Weekly Digest: Will Pacific Park Be Renamed? I'd Bet Yes.
C'mon, wouldn't a new developer want a reboot? Also: WNBA Finals.
This digest offers a way for people to keep up with my Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report blog, as well as my other coverage in this newsletter and elsewhere.
For those checking “Barclays Center” alerts, well, the big news this week was the New York Liberty’s home split in the WNBA Finals.
(By the way, a New York Times article yesterday quotes a fan as saying her season tickets were about to double in cost, from $600, while playoff tickets cost nearly $100 each, with Liberty CEO Keia Clarke saying she wasn’t trying to price people out but rather honoring the value that these women bring every single night.”)
This week, I chose to go out on a small limb, arguing that a new developer—Related is expected to steer the joint venture—would inevitably rename Pacific Park (a name many don’t use, still relying on Atlantic Yards) in a reboot.
I could imagine something like “Brooklyn Central,” which would emphasize the project’s location, rather than the “park,” the value of which would be diminished if the project were supersized, as expected.
Yes, these signposts can be revised.
From this newsletter
Oct. 9: Will "Pacific Park" Be Renamed? Housing Surge Would Increase Open Space Deficit.
From Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park Report
Oct. 8: As case regarding McDonald's and its landlord at 840 Atlantic (at Vanderbilt) moves closer to trial, pre-trial rulings lean toward tenant. This site is directly east of the northeast parcel in Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park, the site known as B10.
As I’ve argued, the dispute is ultimately not about whether the site should host a McDonald’s forever or support an approved 18-story building, but rather the terms upon which the fast-food restaurant would settle, and exit.
Oct. 10: Barclays Center tonight hosts the WNBA finals, with amplified sound on the plaza 6-8 pm. Sunday, too. Also amplified sound for Brooklyn Nets home opener Oct. 27.
By the way, the New York Liberty lost their first game, in an overtime squeaker that was a heartbreaker for fans, to the Minnesota Lynx, then decisively beat the Lynx yesterday. If either team wins two games in Minneapolis this week.
Oct. 11: Related CEO's lawsuit claiming harassment by (aggrieved) EB-5 investors dropped--against all but one. Was there a settlement?
Why is this of interest to Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park watchers? Because Related Companies is expected to steer the pending joint venture to develop six towers over the Vanderbilt Yard. Ironically enough, those development rights are being transferred in a foreclosure action against current master developer Greenland USA, unable to pay back loans from immigrant investors under the EB-5 program.
Oct. 13: How big is/was the MTA's Vanderbilt Yard? References vary (8.3 to 9 acres), but it's closer to 8.425 acres. The platform area would be smaller. Niche topic, sure, but you’ll soon see why I’m fact-checking this.