Stadium Stories
November 4 2004 The [Westchester, NY] Journal News.com
Things in the swamp just not adding upBy RICK CARPINIELLO
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Home attendance never adds up. The idea that this team, one year removed from two consecutive NBA Finals, has begun to rebuild, doesn't add up. That the team is being sold, packed up, and moved across two rivers to Brooklyn, doesn't add up (maybe to real estate billionaire/new owner Bruce Ratner it does, but not to those who care in New Jersey).
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Journal News.com.
October 29 2004 Canada.com
New Nets owner battling criticism from fans and players Tom Canavan
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) - Bruce Ratner is discovering that transforming an urban scar into a profitable development might be easier than running an NBA team.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
Canada.com.
October 15 2004 New York Daily News
Pastor: 'Crucified'for joining Ratner BY HUGH SON
The Brooklyn minister who touched off a firestorm after he sided with real estate tycoon Bruce Ratner called the experience a trial of biblical proportions yesterday.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Daily News.
October 14 2004 New York Daily News
DUMBO tower plan is yanked BY HUGH SON
In s stunning development, real estate magnate David Walentas has withdrawn his proposal to erect a DUMBO apartment tower that residents complained would block views of the Brooklyn Bridge.
...
It was also a shot in the arm for other Brooklyn groups involved in their own development battles - most notably, the Atlantic Yards arena and housing complex that developer Bruce Ratner has proposed.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Daily News.
October 8 2004 New York Daily News
Ratner close to Yards deal BY HUGH SON
Say hello to the biggest new landlord in Prospect Heights.
Real estate tycoon Bruce Ratner now owns 80% of the condo and co-op apartments that are on the footprint of his $2.5 billion Atlantic Yards project, he revealed yesterday.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Daily News.
October 8 2004 Newsday
Developer reaches out to community BY ERROL A. COCKFIELD JR
Responding to an array of community demands, Developer Bruce Ratner said yesterday he would ink a deal to ensure his proposal to build a Nets arena in Downtown Brooklyn meets neighborhood concerns.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
Newsday.
October 7 2004 Newsday
Developer promises job training, health care for Brooklyn neighborhoods By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN
Developer Bruce Ratner promised Thursday that his proposed Brooklyn basketball arena project would include job training, health care and construction contracts for surrounding neighborhoods.
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For the full story, go to teh web site of
Newsday.
October 5 2004 New York Daily News
Isiah isn't fixing any Knick holes There's no way around it. There's no way to sugarcoat it. Isiah Thomas had himself a miserable offseason.
OK, so it wasn't as bad as Bruce Ratner's. But whose was?
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For the full story, go the web site of the
New York Daily News.
Sept 29 2004 The [San Jose, CA] Mercury News
Lawrence Frank: Nets Not RebuildingTOM CANAVAN
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New owner Bruce Ratner crushed the Nets' chances of making a title run this summer by dealing All-Star forward Kenyon Martin to Denver in a sign-and-trade deal, and then shipping starting shooting guard Kerry Kittles to the Clippers for a second-round draft choice in cost-saving moves.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Mercury News.
Sept 23 2004 Newsday
Ratner takes Nets from penthouse to outhouseShaun Powell
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The fat cat who drove up the bidding to $300 million is now, apparently, suffering from sticker shock. That's probably why the Nets lost Martin and sent Kerry Kittles to the Clippers for a second-round pick and cash, and may lose Kidd before the season begins.
In his desire to become a sports owner, Bruce Ratner evidently forgot the No. 1 rule in business: Never overpay.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
Newsday.
September 16 2004 The [Westchester County] Journal News
Barbato, Murtagh request state audit of city By MICHAEL GANNON
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Barbato, R-6th District, referenced the $6.5 million in annual lease payments the city would receive from a developer — the Ridge Hill Development Corp., a private entity set up by the IDA to advance developer Bruce Ratner's $600 million project — as an example of city revenue that has no clear oversight.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Journal News.
September 3 2004 Daily News
Zo, Nets keep up guard on return BY MITCH LAWRENCE
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new owner Bruce Ratner has been busy slashing payroll, with the Nets working their way down to just over $50 million in salaries for this season by dealing off Kenyon Martin and Kerry Kittles.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
August 25 2004 U.S. Newswire
NTU Study: Politicians Increasingly Use Property Grabs to Pad Government's Bottom LineALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 25 /U.S. Newswire/ -- More and more politicians at all levels of government have been stretching and abusing the Constitutionally outlined power of eminent domain in attempts to generate higher tax revenues, according to a new study released by the 350,000-member National Taxpayers Union (NTU) today.
"From sweetheart corporate deals to publicly funded sports stadiums, taxpayers -- even those not directly victimized by eminent domain abuse -- almost always stand to lose when governments misuse their power to pad their bottom lines," said NTU Director of Congressional Relations and study author Paul Gessing. "Such land-grab redevelopment schemes rarely serve the 'public good' necessary to justify eminent domain, and instead often lead to higher taxes, a reduced tax base, and further stagnation."
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For the full story, go to the website of
U.S. Newswire.
August 25, 2004 the NY Daily News
Arena plan about gold, not Olympics, say foesBY HUGH SON
Foes of developer Bruce Ratner's bid to build an NBA arena, housing and office towers in Brooklyn now accuse city officials of using the Olympic Games as an excuse to fast-track the project.
While city officials hope the Games will be held here in 2012, opponents of the controversial Brooklyn development told a press conference outside City Hall yesterday that the project would only hurt New York City's Olympic dreams.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
August 25, 2004 NY Newsday
Critics: Mayor’s Olympic plan a real estate ruseBy Errol A. Cockfield, Jr
Assemb. Richard Gottfried and other elected city officials yesterday accused Mayor Michael Bloomberg of using the 2012 Olympics bid as a ruse to benefit the region's commercial real estate interests, an allegation hotly denied by a Bloomberg spokesperson.
Gottfried (D-Manhattan) dismissed as a "phony Olympics scam" the city's aggressive efforts to build an arena for the basketball Nets in downtown Brooklyn and a stadium for the football Jets on Manhattan's West Side that would tentatively double as venues for the games.
