[quote] The New York Times
January 11, 2005
Mayor and Council Reach Deal on West Side Development
By CHARLES V. BAGLI and MIKE McINTIRE
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's ambitious plan to transform part of the West Side into a new high-rise business district took a significant step forward yesterday after his administration reached an agreement with City Council leaders over housing, development rights and financing.
The mayor's plan calls for replacing the brick warehouses, factories and parking lots that dominate the area with office towers, parks and a new boulevard, while extending the No. 7 subway line one mile, from Times Square to 11th Avenue and 34th Street. The Council agreed yesterday to reduce the total cost of the 30-year plan to $3 billion from $4 billion by appropriating money from the city's operating budget to make early interest payments annually over the first decade.
In exchange, the Council won an agreement from the administration that a quarter of the 13,600 new apartments planned for the 59-block district would be affordable for moderate- and low-income New Yorkers. That compares with only 16 percent, or 2,176 units, in the mayor's original plan.
At the same time, the Council's leaders took steps to sever any connection between the redevelopment of the West Side and a separate but far more disputed proposal to build a $1.4 billion football stadium with a retractable roof for the Jets over a rail yard on the west side of 11th Avenue between 30th and 34th Streets. Under the agreement, none of the money appropriated for the redevelopment can be used for the stadium.
The local community board and other critics, however, were disappointed that the compromise did not cut the density of the commercial development planned for the district more sharply. Both sides agreed to allow for 24 million square feet of office space, down from 26 million, within a district west of Eighth Avenue that stretches from 28th to 42nd Streets.
Mr. Bloomberg yesterday called West Side redevelopment "probably the single most important economic project that this city has undertaken in decades." He said it would revitalize the neighborhood and create thousands of jobs.
His initiative is picking up steam, with the approval last month of state legislation for the $1.4 billion expansion of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, and now, the pending rezoning of the West Side, the largest in recent city history.
Still, in both cases, legislators moved to break any links between the respective projects and the stadium. The compromise reached yesterday also prohibits the city from using revenues generated by new development on the West Side to pay for projects west of 11th Avenue, such as a $30 million tunnel connecting the proposed stadium to the Javits Center, or two nearby pedestrian bridges over 12th Avenue.
"We've effectively divorced the stadium from the financial resources that his plan will generate," said Councilwoman Christine C. Quinn, who was active in the negotiations and represents the West Side.
The move may have been more symbolic than substantive. The Bloomberg administration has been vague about how it would pay for either the tunnel or the pedestrian bridges.
The Empire State Development Corporation is expected to approve the stadium project this month. But construction is not assured. It still needs approval by legislative leaders in Albany. The project also faces two lawsuits challenging the stadium on environmental grounds.
The mayor emphasized yesterday that the stadium was one element of a multipart plan in which development would progress more slowly "if you don't do any one of the parts."
For its part, the Jets said the idea that the stadium was linked to West Side redevelopment was a concoction of Cablevision, which has waged a multimillion-dollar campaign against the stadium. Cablevision, which owns Madison Square Garden, sees the stadium as competition.
"The Sports and Convention Center financing was never part of the rezoning process," said Matt Higgins, a vice president of the Jets. "But if Cablevision wants to claim a hollow victory, so be it."
Council members and stadium opponents wanted to make clear that redevelopment was in no way dependent on the stadium.
Council Speaker Gifford Miller said yesterday that the Council's support for the West Side plan did not temper his opposition to the stadium. He said Council leaders could have shown their opposition to the stadium by voting down the rest of the West Side project, but decided not to because they support its objective of revitalizing that part of Manhattan.
"We're not going to cut off our nose to spite our own face," he said, adding: "The financing we're talking about has nothing to do with the stadium. It's neutral to the stadium. I believe that this agreement will move forward whether the stadium moves forward or not."
The Citizens Union, a civic group, said the Council should be part of the approval process for the stadium, a position Mr. Bloomberg opposes. While it favors development, the group said the Council might have lost a chance to influence the decision to build a stadium by giving up its leverage on the redevelopment.
The entire Council is scheduled to formally adopt the plan on Jan. 19.
Under the agreement reached yesterday, the number of affordable apartments would rise to 3,400. The two sides also reduced the proposed commercial density on 11th Avenue, between 36th and 41st Streets, by one million square feet, or 14 percent.
"This is a step in the right direction," said Walter Mankoff, chairman of Community Board 4. "We were never against the development of the Hudson Yards. We wanted it done correctly. The only area where we don't see much gain is the density issue."
The city will begin making payments for public works projects in the $3 billion redevelopment plan in fiscal year 2006, with an initial payment of about $6 million. The payments will peak at $162 million after five years and then fall to $25 million by 2015. At that point, the remainder would be paid with tax revenues from new commercial projects.
William C. Thompson, the city comptroller and a critic of the city's financial scheme, called the new plan more stable and cost-effective.
The money will come from the city's $47 billion operating budget, meaning that the mayor and the Council need to find a way to pay that extra expense while grappling with multibillion-dollar deficits projected for the foreseeable future. Mr. Bloomberg recently abandoned plans to spend $200 million a year to cut long-term interest costs on $13 billion in school construction projects, saying the city could not pay for it with operating funds.
Mr. Miller said the new financing structure would save the city at least $620 million, and possibly as much as $1.3 billion, over the life of the project, and he criticized the Bloomberg administration's earlier plan to delay debt payments as needlessly costly. He said he had always favored making payments immediately, to eliminate "the fiction that the city isn't on the hook" for the project's success.
