Ron Shiffman, Jane Jacobs medal winner, speaks on his history, the importance of "qualitative growth," and role of DDDB

On Thursday, 3/14/13, community planner Ron Shiffman (right), received the 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal for Lifetime Leadership, presented by the Rockefeller Foundation. The press release is at bottom, and here's the Storify account of the evening, in tweets.

Shiffman, in both his speech and in the pre-speech video about him, made reference to his work with Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, where he served on the board of directors and wrote a 2006 essay explaining his opposition to Atlantic Yards, citing a flawed process and extreme density.

Shiffman's speech

Shiffman gave me a copy of his speech, which he edited to meet time constraints, so he did not deliver the remarks in gray. He first thanked the Rockefeller Foundation and the Municipal Art Society, which administers the awards:

I am truly honored to be this year’s Jane Jacobs awardee. Jane played a pivotal role in forging the way we think about people, cities and the economy. The position I filled at Pratt 50 years ago was ironically created because of Jane’s advocacy against a Pratt planning proposal for an area of Brooklyn now known as Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill– an action I will forever be grateful for. Brooklyn benefitted because a well intentioned but misguided plan was defeated and I benefitted because I got the job opportunity of a lifetime - for that I would like to thank my mentor, George Raymond.

I had the honor to meet Jane a few times, almost always with my good friend Roberta Gratz. In the early 70’s, Roberta and I took Jane on a tour of the South Bronx where my colleagues and I were working with community residents committed to rebuilding their communities - the Peoples Development Corporation and Banana Kelly. Jane immediately sensed that this -- not planned shrinkage as proposed by some --was the way to rebuild our vulnerable communities.

One of Jane’s greatest attributes was to give voice to those who struggled to preserve and revitalize their community, an effort which many others were engaged in -- Elsie Richardson, Don Benjamin and Judge Jones in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Ramon Reguiera in South Brooklyn, Elizabeth Yeampierre in Sunset Park, Yolanda Garcia and Kelly Terry-Sepulveda in the South Bronx, Fran Goldin in Cooper Square, Chino Garcia, Rabbit and Ruthie Nazario and Demaris Reyes in the Lower East Side, Ellen Lurie and Roger Katan in East Harlem, Luis Garden Acosta, Frances Lucerna in Williamsburg, and Pat Simon and Jeanne DuPont in the Rockaways, and many others.

Jane understood the struggle of groups like Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn, where Daniel Goldstein and Shabnam Merchant whose opposition to the misuse of eminent domain and the abuse of power by some in the development community pitted them against the some of the city’s most powerful entities. She inspired journalists like Norm Oder to put voice to their struggles.

She set the stage for community organizers like Eddie Bautista to mobilize communities to speak out against environmental injustices. This award must be shared with them and many others in and outside of this this room.

I would be remiss not to mention that Jane’s influence was enhanced by knowing and working with advocates like Paul and Linda Davidoff, Chester Hartman, and Walter Thabit, Jon Kest and the rest of the activists at ACORN as well as folks like Richard Kahan, Joe McNeely, and Mayor David Dinkins.

I also want acknowledge my wife and partner of close to 54 years, Yvette –whose influence and support has been immeasurable. This award is as much hers as it is mine. I want to acknowledge my kids and their respective spouses, and my brother and sister–in-law –all have been a source of motivation and support. My grandkids motivate every action I engage in.
I will always be indebted to those that worked with me at the Pratt Center – Rudy Bryant, Brian Sullivan, Cathy Herman, Naomi Johnson, Eva Alligood, Rex Curry, Frank DeGiovanni, Mercedes Rodriguez, Mannix Gordon, Eve Baron and Joan Byron, and many others too numerous to mention, for they all sacrificed and contributed mightily to the work we engaged in collectively.

I’d like to acknowledge my successors at the Pratt Center -- Councilman Brad Lander and Adam Friedman and to the Pratt administration that supported our efforts – President Thomas Schutte and Richardson Pratt before him and trustees Mitchell Pratt and Gary Hattem.
My thanks go especially to to the students of Pratt that kept us focused on innovation and true to the principles we espoused, and to my colleagues on the Pratt Planning faculty –Eve Baron, Eva Hanhardt, John Shapiro, Ayse Yonder, Carlton Brown, Jaime Stein, Eddie Bautista and Stuart Pertz ably led by John Shapiro.

Most importantly, I want to thank the people we worked with that taught me to build upon their assets to help them overcome their problems—problems often spawned by public policies that fostered displacement and allowed poverty to fester in many corners of our city.
We have accomplished much over the years that I am proud of, but we have left yet undone a plethora of problems that the next generation of planners, community activists and organizers must continue to address:
* the social, economic and environmental injustices that make us all weaker,
* the privatization of public space and public functions,
* the growing economic segregation of our city or, as Mindy Fullilove, my friend calls it, the “sorting” of the city, and* the challenges of climate change – which we must aggressively and creatively confront.

On behalf of my grandkids and their generation, I fervently pray that all of us in this room are ready to tackle these problems with renewed vigor. As an unapologetic optimist, I do believe that we will overcome these challenges with vision, commitment and an ever-abiding trust in our neighbors and that we will prevail.

I was surprised to be mentioned; Jacobs has inspired me somewhat retroactively. I began writing about Atlantic Yards with little knowledge of her work, but I have found valuable critic Paul Goldberger's observation: "So if there is any way to follow Jane Jacobs, it is to think of her as showing us not a physical model for city form but rather a perceptual model for skepticism."

On video

In the video below, played before Shiffman's remarks, he described his history:

I studied architecture at Pratt, then went into the Department of City and Regional Planning...
In 1963, a group of ministers from Bed-Study came to Pratt asking for some technical assistance. The city had proposed an urban renewal plan for Fulton Park. They were very concerned with what the city might do, because.. urban renewal was rightly called Negro Removal.
We began to develop an overall plan... one that integrated social economic as well as physical revitalization...Robert Kennedy was planning to run for Senate.. and we.. toured him through the community... worked with his staff... community's ideas plus input from Kennedy and people he brought in led to development of first Community Development Corporation.
I think community development needs to deal with qualitative growth, that it's just not bigger buildings and more of anything, but getting things to be better than they are today.

And the biggest challenge, I'd suggest, is managing qualitative growth along with quantitative growth, as with a growing city.



Shiffman continued:

Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn is one of a series of communities that we've worked with over the years. Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn led the opposition to Atlantic Yards and to what is now known as the Barclays Center. One of the things I did with them is clarify some of their positions. They really wanted to see development take place, but they wanted it done responsibly and wanted to make sure it didn't abuse some of the powers of the state.

He cited two of the many lessons from Jacobs:

To learn to observe, to see what is going on in a particular place and to  look at it on the ground level...
the other one is that she demonstrated that being an activist and being a thinker really should not be separated and should give people the courage to fight on their own behalf.
Even people that never read her or met her or never know about her emulate her because of ripple effect of her actions.
I think I'm one of the luckiest guys in the world. I started this work when I was 26 years old... Kt's always been innovative, it's always changed. I've met some of the most fabulous people. From a very selfish perspective, I could not have written a more enjoyable scenario... The pay is terrible, but the riches come from the interactions with the people that you're working with.

The March 14 press release

The Rockefeller Foundation Honors 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal Winners: Now accepting nominations for 2013 Jane Jacobs Medals:

NEW YORK – Today Rockefeller Foundation President Dr. Judith Rodin is awarding the recipients of the 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal – Ronald Shiffman, Rosanne Haggerty, Carl Skelton, and the team from ioby – Erin Barnes, Brandon Whitney, and Cassie Flynn. The medal ceremony had been previously scheduled for November 2012, but due to the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy the Foundation postponed the ceremony until today. As New York City is rebuilding, the consequences of the storm further highlight the importance of annually honoring leaders whose work creates new ways of seeing and understanding New York City, challenges traditional assumptions and creatively uses the urban environment to make New York City a more resilient place of hope and expectation. The Foundation is also announcing that the official nominating process for the 2013 Jane Jacobs Medals opens today.