The pursuit of the Olympics is a boondoggle for real estate development, Gottfried charged, noting that Bloomberg has insisted construction needs to begin on a Jets stadium - that would house opening ceremonies - before the International Olympic Committee picks a final city in July.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
August 24, 2004The NY Daily News
An Olympic battle
Group fighting Nets arena appeals to IOC
BY FRANK LOMBARDI
Opponents of a proposed pro basketball arena in Brooklyn are trying to embroil the International Olympic Committee in their fight with developer Bruce Ratner.
The effort is being joined by opponents of the proposed Jets football stadium on the West Side.
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For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
August 24, 2004 the NY Post
NETS' ALL-$TAR TEAMBy PATRICK GALLAHUE
The New Jersey Nets may have lost some stars since the NBA team was sold to developer Bruce Ratner � but the squad still has plenty of famous investors, including mystery writer Mary Higgins Clark and disgraced ex-Tyco chief Dennis Kozlowski.
The lengthy and diverse list of investors who bought the team for $300 million and plan to move the Nets to Brooklyn has been made public for the first time.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
the NY Post.
August 19 2004 Fox Sports
Lakers, Mavs reportedly on Kidd's short list Jason Kidd is still in a wait-and-see mode as far as his future with the New Jersey Nets goes.
...
Earlier this month, he met with Nets CEO Rod Thorn and prospective owner Bruce Ratner to express his displeasure about the team's direction.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
Fox Sports.
August 14 2004 The Brooklyn Paper
Nets protestors making demandsBy Deborah Kolben
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“If Mr. Ratner thinks we are going to roll over and play dead for his arrogant proposed over development, he is wrong,” said Daniel Goldstein, a spokesman for Develop — Don’t Destroy Brooklyn, a group formed to fight the project.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Brooklyn Paper (scroll to page 7).
August 14 2004 The Brooklyn Paper
Bruce quietly buying up Prospect HeightsBy Deborah Kolben
Over the past several months, developer Bruce Ratner has been quietly plowing his way through Prospect Heights, purchasing everything property owners are willing to sell.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Brooklyn Paper.
August 14 2004 The Brooklyn Paper
CITY AGENCY TO PROBE
RATNER PLAN By Deborah Kolben
The Independent Budget Office will conduct an economic study of Bruce Ratner’s $2.5 billion Atlantic Yards development, the cityfunded fiscal watchdog agency announced this week.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Brooklyn Paper.
August 13 2004 Hip Hop News
JAY-Z OFFICIALLY NETS CO-OWNER: Retiring rapper approved by NBA board. The vote was unanimous. On Wednesday, Brooklyn-born rapper Jay-Z became an official owner of the New Jersey Nets following approval by the NBA Board of Governors.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
Hip Hop News.
August 12 2004 Grand Forks [ND] Herald
NATIONAL CLIPBOARD...
NBA approves sale of Nets to Brooklyn group
All 30 National Basketball Association franchises voted Wednesday to approve the sale of the New Jersey Nets to a group led by real estate developer Bruce Ratner.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
Grand Forks Herald.
August 11, 2004 The Star-Ledger
Nets: Current owners to keep stake in team as Ratner falls shortBY MATTHEW FUTTERMAN
New York developer Bruce Ratner's difficulties raising $300 million to buy the Nets will require the basketball team's current owners to retain a minority stake in the team longer than they want.
Executives involved with the sale said a recent letter to current Nets owners indicated Ratner has not been able to raise the full $300 million he agreed to pay for the Nets in January.
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For the whole story, go to the web site of the
Star-Ledger.
August 11, 2004 Daily News
NBA Owners approve sale of Nets to RatnerBy T.J. QUINN and MICHAEL O'KEEFFE
NBA owners unanimously approved the sale of the New Jersey Nets to developer Bruce Ratner this afternoon, despite lingering questions about his ability to raise the $300 million he agreed to pay for the franchise.
Ratner and his partners are expected to finalize the deal next week.
...
Fot the whole story, go to the web site of the
NY Daily News.
August 6 2004 New York Post
SALE APPROVAL EXPECTED The sale of the Nets to a group headed by Brooklyn developer Bruce Ratner is expected to receive formal NBA approval by the middle of next week, the league confirmed yesterday.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Post.
August 5 2004 ESPN.com
Board of Governors approval still to comeBy Marc Stein
A sub-committee appointed by NBA commissioner David Stern has unanimously agreed to recommend for approval the sale of the New Jersey Nets to a group headed by real-estate developer Bruce Ratner.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
ESPN.com.
August 04, 2004 Newark Star-Ledger
Ratner faces obstacles in closing of Nets dealBY MATTHEW FUTTERMAN
Three members of developer Bruce Ratner's investment group have reneged on their commitment to buy the Nets, and investors in YankeeNets are still fighting over how to break up the company, so Ratner's $300 million deal to buy the team has hit a snag.
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For the whole story, go to the website of the
Newark Star-Ledger.
August 3, 2004 The New York Post
FLEEING BACKERS MAY FOUL UP NET PLANBy BRADEN KEIL and FRED KERBEr
Incoming New Jersey Nets owner Bruce Ratner has been dealt a setback in his quest to buy the team, after several backers suddenly pulled out, The Post has learned.
The investors, most of whom are partners in the investment banking giant Goldman Sachs, bailed out late last week.
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For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Post.
July 30 2004 The [Newark, NJ] Star-Ledger
Nets: Kidd ready to walk
BY DAVE D'ALESSANDRO
The Bruce Ratner Fire Sale continued in earnest yesterday, when the Nets gave away yet another piece of their franchise -- and their history -- by shipping Kerry Kittles to the Los Angeles Clippers for virtually nothing.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Star-Ledger.
July 22 2004 Daily News
Nets just can't win Foe of arena plan blasts Kenyon Martin trade
BY VERONIKA BELENKAYA
The New Jersey Nets have yet to move to Brooklyn, but activists in their future neighborhood are once again calling a foul on the team's new owner, developer Bruce Ratner.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
July 16 2004 Daily News
Urge new Nets-effect study Current analyses biased, pol sez
BY HUGH SON
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Councilwoman Letitia James (WFP-Fort Greene) sent a letter last week to Mayor Bloomberg asking that the Independent Budget Office, which studied the economic impact of a Jets stadium in Manhattan, examine developer Bruce Ratner's Brooklyn Atlantic Yards project.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
July 16 2004 The [Newark, NJ] Star-Ledger
Nets: Price of keeping Martin is too high BY BRAD PARKS
The threat of having to pay Kenyon Martin an enormous signing bonus convinced new Nets owner Bruce Ratner to trade the All-Star power forward to Denver yesterday and remove a major piece of a team that went to two NBA Finals.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
The Star-Ledger.
