纽约时报 同对哈德逊城市广场的援助相比 亚马逊的待遇都显得黯然失色(4)

The groundwork for Hudson Yards was set in motion in the 1980s.

哈德逊城市广场项目的地基工程是80年代开始动工的。

When the Metropolitan¹ Transportation Authority created a yard for commuter² trains on the West Side,

大都会运输署在西区为通勤列车腾出了一个场地，

its chairman at the time, Richard Ravitch, knew the site could be valuable one day.

那时，运输署当时的董事长理查德·拉维奇就知道，这块地终有一天会变得很值钱。

He had the tracks spaced far enough apart that columns could be installed to support a deck.

所以，他在铁轨之间留出了足够安装柱子支撑起一个平台的空间。

A decade later, the property became the centerpiece for an ambitious plan by a young investor³ named Daniel L. Doctoroff

十年后，这一地产果然成了一位名叫丹尼尔·L.多克托罗夫的年轻投资者提出的一个雄心勃勃的，

to attract the 2012 Summer Olympics to New York.

为了吸引2012年夏季奥运会来纽约而筹备的计划的核心。

The rail yard could be covered and support an Olympics stadium,

这一场地可以建成一个奥林匹克体育场，

which could also be the new home for the New York Jets.

也可以作为“纽约喷气机”球队的新家。

While the city debated the merits of hosting the Olympics and the economic impact of a stadium,

该市就举办奥运会的好处和体育场的经济影响展开讨论时，

Mr. Doctoroff, who became a deputy mayor under Mr. Bloomberg,

多克托罗夫，曾在布隆伯格市长手下担任副市长，

and other city planners moved ahead with the broader redevelopment of the West Side.

和城市的其他规划者则着手推进西区总体的再开发问题。

The area was rezoned, making room for towering buildings,

他们对西区进行了重新划分，为修建高耸入云的建筑腾出空间，

and Mr. Bloomberg committed to the city to expanding the subway when the M.T.A. said it would not.

布隆伯格不顾大都会运输署的意见，对市民们做出了扩建地铁的承诺。

“There wasn’t any genuine opposition⁴ to Hudson Yards at all,”

“其实并没有人真正反对哈德逊城市广场项目，”

said Peter J. Kiernan, a lawyer who helped write a 2007 study on the city’s finance plan for the subway extension.

曾在2007年帮助撰写了一份有关该市地铁扩建计划财务计划的研究报告的律师彼得·J·基尔南说。

By the time New York lost the Olympics bid to London in 2005,

2005年，纽约在申办奥运会时输给了伦敦，

the Far West Side was well along into becoming Hudson Yards.

那时，远西区就已经快要建成哈德逊城市广场的样子了。

New apartment buildings were going up, and subway construction was about to start.

新修的住宅楼拔地而起，地铁建设也即将开始。

In 2008, Mr. Ross swooped⁵ in to pay $1 billion to the M.T.A. to develop a project over the rail yards,

2008年，罗斯突然现身，给大都会运输署投资了10亿美元，用于开发在铁路基地上规划的一个项目，

salvaging⁶ a deal after the first-place bidder⁷ backed out.

在第一位竞标者退出后接手了这笔交易。

Hudson Yards would not exist in its current form without significant government assistance, especially the expansion of the 7 line,

没有政府的大力援助，特别是7号线的扩建，哈德逊城市广场项目就不会以今天的形式存在，

said Mr. Ravitch, who was initially⁸ skeptical⁹ of the city’s plan to pay for the subway expansion.

最初对市政府为地铁扩建项目提供资金的计划持怀疑态度的拉维奇说。

“The M.T.A. didn’t have the money, and it wasn’t a priority,” Mr. Ravitch said last week.

“大都会运输署当时没有那个钱，而且，这个项目在当时也不是当务之急，”拉维奇上周说。

“Thank God it turned out to be a great success. It was worth what the city did for it.”

“谢天谢地，项目最后非常成功。整个城市为它所做的一切都是值得的。”

Still, the fallout from the Amazon deal may be having an impact on how the city approaches megaprojects in the future.

不过，亚马逊交易留下的阴影可能会对该市未来处理大型项目的方式产生影响。

Councilman Brad Lander of Brooklyn, a Democrat¹⁰ who is a founder¹¹ of the Council’s Progressive Caucus¹²,

布鲁克林市议员布拉德兰德，民主党人，也是市议会进步党团小组的创始人之一，

said it was smart to expand the No.7 subway and create parks on the West Side.

他说，扩建7号线地铁并在西侧修建公园是明智的。

But tax breaks for specific companies are a different story, said Mr. Lander, who was an opponent of the Amazon deal.

但针对特定公司的税收优惠则是另一回事，曾对亚马逊项目持反对意见的兰德说到。

“We’re giving away tax breaks without paying close attention to what’s a good deal or not a good deal,” he said.

“我们提供税收优惠的时候却没有密切关注什么是好交易，什么不是。”他说。

1 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。

2 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。

3 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 swooped   

俯冲，猛冲( swoop的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The aircraft swooped down over the buildings. 飞机俯冲到那些建筑物上方。
• The hawk swooped down on the rabbit and killed it. 鹰猛地朝兔子扑下来，并把它杀死。

6 salvaging   

（从火灾、海难等中）抢救（某物）( salvage的现在分词 )； 回收利用（某物）

参考例句：

• A shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship. 某轮船公司要求赔赏打捞沉船的费用。（make a claim 要求）
• It is not uncommon to hear that a shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship. 航运公司为打捞沉船的费用而提出要求，这并非奇闻。

7 bidder   

n.(拍卖时的)出价人，报价人，投标人

参考例句：

• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder.电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。
• The bidder withdrew his bid after submission of his bid.投标者在投标之后撤销了投标书。

8 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

9 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

10 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

11 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

12 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。