"Make no mistake, I advocated for this project with no strings attached, no promise of any reciprocal support whatsoever," he said in a statement. "And I continue to do so adamantly because it will be a major catalyst for continuing what we call the 'Brooklyn Renaissance.'"

Okay, sure Markowitz supported the project from the beginning and advocated for it. But he has continued to advocate for it for five years with zero skepticism and zero scrutiny despite all that has come to light about it. What explains his disdain for ever single criticism or complaint about the project?

Are we to believe that Ratner's largesse has nothing to do with Markowitz's utter lack of scrutiny of perhaps the most controversial development plan in Brooklyn's history? Markowitz's unconditional, undying support for Atlantic Yards despite the developer's broken promises on "affordable housing," abuse of eminent domain, displacement of tenants, ongoing failure to actually build anything, extended delays, over-dependence on public subsidies and special tax breaks, complete lack of a traffic plan for an extraordinarily congested area etc etc, has nothing to do with Ratner's "philanthropy?"

The fact that over five years of controversy we've not heard a critical peep from the Beep has absolutely nothing to do with Ratner's money? Believe that, and we've got a bridge to sell you.

So if the Brits bail out Barclays Bank and Barclays doesn't walk away from the $400-million arena naming-rights deal it signed with Bruce Ratner, and if Ratner gets the triple-tax-exempt bonds he's looking for, then Atlantic Yards would end up being directly or indirectly subsidized by NY City, NY State, the US Federal Government at the British central bank. Incredible.

Beep Reaping Big As Yards Backer
Arena-Plan Groups Boo$t His Projects

By Rich Calder And Chuck Bennett

Being the biggest booster of Brooklyn's controversial Atlantic Yards project has really paid off for Borough President Marty Markowitz.

Since 2003, Nets owner Bruce Ratner and others involved in the $4 billion plan for an NBA arena and 16 apartment and office towers in the heart of Brooklyn have quietly funneled at least $680,000 to three nonprofit groups set up by Markowitz to run pet projects, a Post investigation found.

The pet projects -- which include promoting tourism and offering free concerts -- have been instrumental in boosting Markowitz's popularity and getting him re-elected, critics charge.

"Affiliated nonprofits should not be used as pseudo campaign accounts," said Dick Dadey, of the government watchdog group Citizens Union. "One could argue that these nonprofits raise the profile of the borough president in a way that certainly aids his possible campaigns."

Dadey called it a "new area of potential conflicts of interest" that must be reviewed.

Markowitz has said he would seek a third term if the City Council supports Mayor Bloomberg's plan to revise term limits. If not, he has expressed interest in running for mayor.

While political candidates face strict limits on how much they can receive in campaign funding from donors, a loophole in the law allows donors to be as generous as they want for a politician's pet projects.

Since 2003, Markowitz's three nonprofits received between $680,000 and $1,075,000 from Atlantic Yards-affiliated companies, according to city Conflicts of Interest Board records.

This includes $275,000 to $590,000 combined from the Nets; Ratner's development company, Forest City Ratner; and its subsidiaries.

The nonprofits also received another $385,000 to $425,000 from Turner Construction Company, Ratner's construction adviser for the Atlantic Yards, the records state.

And Barclays Bank, which agreed to pay Ratner $400 million for naming rights to the arena, donated $20,000 to $60,000 to the nonprofit overseeing Markowitz's Martin Luther King Jr. Concert Series in East Flatbush.

The other groups include one overseeing his Seaside Summer Concert Series in Coney Island and a third called Best of Brooklyn Inc., which promotes tourism, organizes cultural events and assists youth.

Markowitz last month came under fire from the city Comptroller's Office for directly awarding no-bid contracts through his office to partially fund his Best of Brooklyn organization with $680,496 in public money since 2004.

Markowitz said yesterday that "no matter what The Post wants to imply," he was "absolutely proud of everything" his nonprofits do for Brooklyn.

Regarding his Best of Brooklyn group, he said "I'm thrilled that it has received the public and private support it has and proud of what we've been able to accomplish" with it.

Forest City Ratner spokesman Joe DePlasco said the company was "very proud" to support the Beep's charities.

