The challenge, by nine brave home and business owners and tenants, to New York state's use of eminent domain to take the their properties for developer Forest City Ratner’s Atlantic Yards development proposal will be argued in court on Monday, February 23.

Forest City Ratner cannot build its floundering project without these plaintiffs’ properties.

Monday, February 23. 10am*
Supreme Court, State of New York. Appellate Division**, Second Department
45 Monroe Place. Brooklyn, NY.

The lawsuit was filed on August 1st, 2008 and fully briefed at the end of December.
All briefs in Goldstein et al. v Empire State Development Corporation can be found here.

On his Atlantic Yards Report Norman Oder has an extensive preview of the arguments and issues discussed in the briefings

(*Note: The court has the argument listed as the 7th on the docket, so we do not know precisely when it will be argued. But we advise showing up by 10 if that is possible for you, but later is okay if that is not possible. **State law requires all eminent domain challenges to go directly to the appellate division. This case is not an appeal.)

Other Pending Legal Challenge

The legal challenge to the state’s environmental review and approval and in particular New York State’s determination that the proposed Atlantic Yards project site is “blighted” is awaiting a ruling of an appeal. That appeal was argued over five months ago, on September 17, 2008. A ruling for plaintiffs in this case would mean the project could not go forward.