Mr. Shiffman, who has been a trailblazer in his development of the model for community development corporations, will receive the 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal for Lifetime Leadership. Ms. Haggerty, the founder of the Brownsville Partnership and an international leader in developing innovative strategies to end homelessness and strengthen communities, will receive the 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal for New Ideas and Activism. For the first time, a Jane Jacobs Medal for New Technology and Innovation will be awarded, with two winners: Carl Skelton and the team that founded ioby.
Along with the medal, each recipient will receive a cash award. Mr. Shiffman will donate $50,000 of his award to the New York Community Trust and $25,000 to The Pratt Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment. Ms. Haggerty will donate her $75,000 award to Community Solutions, and each founder of ioby – Erin Barnes, Brandon Whitney, and Cassie Flynn will donate their $25,000 award to ioby. Carl Skelton will receive his $25,000 and decide how to distribute it subsequently.

The Rockefeller Foundation Jane Jacobs Medal was created in 2007 to honor the author and activist who died in April 2006 at the age of 89. The Rockefeller Foundation's relationship with Jane Jacobs dates back to the 1950s, when the Foundation made a grant to the then-obscure writer from Greenwich Village, for the research and writing of the book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Now more than fifty years later, Jane Jacobs' work remains one of the most influential books ever written on urban design.
"The Rockefeller Foundation’s Jane Jacobs Medals recognize New Yorkers who use the urban environment to build a more equitable city for everyone, and this year's winners embody the very best of Jane Jacobs by working to give a voice to every resident," said Dr. Judith Rodin, president of The Rockefeller Foundation. "As our community continues to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, it is important to celebrate the leadership and innovation of each of the honorees, who have helped create a strong and resilient city through their work."

Ronald Shiffman has spent more than fifty years working to promote community-based activism. As a student in the early 1960s, Mr. Shiffman, along with Professor George Raymond and others, worked on a study of Bedford-Stuyvesant, anticipating a city urban renewal program planned for the neighborhood. The community consortium developed a comprehensive plan to rebuild Bedford-Stuyvesant through economic development programs that became a model for the creation of community development corporations today.
Mr. Shiffman's work in Bedford-Stuyvesant became the inspiration to create the Pratt Institute Center for Community and Environmental Development, founded by Mr. Shiffman and Dr. Raymond in 1964. The center continues today to empower low and moderate income communities in New York to plan for and realize their futures.
Just in the last few years, Mr. Shiffman has advised Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, an organization that brings community voices into the planning process for development projects in Brooklyn such as Atlantic Yards. For his tireless pursuit of, and belief in, the power of community-based groups to change the makeup of New York City for the better, Ronald Shiffman is the 2012 recipient of the Jane Jacobs Medal for Lifetime Leadership.

Rosanne Haggerty has been a pioneer in the development of supportive housing and other research-based practices that end homelessness. In 1990, Ms. Haggerty founded Common Ground – a nonprofit housing development and managing organization that provides innovative shelters for homeless adults. Common Ground's network of well designed, affordable apartments, which link people to the services they need to maintain their housing, restore their health, and regain their economic independence, has enabled more than 4,000 individuals to overcome homelessness. Ms. Haggerty's work has served as a model for cities around the world.
Most recently, Ms. Haggerty established Community Solutions, a national nonprofit whose mission is to strengthen communities to end homelessness. Community Solutions' cornerstone efforts include the 100,000 Homes Campaign, which seeks to collectively house 100,000 homeless individuals and families by July of 2013. Community Solutions has also been central in the development of the Brownsville Partnership, which coordinates the efforts of all the service providers in that low-income Brooklyn neighborhood towards the end of homelessness-prevention. For her creative energy and ceaseless efforts to create shelters for the homeless and to provide the people it serves with dignity and the means to reintegrate into the community, Rosanne Haggerty is the 2012 recipient of the Jane Jacobs Medal for New Ideas and Activism.

The three co-founders of ioby, Cassie Flynn, Erin Barnes, and Brandon Whitney, combined their passions for water conservation, climate change, community resources, and green initiatives to develop real change on the streets of New York City. ioby focused on bringing sunlight, open space, fresh food and greenery IOBY (in our backyards). ioby connects people and money to site-based environmental projects, which are conceived of, designed, and run by neighbors – ensuring community buy-in, long-term caretakers and daily reminders of what has been achieved.
Through the microfinance network, successful projects are magnified so they can benefit other neighborhoods, allowing the positive impact to ripple throughout the city. ioby has successfully funded 123 projects for an 82 percent success rate, with 80 more currently underway. A total of $262,640 has been raised for an average of $980 per project, and donors live an average of two miles from their projects. For making New York City a more dynamic and attractive place for current and future New Yorkers, Cassie Flynn, Erin Barnes, and Brandon Whitney are the 2012 recipients of the Jane Jacobs Medal for New Technology and Innovation.

Carl Skelton has been devoted to using his creative and research work to build a bridge between the arts, design, technology, and community engagement disciplines. As part of this work, Mr. Skelton developed Betaville, an open-source multiplayer environment for real cities, in which ideas for new works of public art, architecture, urban design and development can be shared, discussed, tweaked, and brought to maturity with broad participation.
Mr. Skelton designed Betaville to be deployable by individuals, small groups, all the way up to professional design firms and government city planning departments. Most importantly Betaville allows for anything from the future of a street corner, a vacant lot or an entire city, to be tinkered with on an ongoing basis at little cost by the full spectrum of subject matter experts. For working to integrate all voices into the conversation around city planning and building, Carl Skelton is the 2012 recipient of the Jane Jacobs Medal for New Technology and Innovation.

The selection of the Jane Jacobs Medalists and allocation of the prize money was determined by the 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal Jury, chaired by Dr. Rodin. The Jury also includes Richard Kahan, Founder and CEO of the Urban Assembly and recipient of the 2009 Jane Jacobs Medal for Lifetime Leadership; Reggie Van Lee, Executive Vice President, Booze Allen Hamilton; Susan Freedman, President of the Public Art Fund; and Bruce Nussbaum, Professor of Design & Innovation at Parsons The New School for Design and Former Assistant Managing Editor of Business Week. The 2012 Jane Jacobs Medal is administered by the Municipal Art Society (MAS).

The Rockefeller Foundation is now looking for nominations for the 2013 Jane Jacobs Medals – for lifetime leadership and new ideas and activism. Nominees should demonstrate any or all of the following qualities:

• Open our eyes to a new way of seeing and understanding New York City;
• Generate a new way to think about the development and the preservation of the urban environments – specifically in New York City;
• Demonstrate an innovative approach to how we think about neighborhoods and leadership for how we solve problems within them.

The nomination process will be open through the end of April. To nominate someone for any of the 2013 Jane Jacobs Medals, please visit: www.rockefellerfoundation.org/jane-jacobs.

Municipal Art Society
The MAS, founded in 1893, is a non-profit membership organization committed to making New York a more livable city through education, dialogue and advocacy for intelligent urban planning, design and preservation. For more information, visit www.mas.org.

The Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation aims to achieve equitable growth by expanding opportunity for more people in more places worldwide, and to build resilience by helping them prepare for, withstand, and emerge stronger from acute shocks and chronic stresses. Throughout its 100 year history, The Rockefeller Foundation has enhanced the impact of innovative thinkers and actors working to change the world by providing the resources, networks, convening power, and technologies to move them from idea to impact. In today's dynamic and interconnected world, The Rockefeller Foundation has a unique ability to address the emerging challenges facing humankind through innovation, intervention and influence in order to shape agendas and inform decision making. For more information, please visitwww.rockefellerfoundation.org.

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BrooklynSpeaks, DDDB comment on Draft Scope for SEIS: consider other developers, assess impacts of delay on open space, affordable housing, tax benefits; Newswalk points to construction impacts

Following up on comments delivered orally at the 2/27/13 public meeting on the contents of the Draft Scope for an Atlantic Yards Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS), BrooklynSpeaks has issued a lengthy set of comments advocating, among other things, that the Phase 2 properties be divided and bid out to multiple developers in order to achieve the project goals--especially the removal of blight--closer to ten rather than 25 years.