July 26, 2004 NY Daily News
B'klyn mall's got a biz-y first dayBY ADAM LISBERG
Brooklyn shoppers rejoiced at their slice of suburbia yesterday, as throngs packed the new Atlantic Terminal mall for the kind of shopping that used to be a long car ride away.
The borough's first new indoor mall in three decades was jammed with a cross-section of Brooklyn's diversity - Orthodox Jews and Caribbean immigrants shopped alongside tattooed hipsters and stroller-pushing mothers.
...
For the whole story,go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
July 25, 2004 NY Daily News
Atlantic Terminal is just a startby Denis Hamill
Here comes Bruce Ratner, skillionaire builder who's transforming downtown Brooklyn, the owner of MetroTech and the soon-to-be-called Brooklyn Nets, suit jacket slung over his shoulder, no tie, rushing down Hanson Place toward the brand-new, 3.6-acre, $120 million Atlantic Terminal on the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush Aves.
What's up with those (Atlantic Yards)plans?
"We've made deals with most of the residents," says Ratner, who has been paying residents a million bucks a pop to sell. "There is one building holding out, but we're still negotiating. I'm hoping to have the Brooklyn Nets shooting their first hoop in Brooklyn in three years. I promise I'll go after the very best talent available.
...
For the whole story,go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
july 24, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
No room at Navy Yard … for an arena
Rep. Owens told Ratner’s Nets plan won’t fit inside former shipyard, then major expansion is announcedBy Christina Rogers
Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s announcement last week that the city will expand the Brooklyn Navy Yard industrial park by 500,000 square feet came as good news to local manufacturers.
But for Rep. Major Owens and opponents of the plan to build a basketball arena in Downtown Brooklyn, the expansion announcement was taken as another slap in the face toward their plan to instead build the future home of the New Jersey Nets on the Navy Yard’s grounds.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
July 23 2004 CBS Sportsline
Ten things we learned this week in the NBA By Mike Kahn
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5. Item: Even before his purchase of the team has been finalized, prospective New Jersey Nets owner Bruce Ratner is catching a lot of heat for allowing All-Star forward Kenyon Martin to leave for the Denver Nuggets in a $92.5 million sign-and-trade deal that brought the Nets back three future first-round picks.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
CBS Sportsline.
July 21, 2004 Newark Star-Ledger
Loyalty loses to greed againBY SID DORFMAN
If you like your irony with a dose of bitters, these were the same Nets who were supposed to help Newark rebuild itself, if Newark would spring for a big piece of the bill. The hustle didn't work.
In case I failed to mention it before, people asking for public financing of a sports arena are famous for taking a courageous risk with other people's money. It doesn't reward the community economically, and failing franchises are known to skip town, some times in the middle of the night. These Nets are doing it to the Meadowlands. Newark could have been the next departure point.
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For the whole story, go to the website of the
Newark Star-Ledger.
July 21, 2004 NY Daily News
Jefferson next up for Net rewardby Ohm Youngmisuk
Bruce Ratner passed on paying Kenyon Martin top dollar. Now, the Nets' owner-to-be will have to consider whether he wants to spend to extend Richard Jefferson's contract.
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For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
July 21, 2004 NY Newsday
Homing in on Brooklyn's newest TargetBY ROBERT KAHN
Tar-GET or Tar-JAY?
No matter how you pronounce it, Brooklyn's newest shoppers' haven hit a bull's-eye with consumers last night at a celeb-studded store opening on Flatbush Avenue.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
July 20, 2004 NJ Star-Ledger
Nets: Investors won't bail out on themBY MATTHEW FUTTERMAN
Five current investors with the Nets have decided to retain their stakes in the team, according to two executives involved with the deal.
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For the whoe story, go to the website of the Newark
Star-Ledger.
July 20, 2004 The New York Times
Nets' Future Is an Arena in BrooklynBy HARVEY ARATON
As the rookie owner of the Nets, Bruce C. Ratner found himself last week in a pressurized position not unfamiliar to his point man, Jason Kidd. Ratner had the ball in his hands with time running out, boxed in a bind.
"Just too much, not a wise business decision," Ratner said in downtown Brooklyn yesterday, where the dream is an arena over the Atlantic Avenue railyards, and Kenyon Martin has long been forgotten.
...
For the whoe story, go to the website of the
NY Times.
June 17, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
SILENT PARTNERS
Ratner won’t name investors in team By Deborah Kolben
Asked to divulge the investors in the project, Beth Davidson, a spokeswoman for Ratner, said, “We’re not going to discuss the investors until the ownership is finalized and even then it will be at the discretion of the investors.”
But opponents of the plan say it is their right to know, especially with millions of public money expected to go into the project.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
June 17, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Activists seek ULURP action for Nets arena, tooReacting to legislation proposed by the Democratic leader of the state Assembly Monday that calls for city land use review of plans to build a Manhattan stadium for the New York Jets, activists in Prospect Heights called for the same consideration of developer Bruce Ratner’s plan to build a basketball arena in their neighborhood.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Manhattan Democrat, said any move to go ahead with construction of the $1.4 billion West Side stadium should be considered separately from plans to expand the adjacent Jacob Javits Convention Center and be approved first by city planning officials.
Silver’s comments sparked cries from activists in Prospect Heights who called on the Assembly speaker to apply the same reasoning to Ratner’s plan for a basketball arena, office towers and apartment buildings emanating from the intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic avenues.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
July 19, 2004 NY Newsday
Urban retail goes grandBY ERROL A. COCKFIELD JR
The new Atlantic Terminal mall in downtown Brooklyn may give developer Bruce Ratner an opportunity to make amends for Atlantic Center, an adjacent project opened in 1996 that critics - including Ratner himself - now deride for its claustrophobic, dreary design.
With Atlantic Terminal's airy concourses, ceiling displays of classic Brooklyn scenes and matching awnings, Ratner wants to prove that Brooklyn can indeed provide vibrant retail on a grand scale in its urban heart.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
July 15 2004 San Francisco Chronicle
AP Source: Nets to send Martin to Denver for three No. 1 picks CHRIS SHERIDAN
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Martin is a restricted free agent, meaning the Nets have the right to match any offer he receives. But the Nuggets were reportedly set to offer Martin a front-loaded contract with a hefty signing bonus, and the luxury tax ramifications would have been costly for incoming Nets owner Bruce Ratner.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
San Francisco Chronicle.
