http://www.planNYC.org/ PlanNYC | New York City Planning Information Portal en-us ja3n@earthlink.net http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4356 Former New York Jets President, Jay Cross, has joined Hudson Yards developer, Related, to head the development team for the area he knows so well. Related hired Cross due to his extensive knowledge of the complicated site, dating back to the failed Jets' bid to build a stadium at the site, as well as his real estate development experience. There is speculation that adding him to the team will provide the expertise and guidance necessary to get the project built. 2008-06-18 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4291 James Russell, architecture critic for Bloomberg News, provides a critique of The Related Companies’ Hudson Yards plans, focusing on what he sees as inherent flaws in the nature of the real estate deal with the MTA. Russell worries that the MTA’s heavy reliance on the development-dependent revenues from the Hudson Yards project for its capital budget will potentially cause the planning and development of the site to be rushed. He fears that the scenario will ultimately result in an inferior design for what he calls the City’s “greatest remaining development opportunity.” Russell makes the case for an alternative financing model for the MTA: rather than depending on real estate deals, he recommends borrowing against a more long-term and constant revenue stream such as tolls, congestion pricing or a gas tax. 2008-06-02 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4259 On Thursday, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) said that the deal it struck with The Related Companies to redevelop the Hudson Railyards will ensure that the developer won’t abandon the project. The MTA agreed to allow the developers to withhold paying rent for up to two years on vacant land. 2008-05-22 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4263 The Board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) unanimously approved the deal with The Related Companies and Goldman Sachs to redevelop the Hudson Railyards on Thursday. 2008-05-22 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4250 Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other elected officials expressed confidence in the new deal struck between the MTA and The Related Companies for the development rights of the Hudson Railyards. Real estate experts say that the commitment of an anchor tenant, in this case Goldman Sachs, helps to ensure the deal. Meanwhile the district manager of Community Board 4 has said that while the original Related plans scored low in a poll of area residents, the company’s new plan – which includes 440 units of permanent affordable housing – may help boost its approval. He also said that CB4 hoped to be able to meet with the MTA and Related soon to discuss the project details. 2008-05-20 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4252 Only 10 days after the collapse of a deal with Tishman Speyer to develop the 26-acre Hudson Railyards, the MTA signed an agreement with The Related Companies for development rights to the site. Related’s CEO Steve Ross said he “jumped on” what he called “a second chance at a dream of a lifetime.” Related has put down an $11 million deposit and agreed to pay $18.8 million at the closing on the eastern railyards and another $24.7 million after the western portion of the railyards, which has not yet been rezoned, has gone through the necessary environmental and land use review processes. Government officials, including Governor David Paterson and Deputy Mayor Robert Lieber, heralded the deal, while critics of the project voiced concern over the speed at which the City was moving to adopt plans for such a massive and complicated project. 2008-05-20 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4244 In a column in the New York Post, Senator Charles Schumer reiterated his suggestion that the development of Moynihan Station and surrounding area should take precedent over the Hudson Yards project. Senator Schumer stated that he believes that both projects are vital to the future of New York, but that it makes more sense for development to start in the Penn Station area, where transportation infrastructure already exists, and then move westward. The senator outlined four steps to moving forward in developing midtown west: transfer control of the Moynihan Station project to the Port Authority, make improvements to Penn Station by moving some of the NJ Transit and Amtrak operations offsite and working with Madison Square Garden to move the WaMu Theater, move forward with the Moynihan Station project by granting it government approval, and rezone the Penn Station area to allow for more building and offer bonuses to companies that invest in transportation infrastructure. 