Community Corner

Concerns Mount Over Barclays Center Sidewalks: [POLL]

Recently released survey finds less space for crowds than originally thought.

Much worry has already been expressed about the in the wake of Barclays Center's planned opening in September.

But now longtime critics of the project are sounding the alarm over another potential traffic jam—this time of the pedestrian kind.

Atlantic Yards Watch posted the results of a survey Tuesday finding that Barclays' Final Environmental Impact Statement may have overstated the width of sidewalk at several key areas of egress at the 18,000-seat arena.

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Among the sidewalk locations found to be narrower than previously disclosed were areas abutting Barclays' Dean Street entrance, around a walkway leading to city subways and those leading to the arena's .

Far from accommodating the crush of Brooklyn Nets fans on game days, the survey raised questions about whether the sidewalks would be able to handle ordinary pedestrian traffic seen elsewhere in the city.

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"Many sidewalks do not even meet [city] DOT's standard for a commercial sidewalk—an unobstructed clear path of eight feet," wrote Atlantic Yards Watch's Peter Krashes. 

Critics of the project contend that a lack of adequate sidewalk space at Barclays will result in crowds overflowing into surrounding neighborhoods—a charge denied by a representative of the Empire State Development Corp., the agency overseeing the Atlantic Yards site.

"ESD’s consultant recently analyzed the effective sidewalk widths around the arena block. The analysis determined that pedestrian conditions operate at acceptable levels of service," said ESD's Atlantic Yards director, Arana Hankin, who added that Barclays' sidewalk widths had been cleared by city DOT.

Final sidewalk and landscape installation at Barclays is expected by complete by Sept. 25—just three days before to officially inaugurate the arena.

What do you think? Is Atlantic Yards Watch's survey on Barclays Center sidewalks a sign of the serious pedestrian overcrowding to come?


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