Brooklyn gets back to normal with angry residents, shady rich dudes

We’ve all been doing such a good job looking out for our neighbors and lending a helping hand in the aftermath of Sandy. Of course, being that Brooklyn is a city of over 2 million people and life moves fast here, it was only going to be a matter of time before we were at each other’s throats and trying to rip each other off again. A couple local news items confirm it: happy days are here again! we’re getting back to normal.

Both items involve hot button issues of gentrification, corporate malfeasance and pissed off residents. First, over at the Albee Square Mall, protestors took the sidewalk outside of the newly opened Armani. Members of Families United for Racial and Economic Equality claimed the high-end fashion retailer was a harbinger of gentrification, while union workers from Local 361 accused the developers of City Point of not using union labor. While the protests didn’t seem to be scaring off shoppers, The Local talked to one shopper who was disappointed he couldn’t find anything in the store for $25. Shoulda stuck with the Brokelyn gift guide.

Meanwhile, down the road at the Barclays Center, Forest City Ratner has taken issue with the city’s tax assessment of their billion-dollar baby. While the Department of Finance has valued the arena at $741 million, based on the income it will bring in, according to DNAInfo, Forest City Ratner has argued that the math is wrong and that the arena is actually worth $111 million. Because what’s $600 million between friends? Forest City Ratner and its subsidiary, Brooklyn Events Center, have yet to comment on why they’re even fighting the assessment since they don’t even pay property taxes at the moment, but like we said, it’s good to see we can get back to the business of hustling and screwing each other over.