Forest City Ratner to sell 70% stake in Atlantic Yards to Chinese government-owned developer; largest such deal with Chinese backing
First, a Russian billionaire whose path to wealth was launched during the shady days of post-Soviet privatization bought 80% of the Nets and 45% of the Barclays Center operating company. Now, after Forest City Ratner got one tower started, a government-owned property developer from China, Greenland Holdings Group, is buying 70% of the remaining 15 towers in the Atlantic Yards project, the largest commercial real estate deal ever for a Chinese company in the United States. And the latter seems a solid deal for developer Forest City Ratner, since it will continue to gain development fees and manage the project, hedging its risks. It likely can accelerate construction, thus responding to widespread criticism for the slow delivery of promised affordable housing. In both cases, the bottom line is: after Forest City did the heavy lifting to get subsidies, tax breaks, and regulatory approval, gaining what they call in the real estate development business "entitlement," Atlanti...