COURT WON’T STOP RATNER DEMOLITION: DEMO SET FOR MONDAY AM

Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn has planned a demonstration to protest the demolition of four buildings on the Atlantic Yards footprint ffor Monday April 23, at 8 a.m. at 191 Flatbush Avenue (between Fifth Avenue and Dean).

The reason: A Temporary Restraining Order to block Forest City Ratner’s demolition of buildings within the Atlantic Yards footprint has been denied by Manhattan State Supreme Court Justice Joan Madden.

  The court expressly stated that in making today’s TRO decision it was not pre-judging
  the merits of petitioners
  claims filed on April 5th.

  Forest City Ratner plans to begin demolition on nine buildings during the
  13 days between today and the Mary 3rd hearing.

Here’s what Develop Don’t Destroy had to say in a press release sent to OTBKB and others:
 

Major Legal Hurdles Still Face Developer
  We are confident in the merits of our challenge to the state’s approval of the
  project and that once our claims are heard we will prevail sending the project
  back to the drawing board. It is also clear that as long as owners and
  renters challenging the state’s right to seize private property by eminent domain
  succeed in federal court,
the project cannot be built
–not the arena or the skyscraper super-blocks.

 

  Because of the irreparable harm these premature demolitions will bring, we call
  on Governor Spitzer, Mayor Bloomberg and other elected officials to use the
  ESDC’s funding leverage to halt the demolitions unless the project is proven
  to be legal and finacially feasible.

  All legal papers, a summary of the lawsuit, and the list of co-plaintiffs can
  be found here:
http://www.dddb.net/FEIS