Crooked politician. Hipster garbage. Scumbag. Sellout. These were just some of the many wonderful names you could have been called if you attended last week’s hearing on the Atlantic Yards development project in Downtown Brooklyn. The scope and size of Bruce Ratner’s vision, which would give the NBA’s New Jersey Nets a new home and redefine the Brooklyn skyline through new high-rise office and residential space, has evoked strong emotions from supporters and detractors, both of whom recently had their say in a crowded auditorium at CUNY’s City Tech on Jay Street.
Both sides held signs, and everybody cheered or booed each speaker like it was a debate for class president. Members of city trade unions, which overwhelmingly support the project, did their best to drown out anyone opposing the project with loud hoots and hollers. Opponents of the plan went a different route, waiting until the room got quiet to launch more personal insults at elected officials.
Inside the hearing, the room was decidedly pro-development, though outside, those on line waiting to get in made up an oppositional force large enough to make the crowd an even split. There were some interesting moments inside the auditorium. Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, the project’s number one booster, declared that he felt the development might need to be downsized, a stunning about face from his previous position. A senior citizen was ushered from the room after she brazenly vented her anger at project supporter, State Senator Martin Golden. And both sides had fun pointing out to the overwhelmed moderator that disfavored speakers were going over the allotted three minutes of speaking time given to them.
But the most notable moment of the hearing took place outside, several blocks away from City Tech, in front of the Brooklyn Marriot. There was Bertha Lewis, executive director of the activist group ACORN, getting several hundred of her red-shirted followers in order. ACORN is a big supporter of the Atlantic Yards project, largely due to the more than 2,200 proposed units of affordable housing it will create. Lewis had quite a surprise for her troops. In just a few minutes, they would be getting a pep talk from their general, Ratner himself.
Ratner did not attend the hearing, more than likely fearing that the focus would change from a lively discussion of the project to a contest to see who could hurl the most expletives at him before their three-minute bell rang. But here he was, the man himself, running across Jay Street with a huge smile on his face, eager to meet his most committed supporters.
“Put the shirt on!” cheered one ACORN member, urging the developer to join them in wearing one of ACORN’s signature red shirts. Ratner obliged, and the crowd went wild. Obviously worried about spending too much time outside where he might be seen by the project’s critics and suddenly become a public spectacle, Ratner kept his comments brief. “We have a great mission to do,” said Ratner. “You’ve got wonderful leaders. I can’t thank you enough. It’s a good cause, and we are going to win.”
The crowd was now frenzied, much like fans at a ballgame. And as the enthusiastic group began their march to the hearing, Ratner took a few minutes to personally shake the hands of many ACORN members. High-fives and back slaps were in abundance, and Ratner was thrilled to see it. And then, just as quickly as he came, he was gone. While ACORN walked to the meeting, chanting, “the people, united, will never be defeated,” Ratner quietly headed back to his office in the adjacent Metrotech Center, which he also developed. The raucous nature of the hearing, which drew over 1,000 Brooklynites, was not something he wanted to be a part of.
The craziness raged on into the night, so much so that after allowing the hearing to run an extra three hours, the State scheduled an additional hearing for September 12th where those who did not have a chance to speak will be able to do so. That hearing is likely to also be a madhouse and, like the one before it, Ratner will probably not attend.
But if you want to tell him what you think of the project on that day, you might want to look around and find the ACORN march. Though hostile territory is clearly off-limits, Ratner has no problem rallying his own forces to the cause, happy to be the leader of the pep rally. So if you’re a union worker looking to thank him for a job or a neighborhood resident angry you’ll soon be losing your home, walk a few blocks away from City Tech towards the Marriot on September 12th and let the man know what you’re thinking. He’ll be the happy guy in the red shirt.
