atlantic-yards-signage-111010.jpgOpponents of the Atlantic Yards project won their first major legal victory yesterday when Supreme Court Justice Marcy Friedman ruled that the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) hadn’t sufficiently studied the community impact of a construction schedule that is now expected to last closer to 25 years rather than the ten initially put forth. Atlantic Yards Report explains that while the ruling will not immediately effect construction, it could subject the Atlantic Yards project to further arguments in court. For now, the case has been sent back to ESDC for reconsideration. It requires the ESDC to provide a “detailed, reasoned basis for [its] findings” on environmental impact while taking construction delays into account. “The Court properly found that ESDC misrepresented the facts of the contracts and there were no requirements that FCRC complete the project” says DDDB counsel Jeffrey Baker. “ESDC’s lack of transparency was not just with respect to its own deliberations, but extended to trying to hide material facts from the Court. We are very pleased that Justice Friedman did not tolerate that behavior.”
Justice Friedman Slams ESDC… [Atlantic Yards Report]
Court Slams NY State on AY, Rules in Favor of DDDB [DDDB]


What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. Ahhhhh yes! The end of another AY thread on Brownstoner. Anyone who dares call out this boondoggle for what it is immediately gets labeled a “NIMBY” “rich kid” or is characterized as otherwise inauthentic by the project’s boorish cheerleaders. After all, it is the project’s proponents who are the real authentic old Brooklynites and they know what is best for us here. So you know it’s a done deal, and everyone who happens to live here just has to deal with the way the deal was done.

    But it’s a great story, don’t you think? Rife with all kinds of colorful actors: the craven politicos, the boot-licking toadies, the bought and paid for community leaders, the lying developer and his russian oligarch money man, the vain starchitect who was played for a fool, the strange, shady and opaque bureaucracy that was for some reason entrusted with ensuring compliance with state laws, the obstreperous NIMBY activists, the crusading advocates for good government, and let’s not forget the cool, cocky enviornmental engineering guns for hire. I can hear them saying: “review of this issue is outside the scope of CEQR guidelines for compliance…”

    The rest of us – well – we’re just the peanut gallery and hardly rate a mention in the story. What we think – nobody cares but us. But anyway, it’s the plot that I care about, and how it turns out in the end. It would really suck to have a bland, soul-less, poorly constructed residential development there that takes years to build, and it would be really great to have a lively and well-designed place that complements and improves the surrounding areas.

    It makes sense to pay attention to what is going on with this development. It is a big deal, and will have a major impact on the people who live here.

  2. Ah, right, Denton. Someone calls you out on your bullying with a swat (my “don’t be an idiot”) and you cry ironic foul. Bet that works for you often enough that you keep it up but infrequently actually listen.

    And fsrq, as I stated pretty clearly, this was what popped up first when I googled the issue because I was trying to summon the information from foggy memory. It looked interesting and thoughtful. If you had intended to be respectful in your reply, you certainly would have crafted it differently.

    Wow. This is unpleasant. I’m out.

  3. The funny thing about all the discussions over the time lines for when the residential buildings will be built is that no one really knows.

    When the capital markets improve and apartment prices/rents go up enough, construction will be start.
    Will that be in 5, 10, or 25 years? I don’t think anyone can answer that right now with any degree of certainty.

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