Thursday, February 3, 2011

Here comes the Bloomberg steamroller

From the Wall Street Journal:

Seeking to kick-start a massive Queens real-estate development project conceived in the boom years, the Bloomberg administration is moving to seize a portion of the site from private property owners.

Next week, the city plans to initiate the eminent-domain process on holdout owners who own property in the first 20-acre phase of the 62-acre project. The city also is planning to solicit bids from developers in the spring, according to city officials.

Known as Willets Point, the development site by Citi Field is slated to ultimately contain more than eight million square feet, with more than 5,000 apartments, a hotel and more than 1.7 million square feet of retail space.

The site currently is filled with junkyards and auto-repair shops, along with some larger industrial properties. The City Council in 2008 approved the use of eminent domain to acquire parcels from holdouts.

The property owners are expected to litigate to block the city action, although New York state laws give the government broad powers to use eminent domain. Similar recent development projects, like the new basketball arena being built at Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn, have survived court challenges.

Seth Pinsky, president of the city's Economic Development Corp., said in an interview Wednesday that the city has purchase agreements with property owners for 88% of the first phase of the site.

There are nine holdouts whose land the city would seek to acquire, and others whose land would be acquired in later phases.

"We just can't wait any longer and need to know that if we can't reach those agreements, that we can still move forward," he said.

Opponents of the project have argued that the city isn't permitted to construct entrance ramps to the Van Wyck Expressway nearby that are called for as part of the project. Richard Lipsky, a lobbyist who represents business owners at the site, says that the eminent domain action was "an absolute disgrace."

"The city is going ahead with a project that no one knows what it will cost, with a developer that no one knows who it will be, and with ramps that no one knows whether they can be built," Mr. Lipsky says.

Mr. Pinsky said the city's position is that it isn't required to build the ramps—which would mitigate traffic congestion on the local streets—until later phases of the project.

The action comes as the city administration is making a bet that the real-estate development industry—in hibernation since 2008—has warmed enough that landlords are willing to take risks on giant construction projects. In April, city officials said, they plan to solicit bids from a set of developers who have previously showed interested in the site, including Related Cos., Muss Development and Sterling Equities.


Sterling Equities?

26 comments:

FlooshingRezident said...

Great - we'll end up with an even larger low-rent Chinatown.

Why not try to fix downtown Flooshing before building more crap?

Oh, now I remember, that's not easy!

NYC has the laziest, most corrupt politicians in the country!

Anonymous said...

It's not like there'll be massive traffic jams, I de-"Claire"!!!

Anonymous said...

I would just like to know, if we do not have enough money to keep teachers and essential services, why do we now have money for this?

FlooshingRezident is right it is just going to become another part of a congested and dirty Flushing where what is left of the english speaking people will not be able to read any of the signs.

Anonymous said...

BRING IN THE FEDS!!!

Babs said...

that land is perhaps the most contaminated in the country -

LibertyBoyNYC said...

Yes, THAT Sterling Equities, the one recently implicated in the Madoff scheme.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know what this means for property value in Bayside/Whitestone area? Will it drive prices up or down? I don't know if I should sell my place? Do I hold out or sell now?

Anonymous said...

CB 7 approved the project. Why?

GreenQueens said...

Has anyone even considered the toxicity of Willets Point?

It's been a dumping ground since the Gatsby days, and now they want to put up a school and condos?

Claire D. Cow said...

It's been a dumping ground since the Gatsby days, and now they want to put up a school and condos?
------------------------------------------------------

Why not, wiseass? You'll be paying for the cleanup anyhow. Suck it up!!! My bills aren't going to be paid on their own, right? Have you seen the rising prices of adult Depends? You people are such suckers and most of you won't even notice. So there!

Anonymous said...

CB 7 approved the project. Why?

Because Kelty and Apelian were "targets" of Shulman's lobbying efforts. Please try to keep up!

True Dat said...

And there's more where this came from:

Flushing Willets Point Corona LDC

41-61 Kissena Blvd Suite B
Flushing, NY 11354


Claire Shulman
Flushing Willets Point Corona LDC
41-61 Kissena Blvd Suite B
Flushing, NY 11354
(718) 670-1781
Nicholas Roberts
Anne Marie Boranian
Claire Shulman
01/01/2009
12/31/2009





Target: Robert Lieber, Felix Ciampa, Robert Goldrich, Eliot Sander, Jeff Kay, Gary Ackerman, Eugene Kelty, Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez
Subject: Local Law


Compensation Reimbursement
false P1 $39,083.00 $0.00
P2
$39,083.00
$0.00
P3
$39,083.00
$0.00
P4
$3,921.00
$0.00
P5
$1,953.00
$0.00
P6
$1,953.00
$0.00
Total

$125,076.00
$0.00




Flushing Willets Point Corona LDC

41-61 Kissena Blvd Suite B
Flushing, NY 11354


Claire Shulman
Flushing Willets Point Corona Local Development Corporation
41-61 Kissena Boulevard
Flushing, NY 11354
(718) 670-1781
Anne Marie Boranian
Claire Shulman
Nicholas Roberts
Gertrude La Forgia
01/01/2008
12/31/2008





Target: NYC Executive and Legislative, NYC Council, Bob Lieber, Rob Goldrich, Madelyn Wills, Tom McKnight, Felix Ciampa, Seth Pinsky, Warren Kroeppel, Ralph Tragale, Betsy Gotbaum, John Liu, Hiram Monserrate, Helen Marshall, Joe Crowley, Gary Ackerman, Helena Williams, Gene Kelty, Chuck Apelian, Daniel Garodnick, Quinn Christine, Melinda Katz, Anthony Weiner, John Young, David Weprin, Anthony Como, Leroy Comrie, Tom White
Subject: Local Law


Compensation Reimbursement
false P1 $40,167.00 $0.00
P2
$40,167.00
$0.00
P3
$40,167.00
$0.00
P4
$38,333.00
$0.00
P5
$38,333.00
$0.00
P6
$38,333.00
$0.00
Total

$235,500.00
$0.00

Anonymous said...

