If the folks who supported Atlantic Yards, such as its biggest (as in loudest) cheerleader Marty Markowitz, hadn't attempted to construct the largest single-developer project in NYC history by overriding local zoning, bypassing the votes of all city and state elected officials, utilizing eminent domain for private gain, giving away public assets through sweetheart deals, providing special deals and subsidies totaling somewhere near $2 billion, and breaking housing and jobs promises left and right all while ignoring community input without ever sincerely seeking it, perhaps Atlantic Yards would not be the most reviled development plan in all of New York.
And now, despite all of that plus the growing realization among the non-partisans that the project and its one accomplishment—a money-losing arena—is a clustermess in the heart of Brooklyn, the Borough President is sticking to the absurd line that it is the community advocates' fault the project is a failure. Taking it yet one step further Markowitz astonishingly claims that the use of eminent domain for Bruce Ratner and Mikhail Prokhorov's benefit was somehow a good thing.
Why do we bring all of this up? Well just look at what holiday cheer Markowitz is spreading:
Marty Markowitz on THE PEREZ NOTES Part 2.
The Perez Notes
I had the opportunity to interview, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. Here are some of his views, on the issues of the day. Below the quotes, is the audio of the interview.
...
Atlantic Yards
"If the folks that opposed this, hadn't tied the project up for 7 years in litigation Atlantic Yards a good piece of it would've built. The affordable housing would've been on it's way. The Nets would be playing in the arena and defeating the Manhattan Knicks."
"The folks that were impacted by eminent domain, overwhelmingly most of them did very well. The folks that are the loudest complainers, folks could argue are the gentrifiers."
"I have significant reservations about permit parking, about resident parking only, I don't think it could work."
Markowitz can say whatever he wants and continue to place false blame whereever he wants but the "failure" of Atlantic Yards is that it was never feasible as promoted and approved. Who says? His buddy Bruce Ratner says.
