That Was Fast*

Seriously, that was really fast:

The Yankees plan to break ground today on their new $1.2 billion open-air stadium in the Bronx, less than 24 hours after a state judge rejected an attempt by a community group to block construction.

The new 51,000-seat stadium, with echoes of the distinctive copper frieze and limestone walls of the original ballpark, will go up in Macombs Dam and John Mullaly Parks, across 161st Street from the team’s historic home. Various elected officials are expected to join George Steinbrenner, the team’s principal owner, at a ceremony today signifying the start of construction.

“The courts have now ruled that the review process was thorough and complete,” said Randy Levine, president of the Yankees. “We’re excited to be breaking ground for what we think will be the best stadium in the country.”

Opponents of the project will also be on hand. “We’ll be out there demonstrating,” said Joyce Hogi, a member of Save Our Parks, who lives nearby. “We need to let people know how their rights have been trampled on. There’s nowhere else they can get the kind of economic bonanza they have in the Bronx. But the Yankees have not always been good neighbors.”

Save Our Parks, a community group, and a number of environmental organizations objected to plans to eliminate most of the popular Macombs Dam and Mullaly Parks and replace them with smaller parks scattered across the neighborhood. Some of the new parks, as well as ball fields, a running track and basketball courts, would be built on the roofs of new garages for stadium parking.

Save Our Parks had unsuccessfully sought an injunction barring construction, saying that the city’s environmental review failed to gauge the true impact of the new stadium on the neighborhood parks, open spaces and schoolchildren. The group also objected to plans to remove 377 mature shade trees from one of the poorest communities in the city.

“We’re not opposed to the Yankees having a new stadium,” Ms. Hogi said. “We always felt they could have done better by the community by reaching out and getting input into how they were proceeding with their plan.”

But Justice Herman Kahn [sic] of State Supreme Court refused to issue an injunction, saying the city would replace 22.42 acres of lost parkland with new parks totaling 24.56 acres.

Some contend, however, that the city isn’t actually getting all that much extra parkland in return:

“The judge just accepted their word on everything,” complained Geoffrey Croft, president of NYC Park Advocates. “But these guys haven’t been telling the truth.”

In his opinion, [Manhattan State Supreme Court Judge Herman] Cahn also repeats the city’s contention that the community will get 2.14 acres more than it is losing in the stadium swap. But Croft claims that calculation includes existing parkland and paved walkways. He points to the state’s application to convert the parkland, which claims the new waterfront park will be 6.42 acres. “But 1.37 of those acres are underwater,” Croft said.

*How fast? Wasn’t this announced just last June? What is taking the Mets so long?