Preserving Livable Neighborhoods: Atlantic Yards

Brad was one of the earliest critics of the proposed Atlantic Yards development. In 2005 he co-authored one of the first planning analyses of the project, criticizing its massive scale, its poor urban design that creates a barrier between neighborhoods and privatizes the open space, its wanton overreliance of subsidies, its failure to plan for traffic and transportation impacts, and its skirting of the City's land use review process.In 2007, Brad helped to find and close an additional $100 million loophole that Forest City Ratner was seeking through changes to the City’s 421-a property tax program.

Now, the timeline is delayed and the project's future is uncertain. It is unclear whether the project will include the promised affordable housing or the office space (which is the main generator of tax revenue). We still do not have a genuine public assessment of the subsidies, costs, and benefits of the project. The NYC Independent Budget Office has suggested that changes in the project may make it a money-loser for the taxpayers, and has raised questions about whether the land value of the site is being manipulated to generate phantom taxes that Forest City Ratner can use to pay their debts.

That is why it is time to go back to the drawing-board. The Empire State Development Corporation, the MTA, the City, and the State should cancel their deals with Forest City Ratner for non-compliance. The site is appropriate for significant development with mixed-income affordable housing, commercial and retail space, and good union jobs. But we must get there by respecting and building on the strengths of the surrounding communities ... not by locking them out of the process and ignoring their concerns.