We live in a world where the "Government" can not do its job maintaining roads, sewers and everything else it charges taxes for. Then, they come in and say the property needs to be taken away from the people that built lives there, supported families, and paid taxes. Why? For an upgrade of course. To develop it into a thriving bustling microcosm. "To create Jobs, and tax revenue" here is a little secret, if you want to create jobs, bring back all the Manufacturing lost.

Construction jobs are great but what happens when the construction ends? A few stores, a couple of Mom and Pop shops, selling products made in China and God knows where. All the while the Rich get Richer, and the local resident gets?

THIS IS AMERICA, AND IN AMERICA LAND OWNERSHIP IS WHAT WE ARE ABOUT. MANHATTAN WAS WHAT? PURCHASED. FOR HOW MUCH? SOME BEADS? AND NOW WE ARE ALLOWING OUR GOVERNMENT TO DO TO US WHAT WAS DONE TO THE INDIGINOUS PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTRY?

OWNERSHIP!!!

This goes on over and over, "The land is Blighted" we need eminent domain in order to revitalize it, then it sits, then it is given to a developer that will "revitilize" it for the "good of the community" (NEVER KNEW "THE COMMUNITY" WAS THEIR BANK ACCOUNTS)

UNLESS THEIR IS AN ABSOLUTE NECESSITY TO TAKE THE LAND, UNLESS IT IS TO BE USED BY OUR GOVERNMENT FOR THE PURPOSE OF IMPORTANT PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS, EMINENT DOMAIN SHOULD NOT BE USED, AND EVEN THEN THE LANDOWNER NEEDS TO BE PROPERLY COMPESATED PLUS. AFTER ALL THEY ARE BEING FORCED TO SELL. IF THE GOVERNMENT LATER DECIDES TO CAN THE PROJECT, THEY MUST DISPERSE THE PROFIT MADE ON THE FINAL PROJECT, TO THE OWNERS IT WAS TAKEN AWAY FROM.

SHAME ON OUR GOVERNMENT.

ALFREDO

Anonymous said...

Willets Point is an eyesore, BULLDOZE IT!!!!!

Anonymous said...

They should ED his mansion and also Graci Mansion, too.

Anonymous said...

Willets Point is an eyesore, BULLDOZE IT!!!!!

Where do you live? I'm sure we could bulldoze that hovel as well??!??!?

Anonymous said...

In response to
Willets Point is an eyesore, BULLDOZE IT!!!!!

Where do you live? I'm sure we could bulldoze that hovel as well??!??!?

You don't agree? would you want to live near Willets Point? relocate those junkyards & scrap metal businesses to Jamaica or the Bronx, its been a dump for years & after that you can nuke Flushing too!!!

Queens Crapper said...

The point is that no one has to live near it - it's isolated, as heavy manufacturing areas are supposed to be.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
Willets Point is an eyesore, BULLDOZE IT!!!!!

Where do you live? I'm sure we could bulldoze that hovel as well??!??!?

ASSHOLE how did it get that way ,what did the people at willets point with there tax money . leave it alone put the streets in JACKASS

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
Willets Point is an eyesore, BULLDOZE IT!!!!!

Where do you live? I'm sure we could bulldoze that hovel as well??!??!?

Thursday, February 03, 2011

ok mr edc ,jerk off

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
Willets Point is an eyesore, BULLDOZE IT!!!!!


hey biggie your back !!!!! wow

Helen said...

Why can't these bureaucrats leave Willets Point alone? That land can't support a building "boom". It's swampland and those new buildings will sink.

And why do they think they have the right to push people out the way they do???

The non-elected EPA and DEP are constantly clamping restrictions down on the populace yet they'll probably give this stupid idea an approval.

Anonymous said...

Maybe "granny" Shulman won't live to see her "dream" built.

She's looking like she belongs in a junk yard these days.

Anonymous said...

No Babs...you're wrong as usual.

The Gowanis Canal has already been declared to be the most contaminated site in the USA.

Listen to the radio instead of the voices in your "mind".

Anonymous said...

You're dreaming fella!

Bayside/Whitestone property values won't be downgraded in the slightest.

Its residents will just whiz by all the crap on the LIRR!

FYI:

According to MTA findings...the LIRR Main Street station has seen an increase of 50% in ridership over the past 5 years.

It appears, therefore, that downtown Floo-shing's better class of coolies are opting for not taking the bustling "international express"...the dangerously overcrowded #7 line (especially during rush hours)!

Anonymous said...

Fuggedaboutit!!! Willets Point-Main Street-Flushing is a dump, nuke it & start anew!!!