New Barclays Center Plans Fall Short Of Gehry's Original Design

Forest City Ratner Hopes To Break Ground On Barclays Center By November

The new rendering for Barclays Center in Brooklyn is "somewhat more promising" than earlier plans for the arena that leaked out in June but "still falls short of the high architectural standards set by the design the city was originally promised," according to N.Y. TIMES architectural critic Nicolai Ouroussoff. Some of architect Frank Gehry's original ideas for Barclays Center, such as "opening views from the sidewalk into the arena, have been restored." Nets Owner Bruce Ratner has "reduced the size of the structure, moving team offices to another site," while Manhattan design firm SHoP Architects "wrapped it in an appealing rust-colored steel skin, which will make it less harsh on the eye."  But "too many questions remain unanswered about the overall plan." The "brilliance of Mr. Gehry's approach was not about the aesthetics of any particular building; it lay in the careful arrangement of diverse urban elements on a tight urban site." The new design by SHoP and K.C.-based Ellerbe Becket "tries to recapture some of that energy and relate the building to the neighborhoods around it," but the Atlantic Yards development on a whole "remains worrisome." In Gehry's plan, "all of the structures were conceived as part of a single cohesive scheme." But Ratner has "divided up the design ... to defer additional costs," which "risks producing an oddly clunky composition." While Gehry "took great care to disguise the ubiquitous corporate suites to create a more intimate space" within the arena, they have become "more prominent" in the new design. Ouroussoff: "It is probably the best Mr. Ratner can do, given time and money constraints. But his problems, sadly, are now our problems too. And they may force us to live for decades with what is ultimately a compromised design" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/10).

BRIDGE TO BROOKLYN: In N.Y., Erin Durkin wrote the latest design "takes a middle ground" between Gehry's proposal and the renderings leaked in June, which was "widely panned." It is "far from Gehry's soaring glass and steel vision, but features plenty of bells and whistles, like a 30-foot-high canopy at the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush aves. and backlighting to create a 'halo' around the arena" (NYDAILYNEWS.com, 9/9). Ratner yesterday said, "I think it will be a new model for arena design -- it's futuristic, it's 21st-century" (N.Y. POST, 9/10). Meanwhile, in N.Y., Charles Bagli notes New York is "expected to give the arena final approval" next Thursday, and developer Forest City Ratner (FCR) next month "plans to begin marketing and selling" about $700M in tax-exempt bonds for the project. FCR also will be "marketing 100 luxury suites and premium seats" in the arena, and "hopes to get control of the land and begin construction in November." Ratner said that if "all goes as planned," the Nets will play part of the '11-12 NBA season in Brooklyn (N.Y. TIMES, 9/10). Ratner indicated that he "hopes to have the entire project, which includes 16 office and residential towers, done in 10 years -- but acknowledged it could take as long as 25" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 9/10).