 |
|
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
tel/fax: 718.362.4784
Please note our new postal address when sending
contributions to the legal fund:
121 5th Avenue, PMB #150
Brooklyn, New York 11217
|
|
|
|
 |
ARCHIVES:
By Date|
By Category|
Text Search
|
Silver To Take Hard Look at Atlantic Yards
Atlantic
Yards Report tries to read the perhaps inscrutable Sheldon Silver tea
leaves when it comes to the Assembly Speaker's role in reviewing "Atlantic Yards"
as one of three votes on the Public
Authorities Control Board (PACB). It is no small feat to try to make sense
of what that arcane board is doing or will do when it comes to their vote on the
project which requires unanimity for passage (the other two votes are controlled
by Senate Majority Leader Bruno and the Governor). Speaker Silver made some very
strong comments about ESDC boss Charles Gargano on a News 4 interview with
Jay DeDapper. During the interview Silver also discussed the PACB and "Atlantic
Yards." Norman Oder took a look:
Silver
on AY: "We'll look at it in a very favorable light"
State Assembly
Speaker Sheldon
Silver, a Democrat, got into a war of words this weekend with the lame-duck
administration of Republican Governor George Pataki, but the news for Brooklynites
were his words of steady if not complete support for the Atlantic Yards project--a
suggestion that he might want to broker a compromise of sorts.
Still, Silver, whose vote on the Public Authorities Control Board (PACB) is
necessary to approve Atlantic Yards, may be so peeved at Pataki and Empire State
Development Corporation (ESDC) Charles Gargano that he will refuse to greenlight
the project during the last weeks of the Pataki administration but would rather
wait until fellow Democrat Eliot Spitzer takes over in January.
"In Brooklyn, it's a mixed bag. There are people for it, people against it,
and the proposal itself keeps changing somewhat," Silver said during an interview
broadcast this morning on WNBC's News
Forum. "So we'll look at it in a very favorable light because development
is necessary down there, see how the developer responds to some of the criticism,
either because of the mass of the project or some of the traffic."
The changes have been minimal, though they've garnered headlines. But the Atlantic Yards project, once it gets inevitable approval later this month from the ESDC, must get a unanimous nod from the Public Authorities Control Board (PACB), controlled by Silver, Pataki, and Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno.
Pressuring Silver
Various parties have been pressuring Silver to postpone a vote until the Spitzer
administration takes over. Others want him to wait until the eminent domain
suit is resolved. Alternatively, some are probably pressuring him to at least
broker a compromise.
And Forest City Ratner is surely lobbying Silver. (Don't forget, Bruce Ratner's brother Michael Ratner and sister-in-law Karen Ranucci each gave Silver's campaign $3000 in June even though he was running unopposed.)
I'd bet that the developer would rather compromise significantly with Silver
before the end of the year than let the project carry over to a Spitzer administration
that might take a closer look at the project. Even if such delay didn't lead
to significant changes in the configuration of Atlantic Yards, it could least
increase Forest City's carrying costs and construction costs.
...
Silver brought up Brooklyn again, on his own, apparently wanting to make sure
his position wasn't misconstrued. DeDapper asked if Silver, from his post on
the PACB, would stop block Atlantic Yards.
Silver responded:
I can't tell you what Joe Bruno's going to do; I can only tell you what I
would consider. One, as an old Brooklyn Dodger fan, I believe professional sports
belongs in Brooklyn, as far as that goes. The merits of the project still
to be examined; they're still being actually developed on a day-to-day basis.
It changes. We have members of the assembly who are for it, members of the assembly
who are against it. Unlike the [West Side] Stadium, where every representative
of the area and the surrounding area of that stadium, be it Congress, state Senate
or assembly, opposed that stadium. I wasn't the only one opposed to that
stadium, let's be very clear about that.
In Brooklyn, it's a mixed bag. There are people for it, people against it, and
the proposal itself keeps changing somewhat. So we'll look at it in a very favorable
light because development is necessary down there, see how the developer responds
to some of the criticisma, either because of the mass of the project or some of
the traffic, and I would say right now, the only vote we've taken is to support
the development. We have voted for $100 million as a state component to that project.
Read
the full article from Atlantic Yards Report
Gowanus
Lounge
tried to sum Silver up this way, which is certainly what should be the case:
...Mr. Silver may do many things, but one thing he doesn't appear
predisposed to doing is rubberstamp the proposal.
Read the full article from Gowanus
Lounge
And remember, it remains to be seen if "Atlantic Yards" is
even legal.
Posted: 11.19.06
|
|
 |
 |