But Daniel Goldstein, a spokesman for the Atlantic Yards opposition group Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, said the findings by the Post show Markowitz is "clearly bought and paid for" by Ratner and his partners for Atlantic Yards.

"This allows Ratner to support Markowitz's political interests outside of campaign finance rules," he said. "In return, Markowitz unconditionally supports Atlantic Yards. It's a conflict Markowitz has chosen to ignore."

Markowitz is such a proponent of Atlantic Yards that last year he bounced nine longtime members of Community Board 6 from their posts for failing to back the project...

Reality Bangs on Bloomberg's Development Door
Four more years may not help as finance crisis compounds uncertainty of big projects
by Eliot Brown

..."Everything has been derailed by a circumstance that no matter who you talk to, they can't describe a precedent, so there's total uncertainty and total insecurity about what comes next," said Kathryn Wylde, president of the Partnership for New York City, the business community's main advocacy organization. "The global economic crisis dwarfs any plans at this point."...

Save the date: DDDB walkathon as Yards looks shaky
by Evan Gardner

The annual walkathon to raise money to fight Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards mega-development is going undercover — under cover of darkness, that is.

For the first time, the four-year-old tradition of marching in and around the footprint of the faltering $4-billion, 16-skyscraper, arena, residential and office space complex will be held at night — with participants carrying candles.

"We're doing it to shed light on [the developer's and the state's] abuses, and we're hoping that politicians will also see the light," Daniel Goldstein of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, one the march's organizers, said about the twilight gimmick [sic].

DDDB has been fighting the 22-acre mega-project since it was unveiled in 2003 — the heady days of the Brooklyn real-estate boom — and now the group's battle is reaching a critical phase just as the project appears to be collapsing under its own weight.Ratner has won virtually every legal round so far — but just as it looked like he would clear a court hurdle, a state appellate panel ruled last month that a key suit would go ahead — with oral arguments next year.

That decision will delay the project for at least another six months, Ratner said — and opponents believe that the faltering economy, a crippling credit crunch, soaring costs, and the reluctance of state lawmakers to provide additional subsidies, will kill it for good.

So that could turn this event from a walkathon to a victory lap...

Economic Downturn Isn’t Slowing Luxury Box Sales
by Katie Thomas and Richard Sandomir

With the economy in crisis and Wall Street in turmoil, will local sports teams be forced to place “vacancy” signs on the scores of luxury suites going up in their new stadiums?

Don’t expect a stampede for the bleachers just yet, several team executives and industry observers said recently. They noted that the concentration of corporate headquarters in New York — combined with the marquee appeal of locations like Yankee Stadium — meant that demand for luxury suites was not likely to fade anytime soon. At some of the new stadiums, the suites are already sold out.

“New York is going to get hit harder by financial sectors than other cities will, but New York’s also got a lot of other stuff going on,” said Jim Grinstead, the editor and publisher of Revenues from Sports Venues, a weekly newsletter that chronicles the luxury-suite industry. “I’m not hearing anything where people are panicking.”

New York is in the midst of a great stadium-building boom, with plans for at least five under way in the metropolitan area. The Yankees and the Mets are getting new ballparks next spring. In New Jersey, the Jets and the Giants are planning a football stadium that is scheduled to open in 2010. Construction has begun on the Red Bulls’ soccer stadium in Harrison, N.J. In Brooklyn, the developer Bruce C. Ratner is planning a $950 million arena for the Nets. Madison Square Garden is planning major renovations.

Taken together, the venues will add at least 250 luxury boxes to the New York market, which has 426 boxes, according to Grinstead’s count. With its array of new luxury suites, New York is catching up with a decades-long trend toward offering deluxe entertainment areas that are as much about deal making and networking as they are about watching the game. Still, given the economic crisis, companies are certain to be taking a closer look at spending on amenities like luxury suites.

“I definitely think everybody’s taking more of a wait-and-see approach,” said Todd Parker, the vice president of Premier Partnerships, a sports marketing firm that deals in sponsorships and luxury suites. “Obviously, there’s more to unfold here.”
...

“Timing is a part of this,” he said. “The firms we’ve sold to haven’t had any major issues, and the people who have them realize they’ve got great value for the quality of what we’re offering here.”

