Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
"Atlantic Yards"

1,100 Space Parking Lot at Issue in Latest Atlantic Yards Fight

Image:

The latest round of the knock-down drag-out fight over the Atlantic Yards project is underway, and it's all about parking. At issue is a potential 1,100-space surface parking lot that would be located between Pacific and Dean Streets, just west of Vanderbilt Avenue. That lot has been portrayed as temporary, "interim" parking by the Empire State Development Corporation and project developer Forest City Ratner, but could sit there generating traffic for up to 25 years. Last week several groups filed a motion to halt construction until the environmental impacts of the project are studied more fully.

The basic question is whether the environmental review for Atlantic Yards needs reworking in light of the fact that development could take up to 25 years, rather than the ten-year construction schedule originally put forward by ESDC and Ratner. (Be sure to check out the invaluable Norman Oder for all the details.) If construction is really going to take an extra fifteen years, the argument goes, the true impacts on things like traffic, noise, and air quality weren't ever disclosed, in violation of environmental law. That argument got a boost in the courts a few weeks ago, and the legal battle now hinges on whether or not to halt construction.

For the BrooklynSpeaks coalition, the 1,100 space "interim" parking lot is at the heart of the issue. As Oder reports, their lawyer suggested that construction on the Barclays Center basketball arena might be allowed to continue "but all other work, including any attempt to convert Block 1129 to a parking lot, should be absolutely enjoined unless and until there is full compliance with SEQRA."

"They were supposed to put the parking underground," BrooklynSpeaks member Jo Anne Simon explained. A quarter-century of surface parking wasn't part of the deal.

Though Simon said that BrooklynSpeaks has tried not to debate suitable uses for the Atlantic Yards site, she did suggest that surface parking wasn't an acceptable option. "Something that's an amenity for the community," she suggested, "maybe some interim open space." Simon also added that some additional demolition would still be required to pave over the block, "and that we'd like to see not happen."

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Spooky Stuff: On Halloween, Some Places Have Deadlier Roads Than Others

New York City hasn't proven to be that scary on the candy-filled holiday. But it's still a bad idea to mix kids, darkness and cars.

October 31, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: After the Flood Edition

Flooding that would happen once in a while now happens a few times a year. Plus other news.

October 31, 2025

Amtrak’s Penn Station Plans Assume Gateway Tunnel Will Happen Despite Trump ‘Termination’

Andy Byford's Penn Station plans assume a capacity boost from the Gateway Tunnel project that President Trump insists is "terminated."

October 30, 2025

Judge Lets Court Street Bike Lane Live … For Now

Businesses sued too late to stall the redesign, a judge said. But a wider ruling will come as soon as next month.

October 30, 2025

Thursday’s Headlines: Janno’s Speaking Edition

Local news outlets had a field day after MTA CEO Janno Lieber reiterated his longstanding skepticism of Zohran Mamdani's free buses platform. Plus more news.

October 30, 2025

Decision 2025: Ben Chou Hopes to Unseat Vickie Paladino on Street Safety

Chou, who grew up biking in and around the district, called out his opponent's anti-bike "fear-mongering."

October 30, 2025
See all posts