Did New Jersey Really Lose Out When the Nets Left Town?

New York will be celebrating NBA All-Star weekend and this time, it's a multi-borough affair. Sunday's All-Star Game will be at Madison Square Garden, but Saturday's event, like the popular Slam Dunk Contest, will be at the Barclay's Center in Downtown Brooklyn.

While the spotlight will be at the Nets' new home, the legacy of their old home, Newark's Prudential Center, continues to be debated. Since "The Rock's" opening in 2007, its attracted trendy brands like Dinosaur Bar-B-Que and Chipotle to the neighborhood, yet vacant storefronts continue to line Market Street.

"The businesses around here, they seem somewhat exclusive," said Z. Desmond, a downtown Newark resident. "You don't see a lot of Newark residents owning these businesses."

"I think a lot of people are still hesitant to come to Newark," said local business owner Dan Phillips.

But Rick Eckstein, a professor at Villanova University and co-author of the book "Public Dollars, Private Stadiums" told WNYC's Richard Hake that Newark city officials promises of a downtown revitalization spurred on by the Prudential Center was always unrealistic, given the history of similar projects in other cities.

"You would think by this time...that public officials would finally realize that stadiums and arenas, in and of themselves, do not kick start economies," said Eckstein. "They may ride a trend that's already existing, as I think is happening Brooklyn...but they're not going to be the initial spark that gets a neighborhood going again, for the simple reason that they're only open so many days out of the year."