November 24, 2009

Nets arena clears one lawsuit; media declares "cloud lifted"

Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards project has been cleared to seize private property by eminent domain, after New York state's highest court ruled that the state had the right to declare the area "blighted."

So what does this mean for the Nets arena project? The New York Times' Charles Bagli declared that "there was no question that the cloud of uncertainty that has been hanging over Atlantic Yards for more than a year had been lifted," while Bloomberg News announced that "Bruce Ratner's $5 billion Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn will move ahead." There are still plenty of other lawsuits pending against the project, and the lawyer for local landowners says he plans to challenge the eminent domain takings one by one, so it's not like this court case was the one big thing holding up the project.

No, that would be the bond rating problem — so the ultimate impact of today's ruling is going to depend on whether it makes the bond raters and insurers happier to okay the arena bonds before the December 31 deadline. In that case, the news articles may be even more important than the ruling itself — nothing calms the nerves of investors like the New York Times saying "the cloud of uncertainty has been lifted," whether it's true or not.