Now that the Barclays Center over at the Atlantic Yards is getting closer to its debut Jay Z concert, developer Bruce Ratner is getting serious about the venue's food. Though he went with Atlanta-based Coke to be the official soda (over hometown sugar water seller Pepsi) he says they want Brooklyn food vendors to feed the hoped for teeming masses. Finally, some of those Brooklyn-friendly jobs the project promised? more ›

Intern labor makes the word go round, and though you may not have to pay them, bones (college credit, coffee mugs, a Koosh ball that may or may not have been tossed by Rosie O'Donnell in 1998) must be thrown their way. However, according to a lawsuit filed by six "demolition interns" against Forest City Ratner, the developer promised them jobs and union cards for their participation in a 15-week "apprenticeship course" on their Atlantic Yards project, but they ended up with nothing. "What they did was wrong and misleading," one of the apprentices tells the Brooklyn Paper. Beware of an internship that's shorter than a semester! more ›

Earlier this week, it was reported that the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be skipping town to Jersey for the time being. But Brooklyn Paper reports today that the circus will soon have a new home in Brooklyn—at the Barclays Center. One of the productions of the “Greatest Show on Earth” will take up residency at the future home of the Nets in March 2013, about six months after the arena is slated to open. more ›

The Observer accompanied architect Frank Gehry on a visit to Beekman Tower, the luxury residential skyscraper at 8 Beekman Street. Apparently Gehry told developer Bruce Ratner to make the building shorter than the Trump World Tower, so they wouldn't have to deal with Donald Trump (Beekman Tower ended up being taller). And Gehry added that after he turned down a Trump project, they were once at the same function, "I tried to shake his hand and he said, 'I don't talk to people like you.' So he doesn't talk to me... I don't care... I don't like his hairdo anyway." Trump told the Observer, "Maybe I just don't find him interesting. It doesn't mean I don't like him." more ›

Opponents of the Atlantic Yards have won their first major court victory against the state agency that oversees construction—but the ruling will likely have zero impact on actually delaying the project. A state judge ruled yesterday that the Empire State Development Corporation "purposefully withheld information on the project’s timetable to avoid having to reexamine the project’s negative impacts," according to a copy of the decision obtained by Brooklyn Paper. Specifically, the ESDC only analyzed developer Bruce Ratner's discarded 10-year construction plan as opposed to the more realistic 25-year plan because "a true analysis would reveal that the project will create the blighted conditions that the state said Ratner’s project would remedy," according to opponents. more ›

Possibly due to quizzical looks over yet another all-expenses-paid trip, or possibly because the city Conflicts of Interest Board just said no, Brooklyn BP Marty Markowitz will not be joining Bruce Ratner on a trip to China to lure investors to the Atlantic Yards project through the EB-5 visa program. A spokesman told the Post that Markowitz "supports the group’s mission, wishes it great success and is confident the project will excite even more investors as it moves forward. Markowitz is apparently so bummed out about it that he couldn't even turn the situation into one of his signature puns. Yesterday's zinger will just have to hold us over that much longer. more ›

Teenagers: We can all agree they ruin everything, especially public places, but is there anything we can do to stop them? Not really, unless you're a powerful developer like Bruce Ratner and the politicians in your pocket give you private property through eminent domain. Last week Forest City Ratner released some renderings showing how they're turning some of the land grabbed in downtown Brooklyn into a public plaza. And when it opens in 201???, everybody's welcome to enjoy the plaza's "environmentally conscious landscaping" and "intimate seating areas"—everyone, that is, except teenagers congregating in groups of four or more. more ›

As long as the city Conflicts of Interest Board gives him the go-ahead, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz will be accompanying Bruce Ratner to China to lure Atlantic Yards investors with the EB-5 visa program, which supplies investors with Green Cards if they invest $500,000 to $1 million in American projects. The all-expenses-paid trip would be funded by the New York City Regional Center LLC, and if there are no conflicts of interest, it will be the latest in the BPs free trips, including jaunts to Turkey and the Netherlands. But look at the fancy new renderings of the buildings they'll fund! more ›

The Post's rantin' Steve Cuozzo is in rare form today with his takedown of the new plaza planned for the Barclays Center/Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn. Cuozzo calls the design "singularly malevolent in its ugliness," and "more conducive to hosting a Crips-Bloods scrimmage than the intended upscaling of the neighborhood." The best part? When "He Who Yells At Cloud" lays the blame for this "travesty" at the feet of the project's biggest opponent. more ›

