A committee of local elected officials kept the peace at last night’s public information meeting on the proposed street closings at Atlantic Yards. To ensure that the meeting stayed on topic, City Council Members Tish James, Brad Lander, and Stephen Levin formed a three member committee to review and ask written questions from the audience. The questions were then answered by one of the three elected officials, Ms. Jane Marshall of Forest City Ratner, Chris Hrones of the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT), or Sam Schwartz of Sam Schwartz Engineering.

The streets are expected to be closed as soon as New York State Supreme Court, Judge Abraham G. Gerges issues a ruling on the condemnation hearing that was held January 29, 2010. The ruling will allow the Empire State Development Corporation to use eminent domain to seize properties in the area. Ms. Marshall seems very confident that the signing of the order is “imminent”. At that time, construction will “ramp up” on phase 1 of the project (stadium, Atlantic Yard and the first residential building) very quickly…most likely within 24 hours of the signing, she said. If and when the order is signed, Councilmember James encouraged the representatives from Forest City Ratner and DOT to give the community a reasonable grace period (at least two weeks) before closing the streets.

Some questions and Answers from the meeting:

Question. Why the premature discussion on street closure when the future of the entire project is still in doubt?
Answer. Forest City Ratner seems confident that the order will be signed very soon. Because construction would start within 24 hours of the signing, they wanted to give the public adequate warning.
 
Question. What would happen if the order to use eminent domain is not signed?
Answer. The streets would be return to the way they are now.

Question. Why close so many streets now when phase 2 of the project won’t happen for years?
Answer. The entire area would be use for phase 1 construction offices and truck staging. Also, the intense construction activities would make it very unsafe for traffic.
 
Question. Why were the Variable Message Signs put in place and turned on so early?
Answer. Forest City Ratner expected a ruling the first week of February.

Question. Will the Carlton Avenue Bridge remain closed permanently?
Answer. No, it is planned to be reopened in 2012 with phase 1 of the project.

Question. Would any bus routes be affected?
Answer. Yes, one stop on the northbound B63 would be removed on 5th Avenue between Atlantic Avenue and Pacific Street. The bus would be redirected along Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues.

Question. What affect would changes have on emergency vehicles?
Answer. Ms. Marshall said that both the NYPD and FDNY told Forest City Ratner that the changes would not affect their response time.

Question. Any thought given to pedestrian safety and congestion in the area?
Answer. Yes, an intense study was done on both. The area would also be closely monitored.

Question. Would parking permits be issued to local residents?
Answer. Yes, it is being considered. The three elected officials are looking into the best way to legislatively approach this.
 
You can read more details about the closings and mitigations here.