Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Community Calls Atlantic Yards "Mistake" and "Kafka-esque"
By
Jill Priluck
Published Aug 4, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jill Priluck
Published Aug 4, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Public hearings tend to be impassioned and last night's Atlantic Yards gathering was no exception. With three community board hearings held simultaneously in different locales, we opted, sans body armor, for the homey confines of Community Board 6 (where we happen to live). And yet, sitting among a crowd of just 60 in the sterile Long Island College Hospital conference room with pale pink walls, a blank blackboard and a television with AV-style accouterments perched in the corner, we sensed an eerie quiet.
Chair Jeff Armer introduced the meeting, saying there was no state assurance that the board's
recommendation would carry as much weight as it would if the development project were subject to the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), a mandated public-approval process for development projects not unlike the proposed Atlantic Yards (if you've been living in Burkina Faso, the proposed 22 acre-site includes an 18,000 seat arena and 16 high-rise buildings, including up to 6,860 residential units).
Armer and company heard from about 25 public commenters, who bemoaned the proposal for being out of scale, for "Manhattanizing" Brooklyn, for subverting public review, for its indequate relocation plan and for improperly addressing what are sure to be increases in pollution and street, pedestrian and park traffic. Community member Paul Heller accused "some public authorities" of collusion, cronyism and conspiracy and someone else described the plan as
"Kafka-esque."
"They will have blood on their hands" said Jonathan Barkey, who suggested that the Atlantic Yards project surely will trump New York City's 1898 annexation of Brooklyn in the "greatest mistake" department. He then described a recent "Atlantic Yards moment" involving a truck driver dogging cars on Pacific Street while claiming to carry $4 million of materials.
Jim Stuckey, president of the Atlantic Yards Development Group, a subsidiary of Forest City Ratner Companies, touted the number of rental units (4,500) and boasted of the project's effort to gain LEED certification for those 16 high-rises. Forest City Ratner transportation consultant Sam Schwartz assured the crowd of his recommendation to maximize transit and minimize car usage. Stuckey briskly entered and exited the room through a door that minimized contact with attendees (except for one or two who accosted him in the hallway) while Schwartz elegantly walked to the back of the room and awaited responses.
In an ominous sign, the hearing ended 25 minutes early and community board members sat around a table to plot their next move. The Empire State Development Corporation is holding a public hearing on August 23 at New York City Technical College in Brooklyn.
Tagged
Atlantic Yards
brooklyn
city
college
commenters
community
community board
empire state
empire state development corporation
forest city
Forest City Ratner
Forest City Ratner Companies
hospital
land use
long island
long island college hospital
new york
new york city
News: NYC
pacific street
pedestrian
pollution
real estate
review
Sam Schwartz
television
the city
The Empire State Development Corporation
traffic
transportation
Jill Priluck
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot by ICE in NYC's Marble Hill said federal officers never identified themselves
The wounded man said he didn't learn ICE agents were involved until he woke up in the hospital.
By
Arya Sundaram
and
Samantha Max
Published Oct 14, 2026 at 5:26 p.m. ET
Brooklyn school dean says MTA officers assaulted him over a $3 bus fare he says he paid
Kyle Taylor, a dean at Mott Bridges Academy, says he made a legal bus transfer.
By
Carol Chen
News
Brooklyn school dean says MTA officers assaulted him over a $3 bus fare he says he paid
Kyle Taylor, a dean at Mott Bridges Academy, says he made a legal bus transfer.
By
Carol Chen
National Grid customers in NYC will see higher gas bills this winter
By
Rosemary Misdary
Bruce Blakeman joins Gov. Hochul in support for expanding NY rape law
By
Jon Campbell
2 men accused of stabbing off-duty NYPD detective in the Bronx plead not guilty
By
Charles Lane
and
Brittany Kriegstein
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .