1) Coney Island: The city has offered its nemesis Joe Sitt $105 million for the 10 acres of land the developer owns at Coney Island, which is $12 million more than what Sitt paid for it, but $5 million less than the city's November offer. Will Sitt take the deal, clearing the way for Mayor Bloomberg's grand Coney Island vision? Nah. For one, Sitt's allies savaged Bloomberg's plan at a City Council hearing yesterday. Then, Sitt's Thor Equities issued a press release announcing the "25 fun-filled rides and dozens of circus freaks" it plans on bringing to Coney Island this summer. Also, despite declining land values, Sitt is rumored to want over $130 million for the land. Eminent domain, here we come? [Coney Island Redevelopment coverage]
2) Willets Point: Meanwhile, in the shadow of Citi Field, the Observer's Eliot Brown reports on a sharp turn in Mayor Bloomberg's redevelopment strategy at Willets Point. He writes, "Rather than pick a developer to build out the entire project, as previously considered, the plans now call for the 61-acre site to be developed in three successive phases. The city plans to wait until the economy has sufficiently stabilized before bidding out the project to private developers—a bidding that could start in 2009 or later." Crap, this is never happening. [Willets Point coverage]
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