Teams whose stadiums are further from completion face more uncertainty, Grinstead said. In particular, he said the Nets project faced competition from venues like Madison Square Garden. “That’s where the sales challenge is,” he said.

But Barry Baum, a Ratner spokesman, said about 30 percent of the 128 planned suites were leased. Once ground is broken on the arena later this year**, “we expect to have a flurry of interest,” Baum said.

Nets stuck with Jersey address?
Jersey Journal. Editorial

Remember when the New Jersey Nets of the NBA was expected to move out of the Meadowlands Sports Complex to a Frank Gehry-designed arena in Brooklyn?

It is quite possible the Nets will be staying with us a bit longer. The Wall Street crisis and legal problems are close to making a worst case scenario a reality for team owner Bruce Ratner.

Ratner purchased the franchise and used it and the promise of a modern indoor arena as leverage to get New York City and Empire State approvals to construct a billion-dollar-plus project, Atlantic Yards. The complex would include 16 skyscrapers, an 18,000-seat arena for the Nets, and thousands of apartments in Brooklyn.

Last week, Ratner said that the continuous legal battles with those opposed to the project have delayed the arena groundbreaking, once scheduled to open in 2006 and then delayed to 2010. Now the Nets say the arena will be ready in 2011.

At this rate, the Freedom Tower will be filled with tenants before the Nets bounce a ball in Brooklyn.

Four months ago, Goldman Sachs assured that all financing would be in place for a $950 million arena, the Star-Ledger reported. Last week, the financial giant would only issue a "no comment" when asked if the money is there. The Wall Street crisis has put a damper on available credit. Ratner is still hoping the federal government will approve $800 million in tax-exempt bonds backed by the New York City and the state.
...

Having already spent millions, Ratner will not give up his Brooklyn dream. Considering the expensive uphill climb he faces, the Nets owner would be wise to make a deal with the New Jersey Devils for the Nets to play in the new Prudential Center arena in Newark with the idea of keeping the franchise in New Jersey another decade, or longer. Any financing Ratner eventually obtains could go into that part of an already scaled-down version of Atlantic Yards that he cares about - skyscrapers and apartments.

"While the Appellate Division Second Department's decision to hear the case may delay the project for approximately six months let me be clear that the project will go forward," Mr. Ratner said in a statement.

Bloomberg Said to Seek Third-Term Bid

In an act that promises to upend New York City’s political world, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg plans to announce Thursday that he will seek a third term as mayor, according to four people who have been told of his intentions.

Mr. Bloomberg, whose second term ends in 2009, is barred by law from running for re-election. So he will propose revising the city’s 15-year-old term limits law, which restricts him and dozens of other elected leaders to two four-year terms, those people said.

In his appearance on Thursday, they said, Mr. Bloomberg, a former Wall Street trader and the founder of a billion-dollar financial data firm, will argue that the worldwide financial crisis — with its potentially severe impact on New York City — demands his steady hand and business experience...

Continue reading

The Council committee that must first approve such a bill [to overturn term limits] is run by Councilman Simcha Felder, a strong Bloomberg ally. Over the last seven years, the mayor has directed millions of dollars in city money to community groups supported by Mr. Felder, according to city records.

Bad Economy Could Lead to Naming Rights Changes
Sports Business Radio

With the economy in the tank, several sports venues could be impacted.
...

In Brooklyn, according to the NY Post, Nets Owner and Forest City Ratner CEO Bruce Ratner yesterday said that his plan to break ground on the $4B Atlantic Yards Project, including the Nets' $950M Barclays Center, this December "has been pushed back at least another six months.” As a result the team won't be able to move to Brooklyn until at least 2011. With the delay, the Nets' $400M naming-rights deal with Barclays is "up in the air now," because the deal "was contingent on Ratner's having his entire project financing set by the end of November."
...

Now that plan seems to be in serious jeopordy. You can bet that if the $400M naming rights deal from Barclays goes away, the Nets will have to rethink this entire project - and their ability to sign someone like [LeBron] James to a max contract.

Wall Street crisis puts Nets' future Brooklyn home in jeopardy
by Ian T. Shearn and George E. Jordan/The Star-Ledger

Four months ago, Goldman Sachs assured all financing would be in place for a $950 million professional basketball arena in Brooklyn by today.