Used to boost investment in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the EB-5 visa has been called an "interesting and clever way to provide financing." The program offers permanent residency to foreigners investing between $500,000 and $1 million in American businesses and projects, and now that the last holdout is gone, Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner is looking to use it to his advantage. more ›

Fine, the NBA uses the weighted draft lottery system to ensure that teams don't purposely lose toward the end of the season to ensure a higher draft pick. So the Nets, with a 12-70 record, had a 25% chance of getting the number one pick and a 21.5% chance of getting the number two pick...and ended up with the number three pick (they had a 17.73% chance for that). New owner Mikhail Prokhorov shrugged it off, saying, "I’m sure we’re going to get a great player." The Washington Wizards got the number one pick, sending D.C. sports press and fans into a frenzy. more ›

The NBA's Board of Governors has approved Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov's purchase of the Brooklyn-bound NJ Nets. He becomes the first non-North American NBA owner, with 80 percent of the team and 45 percent of the Barclay Center under his control. In a statement released today, he oozed optimism about the future of last season's worst team in basketball: “For those who are already fans of the Nets and the NBA, I intend to give you plenty to cheer about.” more ›

Bruce Ratner must have exhaled a sigh of relief when outspoken nemesis Daniel Goldstein finally agreed to vacate the last apartment in the footprint of his multi-billion dollar Atlantic Yards site last month, giving way for the humongous project to begin construction. But just because no one is physically in his way anymore doesn't mean Ratner doesn't have to contend with more ethereal concerns! more ›

Longtime Bruce Ratner nemesis Daniel Goldstein agreed to a $3 million settlement to vacate his apartment in the Atlantic Yards footprint last week, but that doesn't mean either side wants the bad-mouthing good times to stop! more ›

Despite accepting $3 million in exchange for moving out of the Atlantic Yards, longtime Bruce Ratner enemy and last Atlantic Yards holdout Daniel Goldstein insists he is not giving up the fight. "I've not been silenced, and I am not leaving DDDB as it transitions into a new phase of fighting Atlantic Yards," he said in a press release sent out this morning. He claims that at yesterday's hearing with the Empire State Development Corporation, he had no idea he would be offered a settlement, and did not have a press statement ready. However, "Forest City Ratner saw it as a big press event and sent out a press release immediately," which Goldstein says led to biased reporting. more ›

The Atlantic Yards project is really, really underway after years of controversy and setbacks, and yesterday brought another reminder of that reality when seven of the final holdout families still living in Pacific St. apartments signed an agreement with developer Bruce Ratner to leave by May 7. Which of course leaves just one final holdout: Daniel Goldstein. Update: Now Goldstein is moving, after getting $3 million from Ratner. [More details below] more ›

Freddy's Bar & Backroom, the beloved Prospect Heights dive that became an unofficial headquarters for the anti-Atlantic Yards protests, is slated for the wrecking ball. Previously, staffers and customers have handcuffed themselves to the bar to protest the state's use of eminent domain to seize the property, but they aren't planning any such direct action demonstration to block the demolition. Instead, the owner is relocating to Park Slope. From a press release sent out by Freddy's: more ›

Forget being cast out of Egypt; this year Jews all over Brooklyn can sympathize with the families being evicted from the Atlantic Yards and have a topical Seder with this Atlantic Yards themed haggadah! more ›

Here are Andrew Hinderaker's photos from yesterday's demonstration against the groundbreaking ceremony for developer Bruce Ratner's Nets arena in Brooklyn (which should really be called Mikhail D. Prokhorov's Nyets arena, since the Russian oligarch now owns an 80 percent share of the team and a 45 percent stake in the arena). We also threw in a photo of Beyonce and Jay-Z, a champion of the project who's already committed to leasing a $540,000 luxury suite for a year in the arena, the Post reports). more ›

It's really happening: After dogged protest and a series of seemingly intractable lawsuits, developer Bruce Ratner is breaking ground right now on a new arena for the Nets, to be called Barclays Center. And the irate protests are continuing even as the ceremony—attended by Governor Paterson and Mayor Bloomberg—takes place right now. In his speech, Borough President Marty Markowitz acknowledged the raucous demonstrators outside the press conference, but played it for laughs, saying, "Sorry about the noise outside. Obviously disgruntled Knicks fans." Ha ha, or people who are being forced out of their homes! We've heard over the police scanner that the NYPD is now calling for a "Level 3 Mobilization" (sounds serious!) to deal with the protesters. more ›