Revere Sugar Update: Thor's Hammer of Death Has Not Yet Fallen

As of yesterday evening, the wrecking ball directed by Thor Equities and CEO Joseph Sitt had not yet swung in Red Hook to destroy the iconic Revere Sugar factory whose presence defines the neighborhood's waterfront. Thor's spokesperson, who usually speaks to reporters, refused to confirm or deny the impending demolition or to say when it would occur. Demolition permits were issued on December 5 with work authorized to start immediately. A local source originally said the dome was slated for a date with death on Friday. Some equipment remains parked on the site and activity has been observed, but no demolition work.

If the developer was hoping to accomplish the demolition without press coverage, and to have the conical dome down before anyone noticed, he seems to have failed. A source brought the demolition permit to the attention of Curbed on Wednesday afternoon and it immediately reported the scoop, followed by other blogs which cover development in Brooklyn. On Friday, amNY, Newsday and the New York Post reported the story. New editions of several of the Courier Life papers also have stories on Thor's demolition plan.

In a sense, the story highlights the extent to which bloggers have subtly altered the development equation in Brooklyn. While outcomes may not be changed, instant internet coverage of stories like the Revere demolition has shined a light on events that otherwise might have gone unreported until after the fact or not have been reported at all.

It's getting harder and harder to slip things by with this newfangled internet blogging thing going on.