Seems Councilmembers Letitia James and David Yassky are teaming up to oppose the massive tax giveaways to developer Bruce Ratner. Here's the press release:

[Councilmembers] Yassky and James to Proposed Atlantic Yards Amendment to MSG Tax Resolution

Today at the Finance Committee hearing, the committee will review and vote on Proposed Resolution 90, which asks the State of New York to end the twenty-year-old property tax exemption for Madison Square Garden. If the Council thinks subsidizing MSG is a bad deal fort the City and State, they should take another look at the tax breaks and subsidies being offered to the proposed Atlantic Yards Development: they are even worse.

Council Members Yassky and James will introduce an amendment to Res. 90 that includes language condemning public financing of the Atlantic Yards Development, and asking for these breaks and subsidies to be withheld. The arena component alone is slated to receive hundreds of millions in public funds: $100 million from both the City and State, as well as roughly $500 million in effective property tax exemption, and another $100 million saved from the issuance of tax-free bonds to finance the arena. These numbers do not include additional hundreds of millions of dollars that will go towards the residential and commercial components of the project.

The money slated for the Atlantic Yards Development has not yet been paid—the City and State have a unique and
important opportunity to keep it that way. Council Members James and Yassky are working to keep the issue in the pubic eye, and force a REAL review of these funds.

Where: City Hall Committee Room

When: Wednesday, January 30, 11:00

Any other Councilmembers upset about the massive amounts of OUR money that is being given to Bruce Ratner?

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