BrooklynSpeaks, which was formed to modify rather than stop the project, has remained far more active than Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, which aimed to block the project.

The two organizations filed separate lawsuits that were combined and resulted in the court order for the SEIS, as a judge ruled--despite a legal playing field tilted toward government agencies--that the state had not studied the impact of a potential 25 year buildout, which was allowed by contract documents signed after the project was reapproved in 2009.

DDDB did not testify formally at the meeting (though some people active in DDDB testified), issued a shorter statement with some similar requests, though with a more pointed critique of the Draft Scope.

Unlike the BrooklynSpeaks statement and most of the testimony at the public meeting, DDDB also suggested that "alternate densities"--i.e., a smaller project be considered.

Both comments called for an updated and more comprehensive assessment of the socioeconomic impacts of the project, given delays in construction and use of lower-cost modular construction techniques. I too filed comments requesting a cost-benefit analysis that incorporated different scenarios, including a partial/delayed buildout of housing, as well as a delay in the construction of the promised office tower.

One key issue is the 15-year deadline to start the platform over the Vanderbilt Yard, which is the below-grade piece of the project site that the city long considered blighted. Meanwhile, as BrooklynSpeaks states, residential construction in nearby Downtown Brooklyn is going gangbusters, as noted in coverage yesterday in Crain's NY Business.

Construction impacts

Also, Wayne Bailey of the neighboring Newswalk condominums filed a lengthy comment regarding the impacts of construction, pointing to numerous violations--trucks not using truck routes; idling limo; bright lights; noise; vibrations; garbage; tree removal--documented on the Atlantic Yards Watch website.



Another neighbor's comments

Also, Steve Ettlinger of Park Slope posted comments (embedded below) that requested analysis of the impacts on pedestrian safety and local drivers from illegal idling and parking, and the impacts of  delays on local retail and public health.

What next

The comments will be considered in the preparation of a Final Scope, which will lead to a Draft SEIS and another opportunity for comments.

Supporters of the project want the environmental review to proceed quickly without impediment to Forest City, suggesting the process portends delay for Phase 2, though Phase 1 is still in process. They have not said they want to change the contract deadlines.

BrooklynSpeaks summary

The full BrooklynSpeaks statement is embedded at bottom. Below are paragraphs from the statement distributed for the press.

The need to eliminate blight:

We note that the need for a SEIS was cited prior to the approval of the 2009 MGPP [Modified General Project Plan], not only by our organizations but by nearly every local elected official representing the neighborhoods surrounding the Atlantic Yards project. We sincerely regret that litigation was required to compel the study anticipated by the draft scope, but look forward to working constructively with the ESDC to ensure that the SEIS it prepares will be a new starting point from which the stated objectives of the Atlantic Yards project can be achieved on a timely basis, through a transparent process with public accountability.
As its core deliverable, the SEIS must reconcile the stated purpose of the Atlantic Yards project to eliminate purported blight, with the 2009 MGPP’s potential of extending the exact same blight some 15 years past the timeframe given for completion of the Atlantic Yards project at the time of its approval in 2006. In the absence of such reconciliation, we find these two positions antithetical, particularly given that a pattern of investment and organic development had already been established in the area within the project footprint prior to Atlantic Yards’ 2006 approval. It will not be enough for the SEIS to conclude that construction impacts are not greater over 25 years than they otherwise would be over 10 years. The Atlantic Yards project itself was approved to address a blight condition so onerous that hundreds of millions of dollars of direct and indirect government aid, zoning overrides and the use of eminent domain all were apparently justified. There would appear to be some public interest in such blighted conditions being remediated in a timely fashion, and the SEIS should determine whether delaying the completion of the project supports that interest.

The need to protect the public during construction:

But to the extent the SEIS nevertheless should conclude that extending project construction by nearly a generation would not create additional adverse impact to local communities, it must be prepared to explain how commitments to protect air quality, limit construction noise, manage contention for on-street parking between construction workers and residents, and control the use of residential streets by construction vehicles will be enforced. Violations of these commitments during the construction of the Barclays Center arena were well documented not only by residents but also by the ESDC’s own environmental monitor, leading an independent environmental engineer to conclude that ESDC and the City of New York in effect allowed Forest City Ratner to break project commitments and City law with impunity. Why should the public believe later phases of the Atlantic Yards project will be different? This question must be answered thoroughly and with candor.

The lingering impacts of Phase 1:

Nor is it sufficient for the SEIS to limit its scope of analysis to Atlantic Yards’ second phase footprint. Current project agreements allow the development of features of Phase I, including building B1 and the entire Site 5, to extend beyond the originally-approved 10-year time frame. Analyses involving the impacts of construction on transportation and pedestrian circulation must be revisited for the entire project site based upon current conditions and existing plans.

The delay in affordable housing:

The SEIS must also assess the time value of economic development and affordable housing benefits ascribed to the Atlantic Yards project. Would thousands of affordable apartments delivered fifteen years late really be as effective in terms of preserving socioeconomic diversity in the study area as if they were delivered on the originally approved schedule? And what would the delay in adding tens of thousands of residents mean to the development of businesses in Fort Greene, Prospect Heights, Park Slope and Boerum Hill?

The delay in open space:

What about the “temporary” open space impact cited in the draft scope of work? The build year guidelines in the CEQR Technical Manual would suggest that an interim build year based on the contractual obligation to complete Phase I in 12 years be considered as a point at which the open space impact must be mitigated—with or without the Phase II buildings.

The need to consider other developers

The press statement says:

The BrooklynSpeaks sponsors believe that when all of the above impacts are considered together, they indicate that an alternative plan for the development of Phase II of the Atlantic Yards project must be evaluated. This alternative plan should focus on the opportunity to restore the original 10-year construction plan by dividing the Phase II site among multiple development teams through a competitive bidding process. Had ESDC not withheld disclosure of the change in project schedule in 2009 in order to avoid a SEIS, exploring this alternative would have made good sense at the time. With intense development activity in downtown Brooklyn today, it is no longer a matter of simple good sense, it is imperative that it be explored in order to realize the stated goals of the Atlantic Yards project.

The longer  BrooklynSpeaks document points to evidence from development conditions nearby:

FCRC has asserted that historically poor, and unanticipated, market conditions gave rise to the lengthy delay agreed to in the 2009 MGPP. To the extent that this rationale had even a theoretical foundation at the time, it is demonstrably not the case today: Brooklyn, particularly the downtown area, is the hottest real estate market in New York City. With new development projects moving up Flatbush Avenue and into the BAM cultural district slated to break ground over the next two years, there is yet more to come. These projects include the Gotham with 600 units of which 300 are affordable, Two Trees’ BAM triangle with 300 units of which 60 are deeply affordable, The HUB by Steiner, 770 units of which 149 are deeply affordable and permanent. Clearly, the Brooklyn real estate market is not in a recession and the area in question likely never was. One must ask, was the delay embodied in the MGPP instead caused by the financial condition of the sole source developer and not the market? The SEIS must thoroughly study and analyze this question with hard data and candor.

All of the projects about to break ground also provide thousands of square feet of cultural facilities, public plazas, public library and retail space. The land in the cultural district is controlled by the City of New York which has negotiated to bring major public benefits to these projects. For example, the Gotham has the same ratio of affordability in terms of unit count and distribution as B2 in the Atlantic Yards project – except in the latter, only 20% of affordable units would be two bedrooms, while in the Gotham, 40% are 2 bedroom units. The difference is striking: 36 vs. 120 two-bedroom units. The City’s model of multiple sites and a variety of developers is thus far yielding greater public benefit. It presents an alternative that begs for evaluation.

