On Tuesday, November 18, Empire State Development will be hosting the first of four public workshops regarding a new plan for unbuilt parts of the Atlantic Yards project over the rail yards along Atlantic Avenue and at the block known as Site 5 bordered by Flatbush Avenue, Atlantic Avenue, Fourth Avenue and Pacific Street across from the Barclays Center arena.

Date: Tuesday, November 18
Time: 6-8PM
Location: Brooklyn Basketball Training Center, 140 Flatbush Avenue (across from Barclays Center)

BrooklynSpeaks urges community members and elected officials to attend. Because Atlantic Yards is a State-sponsored project under the UDC Act, no review of the new plan by Community Boards, the Borough President, the City Planning Commission or the City Council is required. The announced four meetings represent what may be your only opportunity for input into what will likely be more than a decade of additional development at the Atlantic Yards site. Register for the meeting here.

The November 18 meeting is expected to address density, affordability and open space. Here is what Empire State Development and the new development team need to hear. [Download a PDF of this information.]

Affordable housing

The $12 million offered by the development team in lieu of agreed-upon damages for failure to meet the May 2025 affordable housing deadline isn’t enough to make up for 877 delayed affordable apartments. The project’s obligation is to pay $2,000 per month for each delayed apartment—likely amounting to more than $160 million by the time new housing would be ready. The State must ensure the damages are collected and paid to the City Housing Trust Fund as agreed, so they can help accelerate completion of more than 800 100% affordable apartments on City-owned land approved under the AAMUP rezoning.

Atlantic Yards affordable housing produced so far has not matched affordability levels committed in the 2005 Affordable Housing MOU.

The priority is for the developer to provide the missing 1,031 moderate, low- and very low-income apartments from the existing approved project density. Thirty-five percent of additional housing from any change in density must be offered to tenants earning an average of 60% of AMI with at least 10% of the units offered at 40% of AMI or below.   These deeply and permanently affordable units must be in addition to other “workforce” housing anticipated to be part of a new plan. The additional affordable housing must be completed in proportion to market rate and workforce housing, not pushed to the end of the plan.

Residents of Brooklyn community districts 2, 3, 6 and 8 should receive preference in lotteries for future affordable housing at the site, including residents displaced from those districts since Atlantic Yards’ approval in 2006.

Changes to approved density

A tower resulting from a density transfer to Site 5 must include a setback along Pacific Street to harmonize with the context of existing low-scale buildings across the street. No loading dock for the building should be located on Pacific Street.

In the event of a density transfer to Site 5, as compensation for retaining the existing “temporary” public plaza, the arena owners must fund a special enforcement district to manage illegal parking and idling, as well as regulations on construction-related activity.

Open space and public space

The promised Urban Room was never built, and damages for non-performance were not collected. A requirement for an interior public gathering place must remain in the new plan. The space must be managed by an appropriate non-profit organization or public agency.

Open space must be designed with meaningful input from the community and its elected representatives.

Completed open space must be managed by the NYC Parks Department, funded by owners of buildings on the site.

Accountability

Local elected representatives must be meaningfully represented during negotiation and execution of the new plan.

The new plan must be independently reviewed to confirm financial feasibility, with results shared with elected officials.

Enforcement of developer commitments for the next phase of the project must be agreed in advance of environmental review, and must not depend solely on the discretion of ESD.