July 14 2004 CBS Sportsline
What's the big deal? All quiet on the free-agent front By Mike Kahn
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The only certainty was the Nuggets would not give up young forward Nene and it didn't appear the Nets wanted 2002 lottery bust Nikoloz Tskitishvili instead. The one aspect of the deal that nobody expected may come to fruition after all of this is new Nets owner Bruce Ratner could come riding in on his white horse and match what ever offer sheet Martin signs with the Nuggets.
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For the full story, go to the web site of CBS
Sportsline.
July 14, 2004 New York Newsday
Atlantic mall set to open in downtown BrooklynBY LAUREN WEBER
Another major benchmark in the development of downtown Brooklyn has been achieved with the near-completion of the Atlantic Terminal mall, set to open July 25 above a Long Island Rail Road transportation hub.
But to opponents, the mall represents another threat to local small businesses, some of whom oppose plans to build a new Nets basketball stadium nearby.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
July 2004 the Project for Public Spaces
Shame on You!
Breaking down the Bilbao: A graphic look at why Frank Gehry's buildings fail as public spaces. This month "Shame on You" sets its sights on the world's best-known architect, Frank Gehry. No project did more to catapult Gehry into the public consciousness than the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. After the Guggenheim debuted in 1997, images of Gehry's fluid metallic forms appeared everywhere--newspapers, magazines, even car commercials. A string of high-profile commissions followed, and soon it seemed like every city felt it needed a Gehry design to appear culturally relevant.
Conspicuously absent from most media representation of Gehry's buildings was any acknowledgement of his treatment of public space.
...
For ther whole story, go to the website of
the Project for Public Spaces.
July 10, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
James calls for independent arena reportBy Deborah Kolben
With competing studies alternately painting a picture of Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards basketball arena and high-rise project as a major boon to city coffers and a $500 million drain of taxpayer money, Prospect Heights Councilwoman Letitia James is calling for the city to conduct its own study of the plan.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
July 10, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
They’re all invited
CBs call on Nets point men Ratner, Kalikow and Gargano to meet over arena planBy Deborah Kolben
Bruce Ratner will not have to put his Atlantic Yards arena, office tower and housing development plan through the city’s public review process.
But the three Brooklyn community boards most affected by the sweeping plan are calling on the real estate developer and the heads of the two state agencies he depends on to build it to sit down with residents and discuss the plan.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
July 4 2004 Daily News
Bruce: I'm no rat Committed to Nets and Brooklyn
By OHM YOUNGMISUK
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There is a belief that the Nets are nothing more to Ratner than the keys to a controversial $2.5 billion Atlantic Yards project that includes a sprawling arena designed by Frank Gehry and complete with commercial space and 4,000 housing units. Some Brooklyn residents and Nets employees and players are uneasy about their future.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
July 7-13 2004 New York Press
FREDDY’S By Joshua M. Bernstein
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Like most pre-Bloomberg dives, Freddy's smoke stench is impervious to all cleansing products, save for a nuclear weapon. Or a bulldozer. Freddy's is a focal point of Bruce Ratner's Brooklyn Nets plan. If the developer had his druthers, the bar would be asphalt, stomping ground for Brooklynites who believe the borough was castrated when the Dodgers went Left Coast.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
New York Press.
July 9 2004 ESPN.com
Martin has not yet committed anywhereBy Marc Stein
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There has been considerable speculation that new Nets owner Bruce Ratner is looking to cut costs and therefore might be willing to let Martin walk if he receives a max offer. Yet you can be sure that Nets president Rod Thorn would protest such a decision as strongly as he can.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
ESPN.com.
July 3,2004 The Brooklyn Papers
RATNER’S MONEY PIT
Study: Arena would cost city $1/2-billionBy Deborah Kolben
An economic analysis released this week blasted deeloper Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards arena and high-rise plan as a money loser that would cost the state and city more than half-a-billion dollars.
“Make no mistake, this project from Forest City Ratner will be using taxpayer money, and loads of it,” said Gustav Peebles, of Fort Greene, a Columbia University researcher who co-authored the report with Jung Kim, an urban planner.
Peebles said he felt compelled to undertake the study after a sports economist commissioned by Ratner claimed the $2.5 billion Atlantic Yards project would put $800 million into city and state coffers.
The Peebles and Kim report concludes that the project will be a net loss to taxpayers — to the tune of $506 million.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
July 3,2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Downtown plan gets green lightBy Deborah Kolben
A major rezoning plan that city and borough officials hope will turn Downtown Brooklyn into a booming metropolis of skyscrapers and corporate back-office space was approved this week in a nearly unanimous vote in the City Council.
“This plan will help us keep jobs,” said Councilman David Yassky at Monday’s vote. “It’s good for New York City and it’s good for Brooklyn.”
The plan passed by a vote of 47-0, with one abstention.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
June 28 2004 City Limits
DIRTY BUSINESS: RATNER SEEKS TOXIC TAX BREAK Environmental advocates worry that new brownfields law is already being abused in New York Times headquarters deal. >
By Elizabeth Cady Brown
Times Square isn’t the first place most people think of when they hear the word ‘brownfield,’ but developer Bruce Ratner and his partner, the New York Times Company, are trying hard to convince the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation that it is one.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
City Limits.
July 2 2004 Newsday
Kidd's knee surgery 'successful' GREG LOGAN
...
The Nets can offer a maximum- salary contract worth about $105 million over seven years; other teams are limited to six-year deals worth about $85 million. New owner Bruce Ratner apparently is looking to cut costs and avoid a maximum offer. Because Martin is a restricted free agent, Ratner can retain his rights by matching any offer.
...
For the full story, go to teh web site of
Newsday.
July 1 2004 New York Sports Express
Foul TerritoryBy Spike Vrusho
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The 2012 Olympics bid, combined with Bruce Ratner's Nets arena in Brooklyn and the Jets West Side stadium in Manhattan is playing out like a Blake Edwards comedy on the airwaves.
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For the full story, go to the web site of
New York Sports Express.
July 1 2004 New York Post
FOE: NETS' FISCAL PLAN FOULS OUT By PATRICK GALLAHUE
New Jersey's sports czar yesterday slammed real-estate mogul Bruce Ratner's plan to move the Nets to Brooklyn, saying it was based on faulty economics.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Post.