No Independent Compliance Monitor

The BrooklynSpeaks document (not the press statement) points to Forest City Ratner's failure to hire an  Independent Compliance Monitor (ICM) promised “as soon as reasonably practicable” following the signing of the agreement in 2005 but continually delayed, with no current plans to hire one:

The SEIS must assess the impact of failing to hire the ICM on the incidents of violations of the MEC [Memorandum of Environmental Commitments] during arena construction. The SEIS must also propose how an environmental compliance function accountable to the local community will be provided for future phases of construction that will not suffer the same fate as the ICM.

DDDB statement

The DDDB statement, via attorney Jeff Baker, is at bottom. Below are some excerpts.

The potted history:

The Introduction of the Draft Scope misstates the procedural posture of this project and the circumstances that gave rise to this SEIS. Unmentioned in the Draft Scope is that in 2009, faced with major changes in the project, namely the phased acquisition of the Vanderbilt Yards by FCRC from the MTA, ESDC continued to assume a 10-year buildout for the project as the basis for its SEQRA determination.... The SEIS must properly recount the history of the litigation and subsequent reviews.

Helping the developer:

It must also be pointed out that Justice Friedman did not simply order the preparation of an SEIS, she also ordered ESDC to use the SEIS to issue "further findings on whether to approve the MGPP for Phase II of the Project.
To properly comply with the law and the court's order ESDC must undertake this review without blinders designed to protect FCRC...

Bidding out the site to alleviate blight:

As part of the SEIS, ESDC must consider the impacts of the delayed construction on such issues as community character, traffic, noise and socioeconomic impacts, to name a few. It also must consider the question of what project and/or combination of development partners is best positioned to actually build the project in the shortest reasonable time. If the purpose of the project is to alleviate blight and to provide housing, affordable and market as well as construction and permanent jobs, then ESDC must consider if this can be accomplished in less than 25 years... The SEIS should include that [financial] information and consider an alternative that divides the project into discrete components that can be developed by different firms.

Alternate plans:

ESDC should consider alternate designs and densities and evaluate the benefits of working with other developers to complete a feasible project in a reasonable period of time... If blight was a problem in 2006, the intervening actions by FCRC have not alleviated that problem...

Open space needs:

If allowed to proceed as previously approved, the project will exacerbate the lack of open space in the area... The SEIS should consider if a redesign and division of the project will allow quicker construction that will bring the touted open space benefits to reality in a quicker manner.

Construction impacts:

Furthermore, as part of the approvals for the project there were representations and warranties regarding FCRC's and ESDC's compliance with the conditions and monitoring of FCRC's compliance. The SEIS should include an assessment of that compliance and determine if additional measures should be incorporated for Phase II.

As BrooklynSpeaks points out in its full comments, a study by a prepared for Atlantic Yards Watch by a veteran environmental consulting firm, concludes that the Forest City Ratner and its contractors, bent on getting the arena finished by a tight deadline, regularly failed to comply with mitigation protocols officially agreed to, and that other mitigations were implemented late, poorly, or unevenly.

BrooklynSpeaks Draft Scope Response 3_14_13

DDDB Draft Scope Response 3_14_13

Wayne Bailey Comments on the Draft Scope for the Atlantic Yards DSEIS

Steve Ettlinger comments on Draft Scope for Atlantic Yards SEIS, March 14, 2013

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Atlantic Yards in 2012: A huge debut for Barclays Center; lingering taint and questions mostly pushed aside by arena events, pro sports, and lauded building

Reuters photo from first Nets home game

#HelloBrooklyn. (Or was that Crooklyn?)

The year 2012 marked a seismic shift in the Atlantic Yards saga. The conflict over the project, and lingering questions over the promises behind it, were mainly supplanted by celebration of and hype for the Barclays Center (and events within) and Brooklyn Nets.

Not only did most press coverage come from the sports and entertainment media, rather than the potentially more skeptical Metro pages, the buzz was compounded by something arena developers surely didn't imagine when Atlantic Yards was announced in 2003: social media.


Fractional team/arena owner Jay-Z--far more important than developer Bruce Ratner could've imagined--generated huge headlines and social media impact with his eight straight concerts, purported design of the Nets' black-and-white logo, and even a viral encounter with a lady on the subway. He even made the cover of the New York Times T Magazine supplement, interviewed by a genuflecting Zadie Smith.

Meanwhile, there was much paid media, with the Brooklyn Nets producing a skein of sponsorships and saturation advertising. Nets' merchandise flew off the shelves Even if it remains unclear exactly how much of "Brooklyn" has embraced the team, "Brooklyn" remains a potent signifier.

For Forest City Ratner, there was a value to the project delays. With no flagship tower looming at the intersection of Atlantic and Flatbush avenues, the arena and project make a more modest impact, and the temporary plaza seems public, the temporary oculus--with its digital signage--already iconic to some.

The new subway entrance

The enormously valuable new transit entrance is public, not buried within an Urban Room attached to a giant office tower. And the Atlantic Avenue/Pacific Street subway hub was not co-named with the name Barclays but rather saw Barclays Center replace Pacific Street.

Meanwhile, the march of other towers to the north on Flatbush Avenue has softened the impact of the planned Atlantic Yards towers, at least on arena block.

But no one's reckoned with the project as a whole; such renderings don't exist. (Remember planner Ron Shiffman's 2006 warning, “The density proposed by Forest City Ratner far exceeds the carrying capacity of the area’s physical, social, cultural, and educational infrastructure.")

Is AY done?

Atlantic Yards may seem done, as the controversy has mostly subsided, but it's not; the cumulative impacts of the entire project--not just the arena--are what alarmed people and, indeed, the lingering court case reminds us that there are 16 towers to be built.

The larger issues--the taint over the arena process--have been nudged aside by most though not forgotten. There were still protests.

And even the New York Times, which displayed notably variable coverage, cited that Bruce Ratner's " reputation for promising anything to get a deal, only to renegotiate relentlessly for more favorable terms."

I call this all part of the Culture of Cheating.

But even legitimate stories have been mostly ignored by the media: court decisions ordering the state to perform a Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement on the impact of a potential 25-year buildout; the demise of Community Benefits Agreement signatory BUILD, the failure to provide the promised 2,000 $15 tickets before each game. (Forget complicated stuff like the funding from immigrant investors.)

Could it hurt to have the Daily News as your partner on the plaza? Do media outlets depend too much on Barclays ads? Or is it just media fatigue?

Atlantic Yards, I wrote last year, "will be a case study in public relations." Developer Bruce Ratner this year claimed that, in 100 years, "No one will care what we had to do to make it happen." (Maybe, but for now, and we'll remember.)

Making their luck

Though arena developers--Forest City Ratner, with Mikhail Prokhorov's Onexim Group--spent big money on advertising and promotion, they did several things right, enough to ensure that most coverage--from a press generally willing to be spoon-fed--focused on the positive:

• they hired SHoP to put that lizard skin on (and revamp) an Indiana barn of an arena (and none of the enthralled architecture critics mention the missing office building)
• they hired locally and trained workers to be pleasant (though most jobs pay low, part-time wages)
• they involved Brooklyn food vendors (though under the corporate umbrella of Levy restaurants, and at high prices)
• they got it all open in time (though without the promised community events pre-opening)
• they gave away tickets to local nonprofits (though the promise of 2,000 $15 tickets was something of a dodge, and there have been no community events)
• big-name concerts were a huge success (even if promised monthly boxing turned into quarterly, at best)

Beyond that, Forest City announced an innovation in modular construction (thus avoiding questions about too little affordable housing and cuts in worker compensation if not hours).

SHoP, the hot local architecture firm hired has turned out to be a much better fit, after all, than Frank Gehry. The latter's fame may have been necessary to get Forest City support and publicity, but Gehry had the unfortunate habit of shooting off his mouth, cracking that protestors "should've been picketing Henry Ford" and calling Bruce Ratner "do-gooder, liberal," just like him. SHoP principals have been good, creative soldiers, fulling that $54 million investment (the new facade), made, as Forest City would say, "for public reasons."

