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The NY Sun covers the efforts by holdout residents in Brooklyn who are hoping the Supreme Court of the United States will prevent Forest City Ratner from completing the planned redevelopment of the Atlantics Yards. Based on the public reaction to the Supreme Court's Kelo v. City of New London decision, granting cert in this case would seem a long shot at best. (See here for a well-written brief submitted in support of the City of New London, and the use of eminent domain the economic development context generally). Notwithstanding the heated rhetoric surrounding Kelo, the decision changed very little, as property rights simply are not as static as the general public believes. The Brooklyn residents pin their hopes on Justice Kennedy's concurrence (emphasizing that eminent domain must not be used for predominately private gain); the holdout residents argue that the Atlantic Yards Project has as its main goal the benefit of the developer, not the public. See here for a post by Rachel Godsil at Concurring Opinions for an interesting take on earlier Atlantic Yards conflicts.

The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the Eastern District's decision to dismiss the case for failure to state a claim. Goldstein v. Pataki, 516 F.3d 50 (2008). The Court of Appeals noted, among other things, the myriad public benefits that are part and parcel of the redevelopment project.

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