Prefabricated buildings have not been such a hot topic of conversation since Buckminster Fuller passed away, but that is about all anyone can talk about at Atlantic Yards anymore. On the one hand, it could signal a paradigm shift in how New York City builds, on the other, it goes against many of the employment promises Forest City Ratner made when the project won support from politicians and labor unions. With building plans recently filed, the decision on what to do is getting close. How close? The Observer asked Maryanne Gilmartin exactly that.
We were on the phone with the Forest City Ratner executive vice-president for a story about privately owned public spaces—made famous recently at Zucotti Park; read all about it in tomorrow’s paper—but we also took the opportunity to ask about the prefab progress. While Ms. Gilmartin could not say when the decision would be made, she did admit, “We’re on the cusp.”
“It’s definitely a 2011 conversation, and one we look forward to having very soon,” she added. That leaves us with 88 days until the big reveal.