Bruce Ratner, owner of the New Jersey Nets and developer of the ambitious, $4 billion Atlantic Yards project, said he was "inches away from completing the deal."

That was before prestigious investment firms started to fall and credit markets went into full-scale panic, triggering a financial crisis on Wall Street unseen since the Great Depression.

Tuesday, a spokesman for Goldman Sachs offered only a "no comment" when asked about the financing for the nearly $950 million arena, fueling persistent doubts about the viability of Ratner's plan, which has been systematically downscaled and delayed since it was first rolled out more than four years ago.

The latest setback came Monday, when Ratner said that ongoing legal disputes had again pushed back ground breaking for the arena, Originally slated to open in 2006, and most recently in 2010, it will now not be ready before 2011.

For his part, Ratner remains resolute.

"Atlantic Yards will be built and it will create thousands of needed jobs and affordable homes," Ratner said in a prepared statement. "This is all the more important as our city and country confront one of the most difficult economic downturns in history."

Atlantic Yards -- 16 skyscrapers, an 18,000-seat basketball arena for the Nets, and thousands of apartments at a site at the corner of Flatbush and Atlantic avenues -- has been delayed by a string of legal challenges and questions about financing.

That leaves the Nets playing at the aging Izod Center in the Meadowlands for at least the next three years, which will perpetuate competition with the Prudential Center hockey arena in Newark.

The latest delay may complicate the $400 million naming-rights deal with Barclays Bank, which is expected to help offset the cost of the arena, according to published reports. The deal with Barclays was contingent on Ratner's financing for the project to be in place by the end of November.

Neither Barclays nor the Nets responded to email requests for interviews.
...

Lawrence Swift, a partner at Troutman Sanders, a Manhattan law firm that specializes in sports facility financing and other large transactions, said the use of tax-exempt bonds could make or break Atlantic Yards arena.

The meltdown on Wall Street, he said, has prompted major banks to high fees that dramatically raise the cost of conventional loans. However, tax-exempt bonds backed by the city and state would be attractive to wealthy investors looking to exit the volatile stock market.

"It could go ahead, the financing could be there," Swift said. "You also have people buying into it for PR reasons to support the city or concept."

Ratner is also awaiting a critical Internal Revenue Service ruling on whether the arena in Atlantic Yards is eligible for $800 million in tax-exempt bonds to finance construction of the arena, according to Atlantic Yards officials.

(Emphasis added.)

...
Also up in the air now is the record $400 million naming-rights deal with Barclays Bank, first reported by The Post in January 2007, which is expected to help offset the cost of the arena.

That is now in question because the deal was contingent on Ratner's having his entire project financing set by the end of November, which is now impossible.

When asked if an extension would be negotiated, a Barclays spokesman skirted the question but said, "We look forward to breaking ground with our partners in Brooklyn."

When Ratner announced his plan for Atlantic Yards in 2003, he had hoped to move the Nets to Brooklyn by the 2006-07 season.

Full article.

Atlantic Yard Project Suffers a Setback

PETER KIEFER, Staff Reporter of the Sun | September 30, 2008

Forest City Ratner's $4 billion Atlantic Yards development project will be delayed by an additional six months or more in the wake of a ruling by a state Appellate Court.

The court rejected a motion put forth by the Empire State Development Corp. to dismiss the lawsuit filed by nine property owners in the footprint of the project challenging the use of eminent domain. The ruling has forced the developer, Bruce Ratner, to reverse a pledge that ground for the project would be broken by the end of the year.

"While the Appellate Division Second Department's decision to hear the case may delay the project for approximately six months let me be clear that the project will go forward," Mr. Ratner said in a statement. "Atlantic Yards will be built and it will create thousands of needed jobs and affordable homes. This is all the more important as our City and country confront one of the most difficult economic downturns in history. We are as committed as ever to the development of this project and will continue to work with the City, State and local leaders to ensure that it goes forward."

Plans for 16 skyscrapers, an 18,000-seat basketball arena for the Nets, and thousands of apartments at a site at the corner of Flatbush and Atlantic avenues has been affected by a string of legal challenges brought by residents and the ongoing credit crunch.

Opponents to the project have objected to both its size and the use of eminent domain by the state.

