The Decisive Atlantic Yards Battle Begins: Critical Eminent Domain Lawsuit Filed

[Photo courtesy threecee/flickr]

It's on. What will be the decisive lawsuit over the Atlantic Yards proposal was filed in Federal court yesterday by eleven property owners and tenants within the big footprint of the proposed Forest City Ratner Atlantic Yards project. The suit was filed in the Eastern District and seeks to stop New York State from taking property for "the developer’s private benefit" via eminent domain. The suit says that the use of eminent domain for the project is unconstitutional.

Defendant in the suit include Governor George Pataki, FCR President Bruce Ratner, Empire State Development Corporation Chairman Charles Gargano, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff, Forest City Ratner Companies, Forest City Enterprises and others.

The text of the press release is available here and you can download a PDF of the filing by clicking here.

The lead attorney, Matthew Brinckerhoff calls the case "a textbook example of what the Fifth Amendment expressly prohibits: the taking of one citizen’s property in order to benefit a powerful and influential private citizen." The legal case is complicated, but the property owners and tenants argue that use of eminent domain in this case "is precisely what was forbidden by the majority in last year’s controversial Supreme Court Case -- Kelo v. New London."

Stand by for a great deal of litigation.