June 30 2004 New York Post
NETS TURN STEFANSKI INTO GM By FRED KERBER
While a key member of the Nets front office has been moved up, the vote on the new ownership has been pushed back.
Ed Stefanski, the Nets' senior VP for basketball operations, has been promoted to general manager, team CEO Rod Thorn announced yesterday.
...
While Stefanski assumed greater duties in a time of uncertainty around the franchise, the NBA Board of Governors vote on the approval of a new ownership group headed by Bruce Ratner has been delayed until mid-month, an NBA spokesman said.
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For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Post.
June 30 2004 espn.com
An eye only on Nets profitBy Adrian Wojnarowski
... a reminder of the days that the Nets were immersed with competing for championships. Every day that the franchise inches closer to developer Bruce Ratner's taking over as owner, the more precarious that commitment.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
espn.com.
July 1, 2004 New York Newsday
MTA to evaluate rail yardsBY ERROL A. COCKFIELD AND JOSHUA ROBIN
MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow plans to hire outside appraisers to assess the value of rail yards in downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan's West Side that watchdogs feared would go to private developers in sweetheart deals.
... For the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
June 29, 2004 Counterpunch
All the PR that's Fit to Plug
New York Times Boosts Pet BuilderBy TROY SELVARATNAM
While much has been made of The New York Times's lamentable coverage of the events leading to the war in Iraq, another story calling into question the integrity of the newspaper has been largely overlooked--a story concerning the paper's possible collusion with a rapacious developer. Bruce Ratner's plans to build seventeen high rises and a sports arena in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, using public and speculative financing and the threat of eminent domain to displace upwards of 500 people, have galvanized the affected communities into active opposition. Meanwhile, distressed Brooklynites have grown weary of The New York Times's coverage of the proposal, as the articles on the topic have read like glorified PR materials, trumpeting the alleged benefits to the city and ignoring the civil liberties that are at stake.
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For the whole story, go to the website of
Counterpunch.
June 29, 2004 The New York Daily News
Just say yes to jobs
Grass-roots folks are taking on pols who fight developmentby Errol Lewis
In the twisted politics of development in New York, success is normally equated with stopping progress. Politicians who kill a factory or office tower can normally expect to reap rich rewards in the form of press attention and votes.
But in some neighborhoods, the old not-in-my-backyard politics (NIMBY) is giving way to a new way of thinking. Call it PIMBY - PLEASE in my backyard. And a crop of neighborhood leaders is backing that sentiment with political action. They're right. Politicians who kill jobs deserve the boot.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
June 28, 2004 New York Newsday
Brooklyn Nets arena opponents release report critical of Ratner proposalBy KAREN MATTHEWS
Associated Press Writer
Developer Bruce Ratner's proposal for a New Jersey Nets basketball arena and a 21-acre commercial-residential development in downtown Brooklyn could cost the city as much as $500 million, according to a report released Monday by foes of the plan.
"This confirms in the most damning way possible what we've been saying for months _ that Bruce Ratner is feeding the people of Brooklyn phony promises and bogus numbers to sell this boondoggle," said Daniel Goldstein, a spokesman for Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, a group opposed to the Nets plan.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
New York Newsday.
June 27‚ 2004 The New York Daily News
Arena foes smell a Ratnerby Mike Lupica
No one knows what kind of a sports owner Caring Bruce Ratner will be. Know this, though: He didn't want the Nets because he loves basketball. He doesn't want to build this Ratner World of his in Brooklyn because he wants to fill that famous void left by the Dodgers 47 years ago. What Ratner is trying to do is pull off one of the sweetheart real-estate deals in the history of this city. To do it, he needed a sports team. We have gone over this before. The Nets were handy.
Now the Nets are in limbo, somewhere between Jersey and Brooklyn, between Katz and Chambers, the last owners who were going to save an urban area (Newark) out of the goodness of their hearts. It always starts with a new arena of some kind that the public is supposed to help fund. You have this goodness from owners, even as they have their hands out. While you are told how good this is for you. Only it never is.
It is good for them.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
June 26, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Arena foes at ‘center court’By Deborah Kolben
It may one day be center court for the Brooklyn Nets, but over the weekend the intersection of Pacific Street and Fifth Avenue was center stage for a rally against Bruce Ratner’s massive arena, housing and office development plan.
Hundreds of opponents, including several elected officials, turned out on the sunny Saturday afternoon to protest what they called the “over-development” of the neighborhood.
June 26, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Watchdog calls for arena ‘ULURP’By Deborah Kolben
Saying the appointed state officials who will review Bruce Ratner’s $2.5 billion Atlantic Yards arena, office tower and housing plan are not accountable to the public, a government watchdog group is calling for the plan to be put through city review.
“Such a big and important project should go though the same process that any other development would normally go through,” Gene Russianoff, a senior attorney for the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG), said this week.
The city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) requires the recommendations of, and public hearings before, the local community board, borough president, City Planning Commission and City Council.
June 26, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Numbers game over Ratner arena jobsBy Deborah Kolben
At a June 17 rally on the steps of Borough Hall to support the Atlantic Yards project, the loudest cry came from labor.
As reported in last week’s Brooklyn Papers, men and women from various unions voiced support of the arena, residential and office tower development planned for Prospect Heights.
From the beginning the project’s developer, Bruce Ratner, has said the project will create 10,000 permanent jobs and 15,000 construction jobs.
But critics of the plan are pointing out that the project will really only create 1,500 construction jobs, which will continue each year for 10 years.
...
For all these stories , go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
June 25 2004 New York Post
INSIDE THE MARV MESS By ANDREW MARCHAND
June 25, 2004 -- Yes, Jim Dolan's MSG Network wanted Marv Albert to be a homer. But, contrary to reports last week, there was never, ever going to be a written censorship clause in any new contract.
...
Meanwhile, a spokesman for new Net owner Bruce Ratner said, "This would be an issue for the YES Network, not the Nets."
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
New York Post.
June 24 2004 New York Sports Express
Foul TerritoryBy Spike Vrusho
...
A little further down Flatbush last weekend was a Develop Don't Destroy "block party." I hit it around 4 p.m. (it was a noon to 6 p.m. affair) and it was sagging in the sun with a scattered, almost accidental vibe. It resembled a sparse, reenactment of Berkeley-style non-gatherings seen in Cheech & Chong outtakes. Hippies and punks sitting around in tall weeds against the chain link fence guarding Bruce Ratner's prized arena plot.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
New York Sports Express.