2008-05-19 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4245 According to bond analysts, financing for repayment on the $2 billion in bonds issued in 2006 to help fund the number 7 subway line extension appears to be secure despite delays and setbacks in the development projects whose revenues were intended to back the notes. The bonds are backed primarily by revenue streams coming from the sale of development rights, development fees, and various payments in lieu of taxes within a special Hudson Yards Financing District that includes the 26-acre Hudson Railyards sites. Complications in negotiations of the sale of development rights for that site, as well as setbacks in other projects in the area like Moynihan Station and the Javits Center expansion, have some investors worried, but representatives from bond rating agency Standard & Poor’s insist that their ratings on the bonds were not linked to any particular development project and thus the ratings would not be affected. Mayor Bloomberg has set aside money in the City’s budget to cover debt payments on the bonds, but so far it has not been needed thanks to existing revenues coming in from smaller developments in the Hudson Yards Financing District. 2008-05-19 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4248 The MTA has announced that it reached an agreement with the Related Companies for the rights to develop the Hudson Railyards site. The deal is said to be comparable in “business and legal terms” to the $1 billion dollar deal the agency had with Tishman Speyer that fell through last week. Related’s plans include 6.27 million square-feet of commercial and residential space in five towers on the eastern railyard site and 5.75 million square-feet in 8 buildings on the western site, once it has been rezoned. Goldman Sachs has signed on as an anchor tenant. The MTA says its board could approve the deal as early as Thursday. 2008-05-19 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4251 The announcement that the MTA had reached an agreement with The Related Companies to develop the Hudson Railyards site prompted comments from several City and state officials. Mayor Michael Bloomberg called the announcement “great news for the City” and expressed confidence that the deal would go through. Governor David Paterson expressed similar sentiments regarding the news, noting that it demonstrated “resilience of public-private partnerships in the face of the national economic downturn.” Speaker Christine Quinn said the development would help the local economy, as well as advance long-term housing goals. Senator Charles Schumer gave credit to the MTA for pushing the deal through and stressed the importance of number 7 subway extension project being completed on time. 2008-05-19 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4236 After walking away from a deal with Tishman Speyer for development rights to the Hudson Yards site, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is again negotiating with the three other developer teams that were originally vying for the deal. A representative from the MTA declined to discuss specifics about time or money, but insisted that they are trying to push the project forward quickly, adding that the agency will accept only what they consider to be a suitable deal. Others are not as optimistic about the project’s immediate future, citing the current economic environment. 2008-05-18 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4247 A spokesman for the Durst Organization said that the developer expects publisher Conde Nast to rejoin as anchor tenant in its bid for the Hudson Railyards deal, but Conde Nast has refused to comment. The publisher was an anchor tenant in the original bid that was turned down in favor of a higher, but tenant-less bid from Tishman Speyer. After Tishman was selected, Conde began looking for new space, and according to one real estate executive, they are still talking with Brookfield Developments about space in a Ninth Avenue site close to the railyards. 2008-05-15 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4230 Governor Paterson admitted publicly on Wednesday for that there might not be sufficient money for several New York City projects including Moynihan Station, Hudson Yards and the Jacob Javits Center. New York City is suffering from a real estate slump that has affected several other cities recently. The governor suggested that it might be necessary to have “either an individual or a committee oversee all the structural development in those particular areas” in order to overcome delays and budget shortfalls. 2008-05-14 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4219 According to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the revived negotiations between itself and developer Tishman Speyer have failed. The MTA announced that it plans to reinstate negotiations with some of the other developers interested in building out the Hudson Yards project. 2008-05-13 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=25#4223 After the Hudson Railyards negotiations with Tishman Speyer fell through, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) reopened talks with the other developers who had originally submitted bids for the site. It is uncertain whether any of the other developers will match Tishman Speyer’s winning $1 billion bid. The runners-up, a partnership between the Durst Organization and Vornado Realty, expressed a continuing interest in the project, but originally bid just under $900 million for the site. The MTA needs to fill a $700 million hold in its capital budget that the original agreement was supposed to fill. The point of contention that broke down the agreement between the two was Tishman Speyer’s desire to only start paying the lease after rezoning was completed on the western side of the rail yards, a process that could take 3 years. 2008-05-13 00:00:00