Navigating the tight fit

Banners that came and went in Prospect Heights

There were big media bounces from headliners like Barbra Streisand, the Rolling Stones, Justin Beiber, and Andrea Bocelli--most but not all unlikely to play Barclays regularly. (Bieber will be back, as will Jay-Z).

Perhaps the biggest fear--Carmageddon from traffic jams--has been averted, thanks to use of transit and a heavy police presence, neither of which Forest City will pay for.

Still, there's little margin for error and, as documented steadily by Atlantic Yards Watch, out-of-control fans (as with Bieber), idling limos (especially from expensive concerts), booming bass (from a couple of bass-heavy concerts) and chaos on Park Slope streets (often), the nearest neighbors still bear the brunt of an arena encroaching on residential districts.

Building on Brooklyn

"Brooklyn will become a chant," promised the Nets' advertising and, indeed, it did, bolstered by a surprisingly good team anthem (but not by a cartoonish mascot). "September is just the beginning," promised another ad.



The Nets have been bolstered by two flattering tv/web series, The Association (from NBA TV) and Road to Brooklyn (from Jay-Z's Life+Times channel). Team owners have done their best to make a connection with the Dodgers.

Despite bad luck in the draft and free agency, the Nets achieved a rapid roster revamp, with Mikhail Prokhorov opening his wallet to (over)pay for Joe Johnson and re-sign Deron Williams. In November, that looked golden, as the Nets streaked to victory. In December, the team floundered, leading to the firing of the coach.

And there was more. Indeed, in October came the surprising news that the New York Islanders, mired in an antiquated arena on Long Island, would move to Brooklyn in 2015, if not sooner, and move to an arena distinctly made for hoops, not hockey--but able to take advantage of public transit and a lucrative TV contract.

Changing accountability landscape

Despite a significant moral victory in court, and a couple of protests, project opponents and critics generally diminished their activity. Though Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn and BrooklynSpeaks (and its component groups) were joined by others in the protests, the single busiest initiative, understandably, was Atlantic Yards Watch, tracking the impacts of the project.

The valuable compendium No Land Grab ceased regular publication after the arena opened, and a New York Times article chronicled those "exhausted" by losing the battle--but failed to point out the community victory in court and the ongoing need for oversight and skepticism.

“There’s nothing I want more than not to be involved,” Peter Krashes, active in AY Watch, told the Times. "The problem is, only when paid professionals working in the public interest are doing their jobs do I get to go away.”

Council Member Letitia James and state Senator Velmanette Montgomery appeared at protests. Council Member Steve Levin convened meetings about arena impacts. While the project may have a role in local politics--even State Senator Eric Adams and Assemblyman (now Congressman-elect) Hakeem Jeffries held a protests about delayed benefits-- the arena has an unmistakable gravitational pull.

There were more Brooklyn elected officials at the arena ribbon-cutting than at the 2010 groundbreaking, and a few different ones at the groundbreaking for the first tower, B2. And critics and opponents have been placed in the somewhat awkward position--which should be occupied by Ratner's allies--of pointing out the failure to produce promised jobs and housing.

January

Company fabricating arena's metal facade shuts down. Arena completion date nudged back; site work could continue almost to opening.

Atlantic Yards construction worker uproots "No Standing" sign to get free parking on Pacific Street.

Forest City Ratner says it's done nothing "inappropriate" in regard to the sequence that led to guilty pleas by state Sen. Carl Kruger and lobbyist Richard Lipsky. Well, nothing illegal.

MSBNC publishes a Mikhail Prokhorov profile by Robert Windrem, whose role as "Net Income" of NetsDaily goes unmentioned.

Times columnist Michael Powell describes Bruce Ratner as a "developer between legal clouds"--regarding the Yonkers case and the Carl Kruger case Betsy Gotbaum defends Ratner; it's a birthday present.

A look at the Nets' media strategies: a press release a day, never discuss ticket giveaways.

Forest City Ratner's designed lurker and his powerful familial ties.

Where's the Independent Compliance Monitor? Brooklyn Eagle gets evasive responses.

Elected officials Adams, Jeffries, Camara criticize lack of Atlantic Yards jobs, housing, seek governance reform. Montgomery, James missing. Adams & Camara probably won't get Forest City campaign cash any more.

Gerrymandering (like the "Bed-Stuy boomerang" for Atlantic Yards) is just fine for immigrant investor EB-5 projects, according to the federal agency in charge.

Former Atlantic Yards point man Jim Stuckey, who resigned suddenly from his NYU position, is sued for sexual harassment.

Groundbreaking for first residential tower again pushed back; goal of more larger units won't be met.

Transportation Demand Management plan delayed; Nets then survey fans. TDM plan criticized.

It turns out MWBE contracting numbers lag behind ambitious promises.

February

Even interviewed by a friendly publication, Bruce Ratner verbally "snaps" when asked about the non-arena parts of the project.

In his State of the Borough address, Borough President Marty Markowitz talks up the possibility of the Nets getting free agent center Dwight Howard.

Forest City Enterprises makes corporate shifts, finally installing majority of independent directors.

Carlton Avenue Bridge delayed, setting up breakneck pace to get it done; construction until 3 am. Arena said to be "slightly ahead of schedule," thanks to changed schedule.

New schedule for arena exterior.

Wall Street Journal graphic

Forest City executive Sanna's bundling for Bill de Blasio.
The perils from car stackers at arena parking lot: noise and delays.

Steiner plans 52-story tower, The Hub, near BAM and arena.

Appeals court argument on Atlantic Yards timetable case.

Investor buys building scheduled for second round of Atlantic Yards eminent domain, suggesting condemnation won't be coming soon. Six-story building planned at Bergen Tile site across from arena at Flatbush and Dean.

In City Limits package on Atlantic Yards, Bertha Lewis is said to claim "that that some who opposed the Community Benefits Agreement privately lambasted the idea of having a 'high-rise ghetto.'"

Goldman, Sachs seems to schedule a meeting of the Brooklyn Arena Local Development Corporation; it's canceled after some inquiries.

A mountain of soil on Block 1129.

The Mystery of Ridge Hill. The curiously timed departure of Forest City's Bruce Bender and Scott Cantone. Columnist Powell "tracks the tentacles of corruption."

Testimony in the Yonkers corruption trial suggests that Forest City Ratner had behaved in a questionable manner, offering political fixer Zehy Jereis a no-show job, with little checking up on him, after he got Council Member Sandy Annabi to change her vote. Forest City sure wasn't bilked.

The dailies mostly ignore the trial; even Crain's columnist Greg David notices. In Times article, Forest City flack gets to defend against unidentified "critics."

March

Ashley Cotton, Bruce Bender's replacement, is on board.

New Barclays Center video relies on Jay-Z. Marketing plan aims to sell Brooklyn as much as basketball.

Forest City's Sanna gets star treatment in The Real Deal.

Construction workers create more free parking near arena site.

Forest City takes firm step to modular plan.

Charlie Rose, sycophant, interviews Ratner about "Atlantic City Yards." Ratner's softball NYT interview; dodges question about housing configuration.

LIU, big arena supporter, to play at Barclays Center.

New Domino project in Williamsburg overextended; developer lacks Ratner's survival skills.

Forest City adds more 2BR units to first tower, but still lags behind promises.

Forest City aims to shrink planned parking lot.

311 complaints supposed to be assigned to 620 Atlantic Avenue.

Barclays Center advertising in CNG And other papers.

"Brooklynized" water coming to Barclays?

Nets Shop to be operated by adidas.

BusinessWeek looks at "dodgy" EB-5 program.

Times calls arena site the new "center of gravity" for Brooklyn.

The Occupy movement visits the arena site: "This is what kleptocracy looks like."

Watching the Nets in Newark: inexpensive, but no bargain.

Yonkers defendants found guilty; Forest City says case is not about the company's actions.

Bruce Ratner tells the Daily News, "For 100 years, this was a train depot in the middle of downtown Brooklyn." Really?

After complaints from neighbors, Forest City agrees not to use noisy hoe ram at night.

April

Final Nets games in New Jersey available for less than a buck.