June 21, 2004 the new York Daily News
Ratner plan deserves public's backingDaily News Editorial
Last month Ralph Nader labeled as "American fascism" developer Bruce Ratner's plan to condemn property in downtown Brooklyn for a basketball arena and complex of residential and commercial towers. Neighborhood activists have called the project everything from "a massive land grab" to a scheme to turn the district into a grim urban "wasteland."
We call it a pretty good idea...
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
June 21, 2004 the New York Post
APPLE FOLLY-BALLBy TOM TOPOUSIS
Plans to build new indoor sports facilities on both sides of the Hudson river would leave the New York metropolitan region with a glut of indoor arenas all competing for the same business, sports experts predict.
Over the next five years, the region's stock of arenas is slated to go from three to five. Add a massive West Side stadium, designed to be reconfigured into a 45,000-seat arena and convention hall, and the number of indoor sports venues doubles.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Post.
June 21, 2004 The Journal News.com
Even Yanks want upgradeBy BRIAN HEYMAN
Mets want theirs... Giants want to redecorate... MSG V?... Islanders' long wait...
Everybody wants a piece of the public pie...
... For the whole story, go to the wecsite of the
Journal News.
June 19, 2004 the Globe and Mail
David, Goliath, Big Bird and GehryBy SIMON HOUPT
Brooklyn is the home of Sesame Street, a place where creatures of all backgrounds manage to live together peacefully. The real borough is an irascible place where, earlier this year, a developer secured a deal to import the New Jersey Nets basketball team, bringing Brooklyn its first professional sports franchise since the Dodgers fled in 1957. Bruce Ratner, who made his money building ugly shopping malls, lined up partners like the rapper Jay-Z, and hundreds of millions of dollars in government subsidies, for an arena and other development that would cost about $2.5-billion (U.S.)
There are two problems. More than 1,000 people will be kicked out of their homes under the state's power of eminent domain. And urban designers say the project will totally change the unique character of Brooklyn.
If you're wondering why you haven't read much critical press coverage of the tussle in the New York Times, it could be because Ratner's company, Forest City Ratner, is partners in developing the Times's new headquarters.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
Globe and Mail.
June 19, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
TRAFFIC NIGHTMARE
Ratner exec says most shoppers will drive to Target in the new Atlantic Terminal mallBy Deborah Kolben
A Forest City Ratner executive said he expects most shoppers at the soon-to-open Atlantic Terminal shopping mall will drive rather than take mass transit.
Bruce Bender, a Forest City Ratner executive vice president, made the remarks this week in response to questions about the company’s plan to end residential parking at the ailing Atlantic Center, across the street from Atlantic Terminal.
“People are going to walk or drive, they’re not going to take mass transit,” Bender told The Brooklyn Papers, speaking of the increased need for parking with the nation’s second largest Target department store anchoring the new mall.
...
Union workers and ACORN rally for ‘jobs, housing, hoops’By Deborah Kolben
The Brooklyn Papers
First came the flier, then came the rally.
Organized labor and community groups flooded the steps of Borough Hall at noon Thursday in a show of support for the proposed Atlantic Yards basketball arena, office tower and housing development.
The event attracted about 1,000 supporters — many organized by the District Council of Carpenters, Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) and the pro-arena group BUILD — who carried signs and chanted in support of “Jobs, Housing and Hoops.”
...
Ratner vows he’ll relocate tenants displaced by Nets
Developer offers few specificsBy Christina Rogers
for The Brooklyn Papers
Officials with Forest City Ratner, the company that plans to build a basketball arena surrounded by office towers and a housing complex in Prospect Heights, say they will relocate any apartment renters the plan displaces.
But neither a company vice president nor a spokesperson would offer details of how the company might achieve that goal.
Speaking at a meeting with 200 concerned citizens June 3, James Stuckey, vice president of real estate developer Bruce Ratner’s company, said renters displaced by the construction of Atlantic Yards would have first priority in selecting housing in the new residential towers.
...
For all the above stories, go to the website of the
Brooklyn Papers.
June 18 2004 HAARETZ [Israel]
Basketball / Hoop dreams: High-scoring Inbar shoots for the NBA By Nathaniel Popper
Last week, Elad Inbar moved one step closer to going where no Israeli has gone before - the NBA.
...
Ratner recently announced his intentions to move the Nets to a new arena in Brooklyn, designed by Frank Gehry. If New York politics don't block it, the arena will be built at the intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues, near the epicenter of what is still America's largest Jewish community. Having the only Jewish player in the league would be an obvious draw for the team.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
HAARETZ.
June 17 2004 Daily News
Hardhats & activists cheer on Ratner plan By BILL FARRELL
Shouting "Jobs! Housing! Hoops!," hundreds of union workers and community activists gathered outside Brooklyn Borough Hall yesterday in support of developer Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards project.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
June 17 2004 Daily News
Next stop: Shop! Buzz over new $120M mall grows
BY PAUL H.B. SHIN
...
The Atlantic Terminal Retail Complex - Brooklyn's first new indoor mall in more than three decades - is about to open its doors on the site once eyed by Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley for a new stadium before he moved the team out to Los Angeles.
...
The grand opening, scheduled for July 25, will come at a critical time for the company's chief, Bruce Ratner.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
June 16, 2004 The New York Post
TOUT OF BOUNDSBy PATRICK GALLAHUE
Developer Bruce Ratner isn't just buying up property for his proposed Nets arena in Brooklyn � he's shopping for cheerleaders.
According to the contract obtained by The Post, people who sell their apartments at 636 Pacific St. in order to make way for the arena must agree to publicly shill for his $2.5 billion plan and "testify in favor of the project at hearings" if requested.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
New York Post.
June 7, 2004 New York Daily News
Ratner: First out, first placedBy HUGH SON
Renters whose apartments must be demolished to make way for the ambitious Atlantic Yards development will move to the top of the list for flats in new residential towers, says an aide to developer Bruce Ratner.
...
for the whole story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
June 5, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Nets’ Cracker Jack mailer
Ratner offers prize for Atlantic Terminal supportBy Deborah Kolben
Support the Nets … and win a prize!