The legal director for the opposition group Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, Candace Carponter, said the ruling is further proof that the project may not go forward at all.

"Though Ratner claims that he'll 'break ground' for his Atlantic Yards proposal in December, he cannot do so unless New York State uses eminent domain to seize the owners' and tenants' properties and give them to him as planned. But the plan is now in doubt," Ms. Carponter said in a statement.

A spokesman for the ESDC, Warner Johnston, said: "We do not comment on pending litigation."

Marty Markowitz is bummed that Atlantic Yards litigation may go on until, say, 2030, but hopeful. Per one of many releases he sends out each and every day: "I am disappointed by the recent New York State Appellate Division denial of the motion to dismiss the eminent domain suit filed by opponents of Atlantic Yards...Though it’s certainly unfortunate that it now faces a delay...I remain optimistic that Atlantic Yards will be built and that it will indeed be a strong economic engine for Brooklyn and New York City far into the future."

Atlantic Yards Faces Another Delay
By Charles V. Bagli

The developer of the ambitious Atlantic Yards arena and residential complex in Brooklyn said Monday that the project could be delayed for another six months after a state appellate court failed to dismiss a court challenge brought by opponents of the $4 billion project.

Earlier this month, the developer Bruce C. Ratner vowed that he would break ground in December on the long delayed project, where he plans to build an office tower, 15 apartment buildings and a basketball arena for the Nets...

...The developer has fended off a number of lawsuits brought by critics of the project over the past two years. He and state officials had expected that the state Appellate Court would also dismiss the latest suit, which sought to block the state from using eminent domain to seize private property for Mr. Ratner’s project...

...Instead, the court denied a motion to dismiss the suit, opening the door for oral arguments in the case next spring.

In a statement, Mr. Ratner said the court ruling “may” delay the project for six months. “Atlantic Yards will be built and it will create thousands of needed jobs and affordable homes,” Mr. Ratner’s statement said. “This is all the more important as our city and country confront one of the most difficult downturns in history.”...

...Mr. Ratner, chief executive of Forest City Ratner companies, is also awaiting a ruling by the Internal Revenue Service on whether he can issue tax exempt bonds to pay for the $1 billion arena, which is the first [part of the] project to be built.

Barclays Bank, which had signed a $20 million a year sponsorship and naming rights deal for the arena, said yesterday that it was still behind the project. A clause in its contract with Forest City requires the developer to close on the property by the end of November.

“We look forward to being in Brooklyn with our partners at Forest City Ratner and the Nets,” said Peter Truell, a spokesman for Barclays.
(Emphais added.)

Barclays committed to Brooklyn arena
By Matthew Sollars. Crain's

Barclays Bank says it is committed to the planned basketball arena at the Atlantic Yards project despite a court setback which imperils a planned ground breaking.

A state Appellate Court panel Monday rejected a plea by the state's Empire State Development Corp. and Forest City Ratner to dismiss a lawsuit alleging the use of eminent domain violates the state constitution. A group of 9 property owners and tenants opposed to the project filed the state suit after a similar lawsuit arguing eminent domain violated the U.S. Constitution was rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court in June.

The developer now has until Oct. 15 to file a response to the appeal, which means the case will likely not be decided until early 2009. Bruce Ratner, the developer had said that he hoped to break ground on the arena as early as December. The decision puts that deadline in jeopardy.
...

Financing for the $950 million arena could also be in doubt. The U.S. Treasury Department is set to decide soon whether the project is eligible to use tax-exempt bonds. If those bonds can not be used, the arena's cost will rise substantially. The company has said it believes it can find financing without using tax-exempt bonds, although that statement came before the intensification of the financial crisis...
(Emphasis added)

Groundbreaking, 2008? Eminent domain case survives motion to dismiss; hearing no sooner than March

The chances for anything more than a faux Atlantic Yards groundbreaking in 2008 have now plummeted, after an attempt by the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) to short-circuit the pending state eminent domain case has been denied by an appellate court. That means an oral argument would occur no sooner than March, with a decision some months after that.

