps the most active element in the not-always-used three acres of "Pacific Park" open space is the dog run. It's situated between Dean Street and (demapped) Pacific Street, east of Carlton Avenue, toward the north end of the corridor between 535 Carlton (B14) and the West tower of 595 Dean (B13). Actually, it's divided into two parts, for large and small dogs. Looking east at dog runs & 595 Dean West tower. Photos: Norman Oder The dog run, while popular with dog owners from the nearby buildings and blocks, can generate considerable barking, which disturbs residents in the west-facing units of that West tower, as noted in several Google reviews , one of which called the noise "pretty unbearable." Building developer TF Cornerstone, which has touted the dog park as amenity for tenants, has deflected complaints to the Pacific ...

It's not a surprise that a new building--or, in this case, two-tower complex--has a lot of inventory and needs incentives to lease up. As I saw in late December, and again as shown in today's screenshot below,  595 Dean  is offering two months free on a 14-month lease, "1 Month OP," which means the owner pays one month of the broker fee (which, not sure, may be larger). (Note that the website still states that these are for leases signed by the end of December. StreetEasy says the offer is for leases signed by the end of the month.) Getting a deal? So these are (relative) deals, but for those staying longer than the initial term--and who wants the hassle of moving?--that $3,369 studio would cost $3,930, and that $5,966 two-bedroom would cost $6,960. Note: the $3,930 studio (#838) was originally listed at $4,080  and the $6,960 two-bedroom (#2204) was originally listed at $7,115 . So pricing is, again not surprisingly, an adjustment process. Note that the listing...

Looking east on Dean Street, from 535 Carlton So, how many parking spaces are there on Dean Street under the three apartment buildings--535 Carlton and the two-tower 595 Dean--stretching east of Carlton Avenue? The total is now apparently 772, as 469 spaces under B12/B13 (595 Dean), which opened earlier this year, have been added to the initial 303 spaces under B14 (535 Carlton Avenue), which opened in 2017. That's according to documents filed with the Department of Buildings. And that's slightly more than the 455 spaces announced earlier--which itself was the product of multiple adjustments. (There's no parking under the fourth tower on the block, the condo building 550 Vanderbilt.) Time will tell I dig into the numbers below, but the bigger question is: what happens if and when several hundred drivers drawn by an arena event all want to enter around the same time or leave at the same time? As shown below, there's only one way in and out, and it's a relatively narr...

As I wrote in August ( link ), regarding a discussion at the Aug. 2 meeting of the Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation (AY CDC), Empire State Development (ESD) executive Joel Kolkmann told the group that the  affordable housing lottery  for the two-tower 595 Dean complex (B12/B13) had been extended through August 15.   Once the lottery is closed, Kolkmann told the (purportedly) advisory body, residents of the affordable units should be ready to move in within about two months, or the middle of October. I suggested that was unlikely, since  typically  it may take two to ten months to hear back, according to the city , which is followed by an interview and evaluation process, and the Citizens Housing and Planning Council reported that, on average it takes 371 days--more than a year--to fill all the units in a NYC housing lottery. The lottery extension allowed higher income limits For a complex like this,  it's apparently faster--th...