(NEW YORK, NY) — Critics of Manhattan’s glitzy, new, 18-million square foot complex have created a negative attitude toward businesses in the complex and are responsible for driving Amazon.com, Inc. away from the city, says Yards developer and Related Co’s chairman Stephen M. Ross.
Ross, speaking to the Wall Street Journal, said critics who argue the mixed-use development caters too squarely to wealthy customers “one of the reasons Amazon’s not here.”
Ross also called criticism of the project “newspaper talk,” according to the Journal.
Since Hudson Yards officially opened in March, the campus has been received by locals with mixed feelings.
Jumaane Williams, a public advocate in the city, criticized the presence of cashless stores at the complex’s mall, adding that New York residents “likely can’t even afford to shop” there.
By drawing this map, the State let Hudson Yards call itself an “economically distressed area”…. 🤨 and collect $1.2 billion off the struggles of people in NYCHA housing.
This is financial gerrymandering. pic.twitter.com/Rp1NAA4YPm
— Jumaane Williams (@JumaaneWilliams) April 16, 2019
Ross has maintained that the mall has a mix of lower-priced stores and upscale shops.