Carlton Avenue Bridge could open "before asphalt paved," to save time.

Daily News moving Golden Gloves to Barclays. Jay-Z goes from Marcy to Barclays in new commercial.

Forest City? Good corporate citizen or relentless seeker of advantage? One-shot budget gimmicks, including Ridge Hill, part of Yonkers' fiscal mess.

Lots of office space in Downtown Brooklyn suggests little market for AY office space.

The journalist known as the Notorious Stephen Witt says he will try to avoid "personal axes to grind."

Brooklyn arena financing an exception to "the exception to the exception" in the tax code.

Forest City's 2011 lobbying bill jumps.

Prokhorov in Brooklyn--the conquering hero, to most but not all journalists.

Appellate court upholds decision ordering SEIS. Ruling, in a way, echoes Lupica. MAS on the wrong side of history by leaving BrooklynSpeaks.

Prokhorov admits to corrupt dealings but not lawbreaking.

Times op-ed criticizes EB-5 but suggests solutions are straightforward.

Times focuses on retail changes around arena, unskeptically quotes flack as suggesting "dreary rail yards" already transformed; bizarre graphic suggests arena is quite modest in size. Times publishes article on pseudo-scandal while scanting AY legal case.

Original architect Frank Gehry grudgingly admits that scale was an issue for project neighbors.

Forest City's malls identified as "crime epicenter."

Atlantic Yards cheerleader Zarzana, ex-union leader, indicted for organized crime.

Nets' ticket prices leap in move from NJ to BK. Arena/team CEO Brett Yormark cites a home-court advantage.

Community boards says Barclays Center liquor license requires community outreach. Locals want code of conduct. CB6 committee supports license, with reservations, resists bottle-service lounge Kemistry.

Narrow Dean Street sidewalks documented.

PHNDC's' ignored request to get public input before construction of the new parking lot.

Nets "brand identity launch: much new merchandise, and a new logo, which Yormark attributes to Jay-Z. The "borough is the message."

2,000 arena jobs? Not FTE. Looks like just 105 full-time arena jobs.

May

Sign on back of Ratner's retail outlet near arena: "Please don't urinate here."

ESD CEO Adams announces on-site arena parking halved, seeks way to formalize public input on AY.

Praise for candidate Jeffries ignores his AY role.

Letter to Mayor from Carlton Avenue resident who can't sleep at night. "Loud banging noises" predicted at arena site.

I break news that Barbra Streisand is coming to arena, talked up on Fox 5; Jay-Z performing "five" concerts.

Arena jobs to be filled not through BUILD but city's workforce center.

Railyard lights on all night to rush completion of Carlton Avenue Bridge.

The "moral limits of markets" and the Atlantic Yards impact.

Why did Forest City escape in the Yonkers corruption case? Conspiracy charge would've been tough to win.

The RPA's criticisms of (not well-described) Atlantic Yards, in an analysis of building the Next New York.

Leonard Cohen coming to arena; "everybody knows."

Park Slope, not so gentrified, in the 1970s.

A laudatory profile of Amanda Burden leaves out Atlantic Yards.

TDM plan released, focus on less parking, more service. Why the delay? Frustrations at meeting on TDM plan; no penalties for not meeting goals. Savings from scrapping free MetroCard. Questions pending. Gridlock Sam's contradictions (and history of praise). TDM documents released.

Neighborhood Protection Plan proposed, draws on Wrigley. Coverage round-up.

Sports Business Journal: 183 events set at arena.

Bad luck for Nets in NBA draft lottery.

June

Construction vehicles on local streets; cops parking on sidewalk.

In legal papers, Forest City says Atlantic Yards site "now cleared but formerly blighted."

Start date on permanent railyard pushed back 18 months. MTA says it leaves agency whole.

Construction workers like to hang out at kids' playground.

Sharpton claims Ratner's lived up to all his promises.

Fears of a Tight Fit for Brooklyn's Arena.

Not one but two hospital partners. Are sponsorship numbers solid? Nets pay for those "First Home Game Since 1957" signs in shop windows.

Clergy-led protest led by Committe for Arena Justice seeks oversight, penalties, compliance monitor.

The Brooklyn Flea as emblem of Brooklyn.

Forest City mulls plans to revamp its malls.

Judge says lawsuit against BUILD, Forest City can proceed on most counts.

Community boards weren't told about post-event alcohol service. CB8 seeks curbs on arena liquor license. At SLA hearing, CBs 2 & 6 support license; Forest City apologizes for poor communication over hours, says no bottle service planned.

AYW: Construction Alerts didn't warn of loud overnight noise. Video. Work on arena elevator and roof/facade goes 24/7.

Landscape architects' organization calls for greening parking lot. Parking lot work proceeds, despite stop-work roder; tanks "placed," not installed.

Actress Carmen Ejogo, Brooklyn mag cover subject, says she opposed arena but will bring her son, a big basketball fan.

The impact of Berman v. Parker on Atlantic Yards and historic neighborhoods nearby.

Court of Appeals denies attempt to appeal decision ordering Atlantic Yards SEIS. State more open to governance entity than Forest City.

Meeting on arena operations: parking, loading dock, metal detectors. No, Forest City won't pay for police. Nets games supposed to have 18,200 sellable seats.

Consistently inconsistent: Markowitz wants arena treated like any other facility.

Forest City's savings on nonexisting "NetroCards" will go to marketing, it seems, but numbers are murky.

T-shirt: "I'm still calling it Atlantic Av-Pacific St" emerges even before Barclays scandal raises the ante.

July

Construction makes Sixth Avenue difficult to traverse. No on takes charge.

Bob Diamond resigns. Barclays' claim: "we’re dirty-clean, rather than clean-clean."

Times front-page news: "Nets Move to Brooklyn with Legitimacy in Sight," confirmed by a sneaker store employee, NBA analyst, Nets official scorer, and longtime season ticket holder.

Third-shift work means "incredibly loud noises."

The arena: from a "venue for amateur athletics, graduations, etc." to Brooklyn Hoops/Show/Boxing/Family.

Famed Knicks fan and famed Brooklynite Spike Lee says, "I'm not going to get into the politics of the Barclays Center."

Jay-Z tickets go on sale, for suckers. Media outlets get played with news that demand for first three shows goosed two more.

Prokhorov will pay for stars, but Ratner won't pay for Independent Compliance Monitor, increased police coverage, permit parking program (part of Los Angeles CBA), new subway service, more.

Do Forest City Ratner's part-time job numbers add up?

Nets re-sign Williams after trade for Johnson. Bellowing Markowitz welcomes "Brooklyn's Backcourt" at pep rally, hypes rivalry with "Manhattan Knicks"

NYC DOT recommends no residential permit parking around Barclays Center. Is area near arena really like the Bronx around Yankee Stadium? Lots of reasons for doubt.

Flashback: Barclays' now-departed (because of LIBOR scandal) Bob Diamond at arena groundbreaking.

As retail near arena turns over, broker complains that neighbors are resisting "Hooters-type places."

After Knicks let Jeremy Lin leave for Houston, defections to Nets mount.

Confounding HDC hearing on first Atlantic Yards tower; housing partner says first building falls short but should proceed. Some subsidized rents look high.

Click and Park not quite ready for prepaid parking.

When development promises are undone, shouldn't there be a quid pro quo?

Absurdist Post columnist Peyser credits Ratner for almost single-handed rehab of Brooklyn.

From Atlantic Yards as "economic engine" to arena itself as "economic engine."

The dubiousness of naming rights deals--not just advertising but attempts to buy goodwill, says law professor.

Report validates neighbors' steady complaints about Atlantic Yards construction: "continual violations and difficulty with enforcement."

Atlantic Yards construction violations include cover-up of "documentation falsified by the contractor." Complaints have been documented.

Barclays Center seen as Downtown Brooklyn opportunity by DBP.

The modular plan versus Gehry's goal to not make it "look like a project."

Arena General Manager's departure is mysterious; no one wants to lose someone three months before opening. Arena was supposed to be completed by early July.