The decision denying the ESDC's motion to dismiss, apparently on procedural grounds, doesn’t give the plaintiffs the edge in a long-shot case similar to the one that already failed in federal court, which was seen as more hospitable to such a challenge. But it does undermine the unrealistic timetable regularly promoted by developer Forest City Ratner and complicates the arena naming rights deal with Barclays Capital.

FCR has pledged multiple times that a groundbreaking would take place in November or December, notwithstanding the likelihood that pending legal cases and the unavailability so far of tax-exempt bonds would jeopardize the project.

FCR could still hold a groundbreaking on land it already owns, but it can’t raise funds to build the arena until the lawsuits are cleared. The pledge of a 2008 groundbreaking likely was keyed to the requirement that the $400 million Barclays deal requires arena financing to be closed by November--seemingly an impossibility now.
...

The borough's top elected official last week said the softening econmoy is all the more reason why Forest city Ratner Companies' proposed Atlantic Yards project should get underway.

Borough President Marty Markowitz made his comments on the proposed $4 billion 22-acre arena/housing/comercial project at the Flatbush/Atlantic Avenues intersection following the collapse of the financial banking institution Lehman Brothers.

"The recent drop in the stock market and weakening of the American economiy underscores the importance of moving ahead with project like Atlantic Yards—which will not only create union jobs and affordable housing in Downtown Brookyn, but also represents the kind of investment magnet that Brooklyn and New York City need right now," said Markowitz.

It is critical that in the next few years, we plan for Brooklyn and New York City's future, and a catalyst for job creation and growth like Atlantic Yards can be the kind of economic engine that will power our borough through lean times," he added.

• Ratner literally has no plans to build Phase 2 were around 80% of the proposed "affordable" housing would be built.
  
  
• Ratner will not build his 650,000 square feet of office space without an anchor tenant, and finding an anchor tenant would be a miracle.
  
  
• Ratner's billion dollar white elephant arena would create very few new jobs and would be a net loss for the City of New York
  
  
• Well, the list is really too long to re-publish here, we've already explained how Atlantic Yards is too costly and too risky, how it is not strategic by any stretch of the imagination, and how the arena is a "frill at the edge." We've also explained how the whole blinkered effort to push Atlantic Yards forward is a charade.
  
  Clearly Beep Markowitz is an excellent mime.

..."You can have both [economic development] and do a project consistent with the community wishes and also provide jobs," said James. "It's not an either/or proposition."

James said she remains a supporter of the Unity Plan, which her office provided some funding to create. The plan calls for a smaller, mainly residential project over the Vanderbilt Yards without an arena.

James said there was no developer in place for the plan, but developers could be found
through a competitive request for proposals [RFP] process.

"Even before the economy went down, people from our community were having a very tough time," said Caldwell. "The CBA will play a beneficial role to helping our people get some of these positions stemming from the Atlantic Yards project," said Caldwell.

Caldwell said many people in the area did not even know about the Unity Plan, let alone be behind it.
"It [Unity Plan] will not create as many jobs and it was minus an arena. All they had was architects that put together models and had no money lined up," said Caldwell.

“All they had was architects that put together models and had no money lined up.” Sounds a bit like [Ratner's signature office tower] Building 1.

Build, baby build! AY is Marty's ANWR

According to Borough President Marty Markowitz, as reported by Steven Witt in this week's Courier-Life:

"The recent drop in the stock market and the weakening of the American economy underscores the importance of moving ahead with projects like Atlantic Yards."

No matter what is happening in the world around us, guys like Marty handily turn it into a reason to build Atlantic Yards...

Build, baby build!

And in the meantime, Markowitz will gladly accept more six-figure checks from Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner for his summer concert serie

Wall St. Woes Give Rise to Talk of 'Black September'
By Michael Stoler

As layoffs begin on Wall Street as well in the professional service industries, the real estate industry is bracing for a wave of office space to hit the market, followed by a precipitous fall in rental rates and a surge in vacancy. Even the most optimistic real estate executives are finally beginning to worry, with many dubbing this month "Black September."

"Due to the recent events, rents are down by at least 10% to 15% and trending downward," the president of Newmark Knight Frank, James Kuhn, said. "If a building in the Plaza District expected to rent for $150 per square foot, the price is down to perhaps $110. Certain markets are even worse, especially downtown."...
(Emphasis added)

Continue reading.