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[/quote]
jake · 2005-01-11
[quote] The New York Times January 11, 2005 Mayor and Council Reach Deal on West Side Development By CHARLES V. BAGLI and MIKE McINTIRE Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's ambitious plan to transform part of the West Side into a new high-rise business district took a significant step forward yesterday after his administration reached an agreement with City Council leaders over housing, development rights and financing. The mayor's plan calls for replacing the brick warehouses, factories and parking lots that dominate the area with office towers, parks and a new boulevard, while extending the No. 7 subway line one mile, from Times Square to 11th Avenue and 34th Street. The Council agreed yesterday to reduce the total cost of the 30-year plan to $3 billion from $4 billion by appropriating money from the city's operating budget to make early interest payments annually over the first decade. In exchange, the Council won an agreement from the administration that a quarter of the 13,600 new apartments planned for the 59-block district would be affordable for moderate- and low-income New Yorkers. That compares with only 16 percent, or 2,176 units, in the mayor's original plan. At the same time, the Council's leaders took steps to sever any connection between the redevelopment of the West Side and a separate but far more disputed proposal to build a $1.4 billion football stadium with a retractable roof for the Jets over a rail yard on the west side of 11th Avenue between 30th and 34th Streets. Under the agreement, none of the money appropriated for the redevelopment can be used for the stadium. The local community board and other critics, however, were disappointed that the compromise did not cut the density of the commercial development planned for the district more sharply. Both sides agreed to allow for 24 million square feet of office space, down from 26 million, within a district west of Eighth Avenue that stretches from 28th to 42nd Streets. Mr. Bloomberg yesterday called West Side redevelopment "probably the single most important economic project that this city has undertaken in decades." He said it would revitalize the neighborhood and create thousands of jobs. His initiative is picking up steam, with the approval last month of state legislation for the $1.4 billion expansion of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, and now, the pending rezoning of the West Side, the largest in recent city history. Still, in both cases, legislators moved to break any links between the respective projects and the stadium. The compromise reached yesterday also prohibits the city from using revenues generated by new development on the West Side to pay for projects west of 11th Avenue, such as a $30 million tunnel connecting the proposed stadium to the Javits Center, or two nearby pedestrian bridges over 12th Avenue. "We've effectively divorced the stadium from the financial resources that his plan will generate," said Councilwoman Christine C. Quinn, who was active in the negotiations and represents the West Side. The move may have been more symbolic than substantive. The Bloomberg administration has been vague about how it would pay for either the tunnel or the pedestrian bridges. The Empire State Development Corporation is expected to approve the stadium project this month. But construction is not assured. It still needs approval by legislative leaders in Albany. The project also faces two lawsuits challenging the stadium on environmental grounds. The mayor emphasized yesterday that the stadium was one element of a multipart plan in which development would progress more slowly "if you don't do any one of the parts." For its part, the Jets said the idea that the stadium was linked to West Side redevelopment was a concoction of Cablevision, which has waged a multimillion-dollar campaign against the stadium. Cablevision, which owns Madison Square Garden, sees the stadium as competition. "The Sports and Convention Center financing was never part of the rezoning process," said Matt Higgins, a vice president of the Jets. "But if Cablevision wants to claim a hollow victory, so be it." Council members and stadium opponents wanted to make clear that redevelopment was in no way dependent on the stadium. Council Speaker Gifford Miller said yesterday that the Council's support for the West Side plan did not temper his opposition to the stadium. He said Council leaders could have shown their opposition to the stadium by voting down the rest of the West Side project, but decided not to because they support its objective of revitalizing that part of Manhattan. "We're not going to cut off our nose to spite our own face," he said, adding: "The financing we're talking about has nothing to do with the stadium. It's neutral to the stadium. I believe that this agreement will move forward whether the stadium moves forward or not." The Citizens Union, a civic group, said the Council should be part of the approval process for the stadium, a position Mr. Bloomberg opposes. While it favors development, the group said the Council might have lost a chance to influence the decision to build a stadium by giving up its leverage on the redevelopment. The entire Council is scheduled to formally adopt the plan on Jan. 19. Under the agreement reached yesterday, the number of affordable apartments would rise to 3,400. The two sides also reduced the proposed commercial density on 11th Avenue, between 36th and 41st Streets, by one million square feet, or 14 percent. "This is a step in the right direction," said Walter Mankoff, chairman of Community Board 4. "We were never against the development of the Hudson Yards. We wanted it done correctly. The only area where we don't see much gain is the density issue." The city will begin making payments for public works projects in the $3 billion redevelopment plan in fiscal year 2006, with an initial payment of about $6 million. The payments will peak at $162 million after five years and then fall to $25 million by 2015. At that point, the remainder would be paid with tax revenues from new commercial projects. William C. Thompson, the city comptroller and a critic of the city's financial scheme, called the new plan more stable and cost-effective. The money will come from the city's $47 billion operating budget, meaning that the mayor and the Council need to find a way to pay that extra expense while grappling with multibillion-dollar deficits projected for the foreseeable future. Mr. Bloomberg recently abandoned plans to spend $200 million a year to cut long-term interest costs on $13 billion in school construction projects, saying the city could not pay for it with operating funds. Mr. Miller said the new financing structure would save the city at least $620 million, and possibly as much as $1.3 billion, over the life of the project, and he criticized the Bloomberg administration's earlier plan to delay debt payments as needlessly costly. He said he had always favored making payments immediately, to eliminate "the fiction that the city isn't on the hook" for the project's success. Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company | Home | Privacy Policy | Search | Corrections | RSS | Help | Back to Top [/quote]NYT: Deal Struck