Thursday Links
Brighton Beach. Photo by braesikalla. Spitzer Is Said to Agree to a Raise for Legislators [NY Times] Bush and Congress Nearing a Deal on Stimulus [NY Times] Bay Ridge Pastor Wants to Tear Down Church [NY Daily News] Heady Real Estate Days Are Behind Us [NY Sun] Downtown Bklyn Becomes Residential [NY Sun] Lopez vs….
Brighton Beach. Photo by braesikalla.
Spitzer Is Said to Agree to a Raise for Legislators [NY Times]
Bush and Congress Nearing a Deal on Stimulus [NY Times]
Bay Ridge Pastor Wants to Tear Down Church [NY Daily News]
Heady Real Estate Days Are Behind Us [NY Sun]
Downtown Bklyn Becomes Residential [NY Sun]
Lopez vs. Pfizer Battle Continues [NY Observer]
Stopping Traffic on Bedford Ave. [Metro]
Carlton Ave. Bridge Closes [AY Report]
FOR THE TRAFFIC PILE UP ISSUE, check out
http://www.nolandgrab.org/archives/2008/01/carlton_ave_bri.html
There’s a link to the flickr slideshow and comparison shots of traffic Tuesday before the closing and then Wednesday after the closing. Shots were taken same time of day to serve as good comparisons.
I noticed a trafic increase on Fulton and Lafayette. I think the traffic that usually gets to the BQE Eastbound via Carlton is somehow taking Vanderbilt to Fulton and then just taking Fulton down to Flatbush to Tillary.
That is one way to bypass much of Flatbush…BUT, they could just take Vanderbilt further north and get over to the on ramp to the BQE.
Saw some dumb driving and red light running this AM due to the increase in traffic.
4:41,
You’re probably partially correct. But communities HAVE been successful in the past.
Sure, many (all?) of these deals seem to be backroom faits accomplis by the time the public gets notification, BUT these projects, as much as the powerbrokers seem all onboard, do not always succeed.
There are many factors that can derail huge projects. This one, the idea that is Atlantic “Yards”, is one of the biggest ones in decades: 22 acres…majority privately owned property and City streets/sidewalks. The MTA controlled area is less than half or the proposed footprint.
And…FCR does not own or control all of the necessary private property as yet.
It remains to be seen what happens.
BUT, no matter what, not focusing on the project in general as a done deal (yes or no), many people are already upset at the handling of the little work that has thus far happened:
*The Carlton Bridge closing is major and should, at the least, have a pedestrian workaround just like so many other construction sites.
**The Ward’s Bakery parapet collapse onto the sidewalk, street and so many parked cars was unbelievable! Thank God no one was hurt or killed. BTW, there was no scaffolding around the building at that time…had just been removed…duh…
***FCR has tried to create “blight” by damaging buildings, closing up others, letting areas degrade…or sees “blight” where it does not exist on property that it does not yet control.
****The City has let public property appear blighted by discontinuing BASIC maintenance, trash pick up and weed removal (along Pacific Street INCLUDING the block that is not going to be touched…i.e. destroyed).
The list goes on…
When will you people get it? In New York the big deals are “done” before the public even hears about them.Did you ever really think that you had a chance to stop it? If you were to stage a sit in ,they would just pour concrete over you and build on top of you. They don’t care about you.Got it?
Look. That area over the “yards†(no tracks underneath really, just an old parking lot that used to have MTA buses parked at night…and recently ripped up) is not going to get built for YEARS. The big-deal “platform†is going to be a street level parking lot for AGES. For this they need to close the bridge?! Ridiculous…
Asinine lack of city planning.
WONDERFUL…now pedestrians will be very much inconvenienced and double their walk time getting from PS and PH to FG. A 20-minute walk from Lafayette Avenue to 7th Ave will now be 40 minutes.
There should be a pedestrian bridge during this project up to and then after any real construction that might preclude it. There are so many kinds of work arounds they could do. If it were Manhattan, it would be done, hello.
Now, we have a huge stretch without any cut through between neighborhoods. If you are not a pedestrian and drive a vehicle or ride a bike, you might be less inconvenienced because a detour might be quicker on wheels as opposed to on foot…but there will be other issues such as traffic pile ups. Even my driving friends are complaining.
But pedestrians are ones who are being most screwed…
And this when Ratfink doesn’t even own or control much of the proposed land. Why are they beginning this project when it is 1) NOT a done deal and 2) right at the moment when the economy and real estate could slide into a free fall and a recession of 10 years? I guess all hundreds of millions of our tax dollars Forest Chitty Ratfink is being gifted will outweigh any losses they might experience. Heck. They are also getting $400M from the Barclays naming of a proposed arena they will pay $1 to rent from the City for 99 years. They won’t own it… or the liability…we’ll pay for it most probably, pay when it needs major capital improvements, etc., etc., etc. but FCR gets $400M. That money, if anything, should be coming to the City…to the taxpayers who will will bear the burden.