...In another indication of the problems facing the project, Forest City recently sent a letter signed by the project’s celebrity architect, Frank Gehry, to chief executives of many of the city’s biggest corporations, inviting them to become a tenant in the “centerpiece of the project,” Miss Brooklyn. It was originally scheduled to be completed in July 2009.

Brokers said that developers usually home in on companies actively looking for new headquarters, rather than cast such a wide net. Forest City’s approach was more akin to cold-calling to solicit interest, a possible sign, they said, that the developer was struggling to find tenants.

Mr. Ratner insisted that the Brooklyn office market remained healthy, but he conceded that “until we get a tenant, we won’t start Miss Brooklyn.”...
(Emphasis added)

...The chief operating officer for the New York metro region of Cushman & Wakefield, Joseph Harbert, said: "During these days of historic events for the country, it will take some time to sort out the state of the commercial office marketplace. I suspect it will make corporate decision to lease space more cautious and deliberative."...

...A partner of mine at Apollo Real Estate Advisors, William McCahill, said, "Just like the Capital Markets, the New York City office market will probably go through a period of lack of confidence. Bankruptcies and forced mergers of some of the household names in the financial market will not only cause significant available space; but, the thought of expansion will simply not exist. Ken Lewis of Bank of America announced that the Merrill merger would produce significant cost savings for the combined company, which will definitely be a result of lower occupancy costs. Unfortunately for the office market, all major financial companies will be looking to cut costs. This ripples through the system in less revenue for lawyers, accountants and consultants. "Belt tighting" will be a way of life...

...This past Monday, at The Money Summit event I coordinated and moderated, a group of 10 prominent commercial banks and insurance company senior lenders concurred that financing, if available, has returned to its basic of low leverage, higher loan-to-value of 50% to 60%. Few lenders or investors have any desire to provide financing for commercial office building in New York City...

Is AY a game of charades, as per DDDB? Maybe, but the game isn't over

Announcing Atlantic Yards: The $4 Billion Game of Charades, Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn has a good array of reasons to argue that Atlantic Yards "isn't gonna happen." I'd agree that it certainly won't happen in the way promised, but that doesn't mean that the project can't move forward in some way...

...Several questions arise:

• what is the project?
• what is the timeline?
• how much would the project cost?
• will the city commit to not providing additional subsidies?
• what are the factors regarding the building of affordable housing?
• has the project (and timetable) changed so much it merits another round of environmental review?

Even as lawsuits and rules regarding federal tax-exempt bonds remain unresolved, the backers of the project in state and city government should be prepared to answer those questions.

It's Time for all New Yorkers to Sacrifice, Unless You Happen to Own a Pro Sports Team

The headlines this week have been full of stories about the tough times facing New York, and how we're all going to have to tighten our belts, cut back, and suffer for the greater good. Unless, of course, your name happens to be Steinbrenner, Wilpon or Ratner.

The New York Times, New York City Wants Cuts by Agencies Across Board

With an eye on Wall Street’s turmoil and New York City’s fragile economy, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg ordered city agencies on Tuesday to cut spending by about $500 million this year and $1 billion next year.
...

The timing of the announcement suggests that Mr. Bloomberg may be seeking to soften the political fallout of a possible 7 percent property tax increase, which he disclosed on Monday. The spending cuts, aides said, showed that everyone, including government, will feel the pain from a slowing economy. [emphasis added]

NoLandGrab: Actually, not everyone, since the Bloomberg administration is still doing everything in its power to help the the Yankees, Mets and Nets secure tax-exempt financing for their new palaces, a scheme that will place an added burden on the same taxpayers already in the cross-hairs.

The New York Times, In Fiscal Crisis, Mayor Considers Raising Property Tax 7 Percent

Unless your property happens to be a stadium or arena, in which case, of course, the land beneath it would be conveniently tax-exempt.

As if to underscore the seriousness of the situation, Mr. Bloomberg said that while he sat next to Christine C. Quinn, the City Council speaker, for a full inning at the final game at Yankee Stadium on Sunday night, “The economy was the only thing we talked about.”

NoLandGrab: Who wants to bet that the Mayor and the Speaker never once said, "hey, what if we eliminated the tax exemption on the land right beneath our arses?" Wonder how they scored those great seats?