August

Daily News columnist Hamill says arena will become "entertainment pacemaker," forgets pledge of 10,000 jobs.

Prepaid parking still not working, though tickets sold.

Mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio channels Kruger, Golden in condemning those blocking development, cites support for Atlantic Yards.

Roof sponsorship signage coming to arena. State justifies Barclays roof sign/logo, saying it complies with "intent" of Design Guidelines. Ad seen as "extremely valuable piece of inventory."

Jay-Z shills for Budweiser while wearing Nets cap.

GEICO signs on; Yormark is proud to partner with "brands of excellence."

Carlton Avenue Bridge back on schedule, thanks to disruptive overtime.

Barclays Center sign is up, on Atlantic Avenue.

Accidents on Sixth Avenue.

DNAinfo reports: Barclays becoming a BK fixture.

Bruce Ratner tells WSJ: "We work just on the merits."

Front-page NY Times article salutes Jay-Z's role as "celebrity investor;" little room for skepticism.

Final TDM plan, delayed again, has a few tweaks; no Dean Street entrance to parking.Audacious timing: two important docs released after comment period. Transportation plan Q&A: no remedies if performance goals not met, sidewalks still OK, no measures to directly address on-street parking, etc. No response to question about lessons from Wrigley.

An idling 18-wheeler on Pacific Street.

Huge Times article/slideshow compounds marketing campaign: In Brooklyn, It's All Nets.

Barclays Center TV emerges.

Ratner says, in 100 years, "No one will care what we had to do to make it happen." Reporter describes Ratner as "pleasant" and "affable."

Broker says "Brooklyn" is bigger draw than arena.

Times quietly replaces misleading AY arena graphic. Times quotes Ratner as saying arena is a "month ahead of schedule."

Agency, developer wrestle over Atlantic Yards affordability, or why the first tower won't meet the pledges announced.

Mixed reactions to arena's rusted steel cladding.

Metro publishes Barclays Center special section, AKA advertorial.

78th Precinct to cover arena, malls; NYPD commander says they're ready. Less role for CBA officers who head other precinct councils.

Number of plaintiffs in BUILD lawsuit could expand.

SLA approves arena liquor license, but imposes 1 am cutoff, not 2 am as sought. Secondhand coverage  claims MSG/Yankee Stadium have similar after-hours policies.

Expunging "Pacific Street" wasn't the original plan, but defended as practical solution.

September

Atlantic Yards photography from Tracy Collins, painting from Peter Krashes.

What happened to the Atlantic Yards jobs?

Times delves into where Nets players live--outside Brooklyn--and might live, in the borough.

What's wrong with the common Barclays Center rendering? Unbuilt towers and a hovercraft perspective.

As wary neighbors worry about arena opening, Forest City nudges stance on permit parking.

Scrambling toward arena finish line; no "public events and tours" in early September as once promised.

NBA Commissioner Stern predicts revenue jump for Nets.

AY District Service Cabinet to be replaced by Quality of Life Committee.

"September is Just the Beginning" banners appear (and disappear) on Prospect Heights streets.

How Ratner backed off promises to build project in ten years and build conventional towers with union labor.

Markowitz finally explains why he claimed BK was "1000 percent behind Atlantic Yards."

Yormark and a very friendly Billboard interview. Jay-Z hyped in Times Style magazine.

Arena will comply with Bloomberg's limits on sugar drinks, still offers unlimited food option.

Daily News gets first look at subway entrance. Roof logo is in place.

Rail's Hamm says he's "trying to figure out how to come to terms with" arena.

Triangle building across from arena sells for $4.1 million.

As construction hits crunch time, increased truck violations, according to AY Watch. State backed off $10K fines. Ratner claims they did "a huge amount" to placate neighborhood. Arena gets belated TCO.

Brooklyn/L magazines on board with Nets. Times publishes hoops essay by former Forest City contractor Klores, doesn't mention connection.

First Community Sweepstakes program for tickets.

Umar Jordan, once a dramatic booster of AY, now says he's disgusted. Protesters at AYCrimeScene.com list demands, including oversight and new environmental review.

Oculus goes live. New garbage cans, recycling bins on arena block.

New Yorker critic Lange says arena creates "a whole new context."

Daily News puts Hamill's puff on the front page.

Developer's original Atlantic Yards map was quite different.

Times touts arena food. Yormark says Brooklyn story was "took good not to be told" and "moment's even bigger than I expected." Capital NY's McGeveran calls "beautiful structure" Ratner's "apology to Brooklyn."

ArtBridge is back, putting art on fences outside arena and TV lot.

New subway entrance means easier passage between B/Q and 2/3/4/5 trains.

Eric McClure announces No Land Grab to cease regular publishing.

How state agency withheld document giving Forest City 25 years to build Atlantic Yards.

Metro continues "Barclays Countdown."

Arena ribbon-cutting a big win for Ratner, with focus on impressive building. Before the event, a protest. Building's not quite finished. NY Magazine critic proclaims Barclays Center Is Brooklyn’s Ready-Made Monument (but gets spoon-fed on loading dock).

Brooklyn Paper/Courier-Life publish special section.

Markowitz says AY area "not a bedroom community," suggests project will be a "masterpiece of urban planning," says arena will "bring us respect that's long overdue." He claims arena has "good jobs." (A NNY critique.)

The hollowness of the AY CBA, especially when it comes to environmental monitoring.

The Carlton Avenue Bridge reopens.

The branded Barclays Center.

Where exactly are those promised $15 Nets tickets?

No "Brooklynized" water at arena.

Times takes balanced-ish look at "Hurricane Barclays." Times suggests activist Goldstein's just like Ratner, though the former's expansion is as-of-right. Softball Times Q&A with Forest City's Gilmartin.

Bike parking arrives at arena.

Barclays Center appoints Kelly Community Affairs Manager. ESD names Lynch for long-open Government and Community Affairs Manager.

Surprisingly tough NY Times profile of Bruce Ratner, though the lead is buried. Daily News says critics "filed 200 eminent domain lawsuits." (!)

Prokhorov gives $1 million to BAM.

CBA signatory BUILD on shaky ground, according to complaint to AG.

Times says Barclays Center has undercut MSG's price for performers, but doesn't always pass on the savings.

A vigil before the arena opening. Groups call for reform, joined by Occupy and two who once "drank Ratner's Kool-Aid"

Daily News sponsors arena plaza. Arena plaza gets sign: "Welcome to Brooklyn."

Jay-Z and the Barclays Center debut: traffic flows, but paparazzi gridlock and Atlantic Avenue blocked. (Gridlock Sam said don't drive.)

The New York Times lets Ratner's flack get last word, makes curious revisions in its coverage, dropping critique of "crony capitalism" and emphasizing whimsy.

Second night of operations; no traffic jams, Atlantic Avenue overrun, idling vehicles. Pacific Street as staging area for police/fire.

That crazy roof laser hits FG Park, Wyckoff Gardens.

October

Arena operations rely on override of traffic lights.

Jay-Z says: "It's our m-f-ing time now"

NPR music editor: "The Barclays Center is fraught, but watching Jay open it was touching"

Times says ride over Manhattan Bridge took 2.5 times as long, but results from opening days support both "skeptics and believers."

Ratner claims "we've already bought all the land."

Critic Goldberger calls arena not extraordinary, but "a decent and at times strong building" with lots of branding. Why arena reviews should wait til after opening.

Gridlock Sam says it's fine to shut down Atlantic Avenue after events.

Barclays Center sponsors "Brooklyn Backstory" in Brooklyn Paper.

Forget the Haier Store; a Sugar Factory is coming to Sixth and Pacific.

CBA signatories all got suites for Jay-Z; Lewis's Black Institute auctioning them off.

Barclays Center as giant neighborhood sub-woofer, as bass from Jay-Z penetrates neighborhood.

Gratz on the Great Brooklyn Bait-and-Switch. Baker on "How to Steal a City."

Jay-Z takes subway. In final concert, Jay-Z brings out Beyonce, disses AY opponents, salutes Jackie Robinson's widow.

