This Thursday, October 4 we meet at the Brooklyn Collection, 2nd floor of the Brooklyn Public Library, Central library at Grand Army Plaza, at 3pm (from the college, you can take the B41 bus, the 2/3 to Grand Army Plaza, or the B/Q to 7th Avenue). The purpose of Thursday’s research visit is to learn about a range of primary sources documenting the history of the Barclays Center and surrounding neighborhoods and begin to explore topics and form questions that will lead to your final project. The site report for the archives visit is due one week after our visit, October 11 with a short follow-up to your research questions due October 16. Please review the site report in advance of Thursday’s class.

Before the Barclays Center and associated high-rises were built, the site of the project was home to residential, retail, and industrial tenants. In advance of Thursday’s class, please read the following news articles that record some of the 21st-century history of the struggle over the site:

Newman, Andy. Guarding their Homes Against the Bulldozer, the New York Times, January 23, 2004.

Bagli, Charles V. Ruling Lets Atlantic Yards Seize Land, the New York Times, November 24, 2009.

Frazier, Ian, The Big Shoe, the New Yorker, February 1, 2010.