Located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, the Barclays Center is a multi-purpose arena. The Brooklyn Nets of the NBA and the New York Liberty of the Women’s WNBA both play at this arena regularly. In addition to sporting and entertainment activities, the arena holds concerts, conventions, and other events.
In the future, the arena will be a component of Pacific Park, a business and residential development expected to cost $4.9 billion. There is a subway station on the 2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, N, Q, R and W lines, as well as the LIRR’s Atlantic Terminal just a few blocks away from the site on Atlantic Avenue.
It was proposed in 2004 when real estate mogul Bruce Ratner purchased the Nets for $300 million as the initial step in the process to build a new home for the team. However, the arena had severe difficulties during its development. There are concerns about its use of the eminent domain and environmental damage.
There was a great deal of community opposition to, especially as public subsidies were used to demolish residential structures and businesses such as the Ward Bakery, which led to many lawsuits. The project’s funding was also cut off as a result of the worldwide recession in 2009.