Forest City Ratner sues for more tax breaks at Atlantic Yards

Forest City Ratner has filed a lawsuit demanding that the city slash its valuation of a section of the Atlantic Yards megaproject, despite the developer having received at least $761 million in subsidies and tax breaks from the city and the state for the project.

The city’s Department of Finance valued the land on the southern side of the project, known as block 1129, at $11.2 million in the 2013 fiscal year. The land currently holds a parking lot, but is slated for high-rise construction.

But Forest City Ratner claims the land is only worth $1.6 million, according to the lawsuit filed last week in New York State Supreme Court, DNAinfo reported.

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“As you can imagine, real estate and development companies like Forest City have a fiduciary responsibility to review and question assessments in a timely manner,” Joe DePlasco, a spokesperson for the developer, told DNAinfo.

“This is a standard operating procedure for these types of companies,” he added.

Barclays Center, the sports and entertainment arena that is a cornerstone of Atlantic Yards, is about $50 million behind its income projections. [DNAinfo]  – Hiten Samtani