Foundation News

Forest City Ratner Companies - Atlantic Yards

When Forest City Ratner Companies began construction of its new residential tower at Atlantic Yards under the watchful eye of its neighbors, the builder mounted an almost unprecedented effort to mitigate the impacts of its work on the surrounding area.

The Forest City team erected sixteen foot high construction fences around portions of the site facing sensitive areas, twice the minimum height required in the Building Code, to reduce both noise and visual impacts throughout construction.

Fences are kept freshly painted and posted with way-finding signage and contact information for the Atlantic Yards Community Liaison Office. Other portions of the perimeter fence are mounted with a decorative fabric with original art designs.

A twenty-foot wide delivery bay off of Flatbush Avenue permits trucks to enter easily and reduce interference with traffic on this major artery; trucks can then leave straight through another gate on Dean Street avoiding difficult maneuvers to get in or out of the site. Materials storage is also all on site.

	An air quality monitor and visible way finding signage.

There is an extensive environmental quality program as well: the project is monitored at all times with several air quality monitoring devices positioned along the site perimeter. The monitors immediately alert site mangers when air quality levels change.

Particulates within diesel exhaust have been cited as a possible cause of asthma, so Forest City Ratner has made it mandatory for all contractors working on any Atlantic Yards program to use diesel powered equipment that meets the highest EPA standards for sulfur reduction.

Noise is another focus. Forest City Ratner requires subcontractors to purchase state of the art jackhammers with advanced mufflers that significantly reduce noise pollution. At the adjacent Phase II site, where Forest City is now making major infrastructure improvements in the Long Island Rail Road train yards, an engineered, flexible fabric noise barrier is mounted along the entire 400 foot length of fence facing a residential street. An engine mounted above the fence line is buffered by a fabric barrier as well. And no work is done at night, allowing a decent night's sleep for the neighbors.

	Forest City has implemented a sustained and visible program of community engagement.

Runoff at the Phase II site is captured in spoils containers and carted away. At the residential site, stray runoff is captured in a filtration system in the catch basin. Site managers are aware of their mandate to conform to environmental standards; staff is assigned to maintain all equipment and enforce these standards, a critical element to the success of the regime.

Forest City is also doing much of the construction of its modular housing at an offsite factory. This innovative construction technique reduces community impacts in several ways: materials are delivered and assembled offsite, reducing truck traffic and the amount of work actually performed at Atlantic Yards. The work schedule is contracted, reducing overall duration of construction. There is also significantly less waste, reducing the overall energy use, landfill use and carbon footprint of the project.

Maintaining pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicle access is yet another priority: although the residential project at Atlantic Ave. takes up one sidewalk for half a block on Dean Street, both a walkway and bicycle lane were maintained, and a bus stop was relocated down the block to realign the street, allowing bicycle, pedestrian and vehicle traffic all to continue to flow.

	Engineered fabrics substantially reduce noise from the railyard worksite.

Community relations are another crucial part of the regime. There is a community relations office onsite and staffed full time. Forest City provides two-week construction look-aheads to the Community Board and other civic groups. Furthermore, the builder has offered literally hundreds of in-person updates to community boards and community groups since the project’s inception. For the general public, phone numbers and other key information are posted on the construction fences and given to the Community Board.

“Forest City Ratner Companies and Atlantic Yards exemplify the philosophy behind the Construction for a Livable City Program,” said CLC Task Force Chairman Frank J. Sciame. “Builders can and should adopt Forest City’s innovative, three-dimensional approach to construction site management. It’s cost-effective and can change the way the industry is viewed by its neighbors.”

CLC highlights:

	• State-of-the-art noise mitigation regime.
		• Advanced technology jackhammers;
		• Diesel particulate filtration;
		• 16' high construction fences;
		• Fences wrapped in dense noise barrier fabrics.
	• Extremely well-maintained fencing, with contact information and decorative displays.
	• Fence and staging area is designed to encourage easy entrance and departure for trucks.
	• Intensive air quality management regime, including air monitors around the site.
	• Storm water pollution prevention plan, eliminates runoff and protects city sewers.
	• Modular construction reduces work onsite, reducing truck trips, noise, air and other environmental impacts.
	• Full-time community relations team available for regular community updates.
	• Helpful contact information posted at the construction site.