Drumming up support for his massive Atlantic Yards development project, real estate mogul Bruce Ratner sent out 350,000 glossy pamphlets to Brooklyn homes over Memorial Day weekend promising residents a free gift if they back his plan.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
June 5, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Bloomie’s Downtown
Mayor sees Nets, Downtown plan as done dealsBy Deborah Kolben
When Mayor Michael Bloomberg addressed a Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce luncheon Thursday, he talked about Bruce Ratner’s Nets arena plan as a done deal and said concerns from the local community about the Downtown Brooklyn Plan had been resolved.
But City Council members Letitia James and David Yassky disagree.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
June 5, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Final Downtown meet TuesdayBy Deborah Kolben
A rezoning plan that would turn much of Downtown Brooklyn into an urban renewal area ripe for the development of office and residential towers is nearing the final stages of the city review process.
A City Council committee will host the final public hearing on the sweeping Downtown Brooklyn Plan at 9:30 am this Tuesday, June 8, in the council chambers at City Hall.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
June 3 2004 Daily News
Flyer blitz ripped by arena foes By HUGH SON
Real estate tycoon and NBA Nets team owner Bruce Ratner has blanketed Brooklyn with glossy pamphlets touting the benefits of his proposed Atlantic Yards complex - but critics are calling the ads a foul move.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
June 1, 2004 New York Daily News
West Side story is a tall taleby Filip Bondy
It probably started with the Emperor Vespasian, who insisted on building the Colosseum around A.D. 70, within walking distance of the Circus Maximus. You had 250,000 Romans pouring out of the chariot races up the hill, and suddenly there were another 50,000 yahoos coming out of the gladiator battles, flush with bloodlust.
The two sites jockeyed for the entertainment dollar. The occasional elephant shows at Circus Maximus could no longer compete with the lions eating Christians at the Colosseum. The emperors kept expanding Circus Maximus, anyway. They built skyboxes for themselves. Some local residents were sick of the whole, hedonistic pedestrian jam. Pliny the Younger protested in vain what he called "the type of spectacle which has never had the slightest attraction for me.
...
For the rest of the story, go to the website of the
NY Daily News.
May 31, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
GOP: Yes to arenaBy Jotham Sederstrom
Brooklyn Republicans voted by a wide margin to support development of Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards basketball arena, office towers and housing complex this week. At the same time many raised concerns over the use of the state’s power of eminent domain to condemn private property.
A contrary resolution, which received just over 100 votes, condemns the project because, the resolution reads, it “would displace countless Brooklynites from their homes” while raising serious traffic and parking issues.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
May 31, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Market for sellers, not renters
Unlike owners of property, renters in Nets arena path are at Ratner’s mercyBy Deborah Kolben
With homeowners in the path of Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards arena, office towers and housing project set to accept lucrative buyouts, a group of residents who have been there the longest — and stand to lose the most — are now banding together.
The more than 200 renters in the swath of Prospect Heights where Ratner plans to build the $2.5 billion residential and commercial development — including a professional basketball arena for his New Jersey Nets — are fearful that they will be left out in the cold.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
May 27 2004 New York Sports Express
Spike Vrusho's Foul Territory... Last Sunday's Daily News had not only Denis Hamill's ode to how great it will be to have the Nets in Brooklyn (Hamill lamented not having property on Pacific St. to sell to Bruce Ratner), it also had a press release-driven Bernard King "courts Nets fans" piece in the Brooklyn section, even though the ex-Knick legend now lives in god-awful Atlanta. ...
For the full story, go to the web site of
New York Sports Express.
May 25, 2004 New York Newsday
New Brooklyn arena is a 'Nets' loss for cityBY Neil DeMause
Bringing the Nets to Brooklyn, proclaimed the resulting headlines, would not only give New York a second NBA team, but leave taxpayers with a handy $800 million profit.
Well, not exactly. A closer look at Zimbalist's report reveals that the Nets arena itself would likely be a money-loser for taxpayers. Using his best guesses at how many current Nets fans would make the trek to Brooklyn instead of staying home and spending their consumer dollars in the Garden State, Zimbalist estimates $257 million in new sales and income-tax revenue from the arena, against construction costs of $261 million. Other reports have projected a public construction subsidy of more than $400 million. Asked repeatedly at recent City Council hearings what the real cost would be, city economic development chief Andrew Alper wore out his Roget's finding new ways to say, "We don't know."
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
May 24, 2004 New York Newsday
Nader weighs in against Nets, Jets NYC stadium proposalsBy KAREN MATTHEWS
Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader said Monday that public funds should not be used to build new facilities for the New York Jets and the New Jersey Nets.
"Capitalists should behave like capitalists," Nader said. "They should invest their own money. They should bid for these properties, and if they can't buy them they have to go away and find another place for their projects."
...
for the whole story, go to the website of
NY Newsday.
May 24, 2004 The New York Post
A NEW GROWTH WARBy JULIA VITULLO- MARTIN
"DEVELOP - Don't Destroy" is the name and rallying cry for the neighborhood group opposing Bruce Ratner's plans to build an arena for the Nets, plus 4,500 housing units and several office towers, in Brooklyn. For New York City, this is revolutionary: The group presumes that development is actually good.
That reflects a barely noticed, emerging consensus that the city as a whole needs a strong tax base to survive -and that neighborhoods must stay dynamic, welcoming new residents and adapting old buildings to new uses. "We feel positive about development," says D-DD organizer Dan Michaelson. "We don't have a nostalgic idea about Brooklyn, and we don't think it should stagnate. Development has been doing a great job out here."
...
For the whole story, go to the website of the
NYPost.
May 22, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Arena costs us 100s of millions
Ratner exec says taxpayers will payBy Deborah Kolben
Just how much will a Brooklyn basketball arena cost New York City taxpayers?
If you ask developer Bruce Ratner, his 8 million-square-foot Atlantic Yards project — including soaring office and residential towers — is a privately funded project that will pay for itself in the tax revenue it generates.
And in a citywide poll the Brooklyn project received soaring approval for costing little while the public has slammed the proposed Jets football stadium for the westside of Manhattan that officials say will require $300 million each from the city and state.
But at the recent City Council hearing on the arena project, a Ratner executive estimated millions in taxpayer dollars would go to build the 21-acre development emanating from the intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic avenues.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
May 22, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Nader to rail against arena
By Deborah Kolben
Consumer advocate and potential presidential spoiler Ralph Nader is coming to town this week to speak out against the proposed Brooklyn arena and Westside Manhattan stadium projects.