And in related news...

The New York Times, Transit Agency Requests Review of How Contract for Special Bus Fuel Was Awarded

The MTA is launching an investigation into "a highly unusual contract that has added millions of dollars to the cost of buying diesel fuel for city buses."

NoLandGrab: Like us, you might still be waiting for the investigation into the MTA's agreement to sell the Vanderbilt Yard to developer Forest City Ratner for less than half the amount of its own appraisal — and $50 million less than rival bidder Extell Development Company was willing to pay.

Yeah, Bruce Ratner and his government enablers continue the charade that all is well in Ratnerville—what with his planned "ground breaking" in December and all. But that's absurd, and impossible, unless they plan some nonsense ribbon cutting kabuki of shovels and fanfare signifying nothing meaningful about actually constructing their arena and skyscrapers.

C'mon. Get real.

Haven't any of them noticed we are in the biggest financial crisis since World War 2 or the Great Depression depending upon who you ask? Didn't they just watch Wall Street's meltdown? Didn't they witness an extremely skeptical State Court judicial panel on September 17th? Haven't they seen the credit market? Are they not privy to the real estate crash? Are they unaware of the office vacancy rate in NYC? Have they not heard the "NO" from government officials in response to their continual lobbying to suck more money from the taxpayer? Have they not taken note of escalating construction costs? Did they not notice that the Barclays Center Arena is the most expensive ever proposed at $950 million and is sure to rise in cost? Don't they remember saying that the project was supposed to provide "affordable" housing? Have their calendars malfunctioned to such an extent that they didn't notice that the arena that was supposed to open in 2006, at the end of 2008 still languishes with its required land still in the hands of other owners?

Surely someone with political power has noticed that Ratner no longer even shows Phase 2 of the project in his model—that's the phase that purportedly was going to bring the bulk of the "affordable" housing and the "privately-owned, publicly-accessible open space." Right?

We've gotta believe that nobody envisioned a white elephant arena surrounded by parking lots. Nobody could have ever predicted such a thing.

People have heard that the City Comptroller and mayoral candidate Bill Thompson "doesn't even know what that project is any longer." He said that, didn't he?

Someone is taking note, we're confident, that Ratner wants federally tax-exempt bonds for his privately owned arena, which would be a net loss for New York City, while the federal government is on the verge of spending something like $700 billion in taxpayer money to bailout Ratner's fellow fat cats. Tax exemptions for no return, but rather a loss? Are you kidding?

Did someone, maybe, notice that luxury suites may not be so attractive these days?

Somewhere, someone was reading the Times and read that Barclays Bank has an out from its $400 million naming rights deal with Ratner come December. Anyone?

It can't just be the folks in Washington who have heard that Congressman Kucinich is taking a very close look at tax-exemption shenanigans on the part of the Yankees and Nets. Right?

Because it sure seems like the three people in government with the most power to rein in Atlantic Yards have "the end of Atlantic Yards" just on the tip of their tongue. They just haven't quite put two and two together yet.

Those three would be:

Governor Paterson did say that when these projects become too costly then maybe government needs to "change its mind." We noticed that, and concluded that Atlantic Yards is indeed too costly and too risky.

Last week New Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) CEO/President Marisa Lago said, "the need for strategic economic development is actually keenest in a down economy." We noticed that as well, and concluded that there is nothing strategic at all about Atlantic Yards.

Mayor Bloomberg told Tom Brokaw, "We may have to stretch out some construction projects, we may have to ask people to do more with less.  We may not be able to have the frills at the edge." We noticed that too, and concluded that "frills at the edge" would include a publicly subsidized, privately-owned $950 million-and-rising arena (the most expensive ever proposed), which would pay no property taxes, create very few new jobs and be a net loss for New York City all while providing a tidy profit for developer Bruce Ratner.

Now—who is going to connect all the dots?

Who is going to call Ratner's Folly what it is: a game of pretend in desperate need of some realism by our political leaders.

The Hill

“We need to put the taxpayers first, ahead of bondholders, shareholders, executives,” said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Joint Economic Committee. “You need transparency. You need oversight to make sure this huge amount of money is spent without favoritism, in a fair way, and that people see what's going on as it happens.”