Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report

Oversight of and transparency regarding Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park has continued to slack, as there's no sight of new construction. Yes, TF Cornerstone is finishing the buildings at, and open space around, the two-tower 595 Dean Street, and Chelsea Piers will open its fitness center and fieldhouse next month--and it's unclear how that will all work.  And the School Construction Authority is still working on the middle school at Sixth Avenue between Pacific and Dean streets, at the base of the completed 662 Pacific Street tower, aka Plank Road. Otherwise, there's nothing new pending. And, for months, we haven't heard anything from master developer Greenland Forest City Partners, which is dominated by Greenland USA.  We don't even know if Greenland USA has replaced its longtime Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park point man, Scott Solish, who left in February. We don't know if Greenland has any new estimate on its ability to start the crucial platform over the Vanderbilt ...

I have an essay in CommonEdge today,  How Atlantic Yards Failed to Deliver Affordable Homeownership (With a Hakeem Jeffries Cameo) . From the lead: U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ inaugural address to colleagues in the early morning hours of Saturday, January 7, showed that the Brooklyn politician, the Democrats’ first Black leader in the House, should be a public fixture for years. While commentators hailed Jeffries’ tour-de-force A–Z passage contrasting Democrats and Republicans, what struck me most occurred in the last third of the speech, when Jeffries stated , “So on this first day, let us commit to the American Dream … if you work hard and play by the rules, you should be able to provide a comfortable living for yourself and for your family, educate your children, purchase a home, and one day retire with grace and dignity.” An unsurprising list? Well, the reference to “purchase a home” reminded me of one of Jeffries’ first political victories, ...

Beyond my preview of tonight's  Crossroads Brooklyn: Urban Design session and a look at the value (and future) of Site 5, let's look at an October 2019 session, sponsored by BrooklynSpeaks that should, in many ways, be a preview of current advocacy efforts. As I wrote , Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park seems to be at an inflection point, presenters at the forum, and that should offer leverage for improvements in public benefits and public oversight. From BrooklynSpeaks slideshow However, lead developer Greenland USA seems financially strained, it has not yet been pressured by the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo for such improvements. In fact, Cuomo’s Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority overseeing and shepherding the project, recently eased the way for a Greenland lessee, TF Cornerstone, to gain below-ground space to build a field house and fitness center below two towers slated to start next year, with no reciprocal benefit.  Will Gov. Kathy Hochul's ESD be...

The advisory Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation (AY CDC), announced in the June 2014 settlement that established a new 2025 deadline for the project's affordable units, should  finally meet on Monday, Dec. 13 , after a nearly nine-month hiatus. It's supposed to meet quarterly. (The agenda has been posted , but the presentation was not posted yesterday, which is what I was told would happen. That makes it even tougher to send relevant comments by the deadline, which is 4:30 today--and, of course, a rule requiring comments to be filed before the meeting hampers transparency. I posted some items for discussion.)  Though hailed  in 2014 by local elected officials as part of progress toward accountability, the AY CDC's record is troubling. Let's look back at the board's checkered history, with links below to my coverage and the official meetings .  The status quo Given the changes, delays, and question marks surrounding the project, the AY CDC could pla...

This is the second of three posts on the 9/14/21 Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Quality of Life meeting, held on Zoom, sponsored by Empire State Development (ESD). The first concerned construction progress at four towers. Despite some skepticism from audience members, Tobi Jaiyesimi of Empire State Development defended the biweekly Construction Updates, which sometimes omit information or don't come at all. In response to concerns that certain elements may have been left off, she said “there's a process in place by which that construction alert is reviewed and distributed to ensure the accuracy of the information.” The review process involves both ESD and also the development team. “And so in those situations where either a subcontractor may have acted prematurely”—like posting “No Parking” signs on Dean Street —or there was miscommunication, “we are sure to address that accordingly.” That, to me, was a bit of gaslighting. For months, the Construction Updates  omitted mention of...

The bottom line, from BrooklynSpeaks Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park seems to be at an inflection point, presenters at a forum said last night, and that should offer leverage for improvements in public benefits and public oversight. However, lead developer Greenland USA seems financially strained, it has not yet been pressured by the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo for such improvements. In fact, Cuomo’s Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority overseeing and shepherding the project, recently eased the way for a Greenland lessee, TF Cornerstone, to gain below-ground space to build a field house and fitness center below two towers slated to start next year, with no reciprocal benefit. at two upcoming The question is whether those organized by the BrooklynSpeaks coalition—neighborhood and housing groups whose posture I've long described as "mend-it-don't-end-it"—can mount such pressure. At the meeting, Assemblymembers Walter Mosley and Jo Anne Simo...

This afternoon is a meeting of the Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation will hear a presentation of proposed changes to the Atlantic Yards Modified General Project Plan (MGPP), which the parent Empire State Development (ESD) deemed unworthy of a public review process. Here's a link to coverage of issues raised at last week's precursor Quality of Life meeting, including 100,000 square feet of new, below-ground space, a cut in vehicle parking, and a change/cut in bike parking. Among the 40 or so people at the meeting, there was significant skepticism about the ESD's haste in moving the proposal forward, the lack of disclosure before the meeting, and the lack of interest in public comment. "You already have a fait accompli , and you have not already discussed it with the board that represents us as the public," said resident Pauline Blake of the AY CDC. "You're just asking them to rubber-stamp it, without any opportunity for them to come ba...

Here's a link to coverage of issues raised at the meeting, including 100,000 square feet of new, below-ground space, a cut in vehicle parking, and a change/cut in bike parking. At tonight's bi-monthly Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Quality of Life meeting , several proposed project changes will be discussed, as I've written . Those changes include unspecified cuts in vehicle parking and bike parking, a "change to square footage" for two parcels, and an unspecified reduction in the width of "the Open Space North-South Walkway Width." The process seems fast-tracked. According to the announcement, staff from Empire State Development (ESD), the state authority overseeing/shepherding the project, are to "discuss amendments to the Modified General Project Plan (MGPP) to be brought before the Atlantic Yards Community Development [Corporation] Board of Directors for recommendation, and then presented to the Empire State Development Board of Directors for...