Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report

Discussion of Forest City Ratner's proposal to move ahead on building of the platform needed for vertical development over the Vanderbilt Yard, while asking for 15 months' delay in the required completion of a permanent railyard proceeded uneventfully at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Long Island Rail Road Committee yesterday. Following the receipt of a Staff Summary indicating the work would be helpful while the delay not harmful, LIRR President took a few questions from committee members. The concurrent work, he said, means Forest City doesn't "have to come back after the fact and disrupt the yard and disrupt the foundation." The delay affects full use of permanent railyard, he said. "It is not delaying the overall project. In fact it helps it." No raised the potential pitfall, as I suggested , that the agreement might make it more difficult to unwind the deal should Forest City and its joint venture partner, the Chinese govern...

This is the fifth of five articles regarding the  3/15/19 meeting  of the  Atlantic Yards Community Development Corporation  (AY CDC), set up to advise the parent Empire State Development (ESD). The  first article  concerned the expected 2022 completion date for the middle school. The  second article  concerned the board's inability to hire independent consultants. The  third article  concerned updates from the AY CDC President and from developer Greenland USA. The fourth article concerned a failed effort to get a building-by-building timetable for affordable units. To get to 2,250 affordable units by  May 2025 , as I wrote yesterday, it looks like all or most of the project must be built by then, unless... some buildings contain a greater percentage of affordability than contemplated in current subsidy programs, and/or affordable units are included in Site 5, contemplated for office space. Or, perhaps, the deadline might be str...

From the latest Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Brooklyn Construction Update  (in full at bottom), covering this week and next and issued yesterday by Empire State Development after preparation by Greenland Forest City Partners, with new information bolded compared to the previous two-week report : Arena Green Roof o Deliveries to the Atlantic Avenue crane location will be made through the wide gate entrance along Atlantic Avenue . Delivery trucks will back into the gate; Flagmen will be present to direct traffic. Note that the deliveries in the previous update indicated the B3 crane location at Dean and Sixth Avenue. Also note that the partial stop-work order temporarily suspending such deliveries went unmentioned. That seems to be a significant lapse. (I got a comment from Empire State Development: "The two week look-ahead is an informational letter sent electronically to the community. The March 2nd-March 9th construction notice is a projection of the work we anticipate wil...

With no discussion or drama, the board of the Metropolitan Transportation this morning approved revised deal terms regarding the Vanderbilt Yard. That will allow the Atlantic Yards developer, Forest City Ratner--and, presumably, the nearly finalized joint venture with the Chinese government-owned Greenland Group-- to move ahead  on building the platform needed for vertical development over the Vanderbilt Yard, while getting the timetable to finish the permanent railyard extended 15 months. The extension is not crucial to the MTA, because the plan for East Side Access--the service for which the yard will become more important--has been delayed. As I wrote , a Technical Memorandum states that, despite the nine-month extension of time for foundation work, the foundation work would be less extensive, since it would require fewer trucks. However, unlike in past plans, the work would require installation of 95 caisson piles, each taking two days to install, using two drill rigs...

According to the latest two-week Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Construction Update (bottom), issued yesterday at 4:39 pm (one business day late) for the two weeks beginning March 28, the passage around the B3 construction site at Dean Street and Sixth Avenue is expected to be constricted as the construction fence is extended. According to the document, the MPT (Maintenance and Protection of Traffic) "may be bumped out according to approved site safety plans during this reporting period. The Dean Street sidewalk in front of the MPT will be closed and a pedestrian walkway will be maintained." No diagrams were provided. Also, at the Vanderbilt Yard, "Installation of 24” diameter caisson piles for foundations will resume during this reporting period." While not described as such, this could be noisy. Saturday work may continue at B2 (461 Dean Street, modular), B3, B11 (550 Vanderbilt Avenue), B12 (615 Dean Street). Night and weekend work is expected at the Vanderbil...

The latest two-week Atlantic Yards Construction Alert, dated 12/5/11, was distributed yesterday by Empire State Development (after preparation by developer Forest City Ratner). Such on-time distribution is rare--usually the document is a day or two late--but it's clear timeliness is important, because there are some significant changes beginning today. The highlights: a large crane at the arena site will be demobilized on a second shift today, 3-11 pm, to be replaced by a smaller one the façade subcontractor resumed a second shift yesterday waterproofing of a storm water retention tank is suspended because of a union dispute railyard flood lights will not only be turned on at 6 am (though there are reports it's earlier) and from dusk to 7:30 pm as previous, but extended to to 11:00 pm, during double shifts a Utility contractor working on the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and Dean Street has moved to a lot closer to Pacific Street "to help mitigate noise impacts to ...

According to the latest Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Construction Update, released today by Empire State Development after preparation by Greenland Forest City Partners, some major work is planned this week and next. Notably, starting Wednesday May 13, there should be be several nights of noisy, disruptive overnight work at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Sixth Avenue. In the previous alert , the time needed was estimated at five-six nights. No total is now listed, which suggests it could go longer. Update : the work will start Thursday, May 14, and last seven nights. Also, the developers plan work on Flatbush Avenue in preparation for installing a crane to work on the Barclays Center's green roof. That work includes installation of fencing and overhead protection, as well as the removal of the benches, as well as deliveries. Finally, not only is work expected on the B2 modular tower at Flatbush Avenue and Dean Street, but also site preparation and preliminary excav...

Well, there's no update yet regarding the next key stage of Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park: whether and when the platform over the Vanderbilt Yard, to be constructed in two stages and support three towers each, will be built. That platform is crucial to the project's affordable housing obligations, as well as the future open space. The latest iteration of the required six-month look-ahead (bottom) required of master Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park developer Greenland Forest City Partners, again--as in  November 2020 --says that "Platform construction may commence during the reporting period." The workforce would average 50 to 100 workers. (I received the document, dated 5/1/21, from Empire State Development, which oversees/shepherds the project, after a Freedom of Information Law request.) In May 2020 , the document stated, with unreliable certainty, that the construction "will commence." At a public meeting 12/10/20, Greenland USA's Scott Solish said that, w...

According to the latest Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Brooklyn Construction Update, below, covering this week and next and issued yesterday by Empire State Development after preparation by Greenland Forest City Partners, work at the sites for two residential buildings now includes installation of a 16' fence along a portion of Dean Street near Vanderbilt Avenue, and the trucking of excavated soil from Dean Street near Carlton Avenue. (Here's the previous alert .) Below are verbatim excerpts from the document. I've bolded the new information LIRR Yard Activities - Block 1120 & 1121 • Within the yard, drilling of SOE soldier piles along the mid-block of Block 1120 has been completed. Removal of the drill rig from the site has commenced and may extend into the current reporting period. • During this reporting period, installation and testing of 24” diameter caisson piles is scheduled to commence in Block 1120. Compressors located on the 6th Avenue Bridge will be uti...

For the second straight time , the two-week Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Construction Update has been released on the Friday before the official Monday date, in this case June 8. On the one hand, that is welcome--frankly, it should have been the pattern all along, as opposed to distribution on the day it was dated, or a day or two after. On the other hand, even the early delivery is being used to obscure changes that should have been disclosed earlier. For example, the document distributed yesterday, June 5, contains this passage: Miscellaneous Work *During this period it is expected that from June 4 until June 16, work will be done inside the arena which requires use of a 150ft boom lift; this equipment will be removed from the arena when the arena is in use and will be stored as needed in broadcast lot. The work hours will be 4PM-7AM. As I tweeted yesterday , that left a lot out: And what, pray tell, is this "miscellaneous work"? Interior roof work? How complicated ...