Atlantic Yards will be many things to many people. The development will combine a sports and entertainment venue, the Barclays Center, designed by award winning architectural firms Ellerbe Becket and SHoP Architects, landscaped open space, ground-floor retail space for local businesses, office space and more than 6,400 units of affordable, middle-income and market-rate housing to create a vibrant addition to a thriving borough.

Located at the intersection of Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues, bounded by Pacific and Dean Streets and Vanderbilt Avenue, and primarily situated over the MTA/LIRR's Vanderbilt Rail Yards, Atlantic Yards will span 22 acres and transform the current rail yards and predominantly underutilized and industrial area into 17 new buildings, including the state-of-the-art venue.

The $4 billion development will encompass 336,000 square feet of office space, 6.36 million square feet of residential space (6,430 units of affordable, middle-income and market-rate housing), an 18,000 seat sports and entertainment venue - the Barclays Center - 247,000 square feet of retail space, a 165,000-square-foot hotel (180 rooms) and over 8 acres of intricately designed publicly accessible open space.

The development will produce tremendous economic growth for the borough and city, creating more than 16,000 union construction jobs plus over 8,000 permanent jobs, as well as generating over $5.6 billion in tax revenue for the city and state over 30 years.

The height of the buildings will range from approximately 190 feet to 511 feet. Building 1 (B1), the building proposed for the corner of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues, will not be taller than the nearby Williamsburg Savings Bank, which stands at 512 feet. Separate from the Atlantic Yards development, building heights as high as 600 feet have been approved by the City Council as part of the Downtown Brooklyn Plan.

The buildings are spaced and sized to minimize bulk. For example, the heights of the buildings along Dean Street and Vanderbilt Avenue have been stepped down to better conform to the residential neighborhood. The taller buildings of the development will be located near the commercial corridor of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues.

Atlantic Yards is one of the most important developments in the history of Brooklyn. It will serve as a proud emblem of Brooklyn's reenergized vitality and create a new home for Brooklyn's very own NBA franchise-the Brooklyn Nets.