An outspoken opponent of government-sponsored sports facilities, Nader runs a Web site, leagueoffans.org, devoted to educating the public about the sports industry.
“Ralph Nader opposes corporate welfare and sees the stadium agreements where the government pays for the stadium and the corporations get the benefit as a form of corporate welfare boondoggle for very wealthy owners of sports franchises,” said Kevin Zeese, a spokesman for Nader.
Nader will host a news conference in Manhattan on Monday afternoon to speak out against the stadiums as part of his Northeast campaign tour.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
May 22, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Protesters need to adjust focusby Ed Weintrob
It’s not just the Nets, and it’s not just eminent domain. Whether Bruce Ratner has his way with us, in transforming Brooklyn from its status as a perpetually evolving multi-textured urban quilt into a sterile Manhattanized version of cul-de-sac suburbia, will depend more on our collective vision than on our individual pocketbooks.
That Ratner would pay handsomely to silence critics should never have been in doubt. With the club of eminent domain in one hand and a checkbook in the other, the homeowners on Ratner’s site would of course choose to live in luxury somewhere else than sustain high-risk combat against Empire State Development Corp. chief Charles Gargano and Gov. George Pataki.
Atlantic Yards opponents were thus precisely wrong in making eminent domain the most apparent source of their discontent.
The larger issue, the communal one, transcends those living on-site and even nearby.
...
For the whole story, go to the website of
the Brooklyn Papers.
May 21 2004 The [Westchester] Journal News
Kidd backs FrankBy BOB CONSIDINE
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — The last time the Nets were in a win-or-go-home situation, it was Game 6 of the NBA Finals last year.
... before the Nets were blown out by the Pistons in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals last night, Kidd was giving a vote of confidence for interim coach Lawrence Frank that wasn't going to be questioned.
...
Frank went 25-15 after Scott's dismissal in January. Before the playoffs, a source close to incoming owner Bruce Ratner said Frank would return no matter how the team fared.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
The Journal News.
May 22 2004 ABS CBN News
Guess who’ll get all the blame?AUBURN HILLS, Michigan - The season will ultimately be remembered as lost last Sunday night, in New Jersey, for the want of a timely basket or two. By the time Jason Kidd and the Nets hit the road, they were running on empty. Or more to the point: not at all.
...
Bruce Ratner, the new owner, has been spectacularly buying off Brooklyn residents in the way of the new arena he covets, indicating he won’t pinch pennies with his new toy.
“We don’t officially own the team yet,” Ratner said on his way out of the Palace, with others on the slow bandwagon to Brooklyn, including Bernard King. “Once we do, I’ll be happy to talk.”
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
ABS CBN News.
May 20 2004 Daily News
Group says Court St. plan should follow Ratner lead By HUGH SON
Real estate tycoon Bruce Ratner's pledge that half of the apartments in his proposed Atlantic Yards complex will be affordable housing is making life harder for another prominent Brooklyn real estate developer.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
May 15, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Ratner buyout silences criticsBy Deborah Kolben
Real estate developer Bruce Ratner is closing in on a $32 million deal to buy out residents of a nine-story building standing at what would be center court of his new Nets arena project.
Residents of the Atlantic Art Building at 636 Pacific St. are being offered up to double what they paid for their posh apartments, but few are talking publicly about the deal.
That’s because they must agree to a gag order to get the money, sources said.
...
For the whole story go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
May 15, 2004 The Brooklyn Papers
Planning panel OKs Downtown PlanBy Deborah Kolben
A plan to turn Downtown Brooklyn into a commercial and retail hub with soaring office towers moved one step closer to reality this week.
The City Planning Commission approved the $100 million Downtown Brooklyn Plan Monday. The rezoning and urban renewal plan calls for the construction of 6.7 million square feet of office space, 1 million square feet of retail space, 1,000 units of housing and 2,500 parking spaces.
As part of the Downtown Plan, the government would also condemn seven acres of private land including 130 residential units, and 100 businesses.
...
For the whole story go to the website of
The Brooklyn Papers.
May 10, 2004 The New York Sun
An Editor Emerges As Foe of Nets Plan
WEINTROB TAKES ON DEVELOPERSBy DAVID ANDREATTA
Given the headlines of the newspaper he founded, it’s surprising to hear Edward Weintrob say the Atlantic Rail Yard in Brooklyn is the ideal place for a new arena for the New Jersey Nets.
It is equally puzzling when the Brooklyn newspaperman suggests that the team owner and developer, Bruce Ratner, ought to get a tax break to do it.
That’s because for months Mr. Weintrob, president and founder of the Brooklyn Papers, has reserved the front page of his free weekly for acerbic editorials and stories critical of proposals to overhaul the area around Atlantic Yards and Downtown Brooklyn.
“Soulless,” “land grab,” and “dehumanized” are just a few of the terms he has used in his editorials to define the projects.
...
For the whole story go to the website of
The New York Sun.
May 14 2004 Newsday
City gets to ring Olympic bellAs world’s media convenes in New York, planners for 2012 bid can provide them with all the right stuff
BY JOHN JEANSONNE
...
For instance, the intention of developer Bruce Ratner, new owner of the basketball Nets, to construct an arena in downtown Brooklyn could mean placing Olympic gymnastics competition there.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of
Newsday.
May 11 2004 Daily News
Out-of-bounds comment By Lloyd Grove
Former New Jersey Nets and New York Knicks hoopster Bernard King is still seething over a personal foul committed last week by New York City Councilwoman Letitia James (D-Brooklyn).
I'm told that King wants an apology because James dissed him during a hearing of the Economic Development Committee on the so-called Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn - which James vehemently opposes.
"We have one thing in common. We all graduated from Fort Hamilton High School," she told King, who was testifying in favor of Nets owner-designate Bruce Ratner's plans to build a Brooklyn arena for his team.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
May 14 2004 Daily News
Slam dunk! Residents get a cool mil to get out of Ratner's way
By HUGH SON and NANCY DILLON
Apartment owners in [636 Pacific St.] will be instant millionaires.
Real estate tycoon Bruce Ratner is showing Brooklyn homeowners the money.
He's turning residents of one building into instant millionaires so they'll go quietly - letting him knock down their homes to make way for his controversial $2.5 billion Nets arena and housing complex.
...
For the full story, go to the web site of the
Daily News.
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