Long lines to see Globetrotters; security chief departs.

On Charlie Rose, Ratner calls arena a gift to Brooklyn.

Ron Shiffman wins Jane Jacobs medal, work with DDDB cited.

Arena ad: "extraordinary entertainment has a new home." On the plaza, a booth for videos to express fan enthusiasm.

Streisand concert: no Carmageddon, but lots of idling limos. Tents for the guests. Truck parks outside arena.

The Nets make Sports Illustrated's cover; was it just Prokhorov who gained from "connections, shrewdness, no-bid purchasing."

Subway entrance quiet for morning commuters.

The myopic New York mag critic, who called the arena a monument..

Jay-Z's video channel massages Atlantic Yards opposition away.

Arena says no more metal detectors for Streisand aimed to speed lines, not racial profiling. Post: arena to use wands, not metal detectors for now.

Operations rely on illegal, informal parking lanes on public streets, and honking.

No, it's not a $1 billion arena.

My visit to the branded Barclays Center, for first exhibition game. The "meditation room" is used to store wheelchairs.

Neighbors weigh in on community impacts, trucks, urination.

The drip-drop housing plan; yes, they're going modular.

Metal detectors back for free tickets, at least.

Voice names Barclays Center "Best Sports Venue."

Video series begin: The Association and Road to Brooklyn.

Grantland's breathless salute to the Nets' Brooklyn takeover.

Boxing inaugural a triumph, except for failed drug test and papered house. Early liquor cut-off and somewhat rowdy crowd. Won't be monthly as planned.

Forest City: "blighted" railyard won't get developed until four towers built on parking lot block. Developer says Prokhorov loan paid off, may sell share in Nets.

Does apartment site across from arena block deserve variance because of new context?

Islanders moving to Barclays Center by 2015. No impact on AY housing. Does move vindicate AY, or just the arena (and should NYC/NYS have driven a harder bargain)? For Islanders, key is revenue from luxury suites, premium seats, and TV.

Markowitz admits Atlantic Yards is "among the most contentious developments in America's history."

Times mag essayist: arena is a "shrine to Brooklynland."

Daily News special section honoring the arena includes belated apology to Globetrotters attendees.

Sensation electronica show twice pounds bass into residences near arena. State overseer for Atlantic Yards makes promotional appearance on behalf of Sensation.

Times says arena serves as magnet for yellow cabs; no mention of impact of limos/black cars.

Times critic Kimmelman salutes arena, disses rest of AY plan.

Storm places cloud over Nets-Knicks home opener. Game on schedule despite storm after-effects. Markowitz on board; Yormark promises transportation news. Bloomberg cancels game; Yormark does 360. NBA/Nets try to walk it back, claim they didn't think mass transit would be so hampered. Could a cop have told the mayor's office off? Game rescheduled, NBA/team unscathed.

November

Bloomberg collects kudos, but less attention for his single-mindedness re NYC Marathon, Nets debut.

Brooklyn Recovery Fund debuts, with $100K each from FCR, arena, Nets, but they don't deserve an automatic halo.

Nets win debut, Markowitz at ceremony; fewer impacts than at Streisand show, thanks to charter buses, other plans. Arena GM tells Times columnist discord is getting packed away. What happened to those $15 tickets?

Nets' new, good anthem is all about the borough, not the team.

From the Brooklyn Rail, my essay, A Brand Called Brooklyn.

At the Barclays Center, the value of dark lighting and the photogenic arena plaza (sans office tower).

The NYTimes: The Barclays Center's Media Enabler.

CBA signatory BUILD closes, in wake of funding troubles, allegations. Veconi on the use of the CBA as a wedge.

Bender and Cantone, ex-Forest City, rely on former contacts for consulting clients.

The bizarre BrooklyKnight mascot, cartoon borough defender, and comic book. The Prokhorov comic book.

Fair fight? "NIMBYs" in NYC (including DDDB) dwarfed by YIMBYs.

In While We Were Sleeping, authors, activists take on NYU expansion.

The Brooklyn Game website emerges, supplies content to YES network.

Screaming Bieber fans surround bus on Dean Street; after chaos, cops say they'll have a better plan; still, where do black cars go?

Lessons for Brooklyn in the Oklahoma City hoops fairy tale; most have forgotten the questionable origins.

Metropolis columnist Jacobs, longtime AY opponent, "grudgingly impressed" by arena, hopes for changed site plan.

BUILD's Caldwell defends spending that provoked complaint to AG, suggests it's "right for the people." Plus, some bitter exchanges.

The power of free tickets and giveaways. Behind the community tickets program; it helps to have gotten in early.

Deron Williams welcomed, but gingerly in Williamsburg.

In Yonkers case, Annabi, Jereis get prison terms; judge suggests Forest City's Ridge Hill "arguably led to a good deal of public good." Lawyer for Jereis suggested Forest City was big winner.

Sandy victims get an arena treat.

Barclays Center seen as not cannibalizing Jersey arenas, but what about Nassau Coliseum?


Forest City oddly challenges property assessments regarding arena and other AY property, then withdraws suit.

As predicted, Times reports on how Atlantic Yards opponents are exhausted; neglects to city court win, importance of civic watchdogging.

NYC rivalry amps up with Nets win over Knicks; Markowitz crows. He had said "there's no room" in BK if you don't support the team.

More hiring at the arena: enlarging the pool, or coping with layoffs?

With bank and unions on board; Forest City ready to go modular. FAQ on the first Atlantic Yards tower; it looks like it would cost $24M less than similar 80 DeKalb.

The metal does drip from the pre-rusted arena facade.

At meeting on first tower, questions about affordable housing, design, safety, oversight. Dean Street pedestrian passage narrows to 5 feet. 17 former footprint renters moving in.

December

New towers rising near BAM, with more affordable housing than first AY tower.

The NYC Power 100 and Atlantic Yards: many intersections.

A booming market for scalpers outside arena?

Jay-Z talks up Nets in GQ; video of subway encounter with "adorable old lady" goes viral.

Arena construction monitor, after three-month gap, finally issues report. Fortune loves the arena.

PR Week salutes arena's communications strategy, including three Times placements for first food article. (What about "35 lawsuits"?) Another three-pointer, as Times review published five days early.

Second meeting of Quality of Life Committee: oculus, lighting, idling are issues and limo parking won't go away.

New development fund will invest in first AY tower.

Times series and editorial on subsidies somehow excludes Atlantic Yards.

Architectural Record: facade makes arena "seem surprisingly in sync" but "can't be declared a civic triumph just yet"

In argument on legal fees in timetable case, judge seems skeptical of the state.

Seven firms that worked on AY are on city's watch list.

Barclays Center listed as NY Magazine's top Reason to Love New York. Urination problem not ignored.

Ebbets Field flagpole placed outside arena, with Robinson's daughter in attendance.

Brooklyn Gateway plan, responding to arena and area growth, suggests transportation changes, permit parking, congestion pricing, rapid response team.

Was Transportation Demand Management Plan too flawed to deal with limos/black cars?

Limos idling outside Stones concert. Cars on the Pacific Street sidewalk before Knicks game. Wrestlemania trucks on residential streets.

What's left in arena TCO? Unclear.

Nets' Joe Johnson featured in video, magazine.

The arena's mixed impact on retail neighbors.

My essay, Brooklyn's vaunted, tainted Barclays Center; that missing office tower and ignored RPA suggestions

Providing Brooklyn with the "civic amenity" of an arena.

At groundbreaking for B2 tower, narrative of innovation nudges asked questions about promises of housing and jobs.

The Barclays Center and the shift in perceptions, given the plethora of happy event-goers.

In holiday card, Markowitz salutes Barclays Center and those behind it.

Are cheap seats really for sale? Nets finally explain that, yes, total includes season tickets.

Supplemental EIS process finally starts with Draft Scope. Will it study blight and the potential for other developers?

After a spectacular November, Nets start losing big in December. Was city "under new management"? Coach Avery Johnson fired.

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