DailyHeights

"Possibility of developer Bruce Ratner purchasing NBA franchise draws mixed reactions in New York"

The Associated Press does a color piece on the stadium plan: "Ask any Brooklynite over 50 when the borough’s golden age ended and the answer rarely varies: ‘When Dem Bums fled Ebbets Field.’"" …

"…The possibility that developer Bruce Ratner will buy the New Jersey Nets and move them to a new arena near downtown Brooklyn is a chest-swelling shot of civic pride for a borough that’s long lived in the shadow of Manhattan, many Brooklynites said."

"’God is good,’ said Michael Shapiro, author of ‘The Last Good Season: Brooklyn, the Dodgers, and Their Final Pennant Race Together.’ …"But for many … Brooklyn Nets has an ugly sound … There are dozens of artists’ lofts in old industrial buildings on the wind-swept stretch of railyards and multilane thoroughfares where Ratner wants to build a 19,000-seat arena …" Read the entire article.

Jen Chung reports in the Gothamist: "The billion dollar Brooklyn dreams of developer Bruce Ratner were unveiled yesterday ,
with the centerpiece being the Frank Gehry designed arena. Brooklyn
Borough President Marty Markowitz said, ‘Forget the Dodgers –
Brooklyn’s future is the Nets …  We are on the threshold of
restoring Brooklyn to its rightful place on the national sports stage…’"

"The entire development plan … $2.5 million, with investors such as
Ratner and Jay-Z…" Read the entire article.

A positively effusive Herbert Muschamp
on Bruce Ratner and his stadium plan: "A Garden of Eden grows in Brooklyn. This one will have its own
basketball team. Also, an arena surrounded by office towers; apartment
buildings and shops; excellent public transportation; and, above all, a
terrific skyline, with six acres of new parkland at its feet." Read the article here.