Latest news with #NiagaraFallsCityCouncil
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
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Falls Council Oks new flight path for Rainbow Air
Niagara Falls City Council members voted Wednesday night to approve a new flight plan for Rainbow Air, as the longtime Falls tour operator prepares to open its new facilities just off of Buffalo Avenue. Rainbow was seeking to modify its current operational flight path as it is set to begin operations at its new $15 million tourism center at 56 Acheson Drive opening on June 23. The new route was endorsed by the union representing air traffic controllers at the Falls airport as the quietest and safest flight path possible. 'We have reviewed the flight path of Rainbow Air. We endorse it,' said Daniel Leonard, the president of the local chapter of the air traffic controllers union. 'It is the safest path and the least disruptive to our new giant balloon flight (near the falls).' Leonard said new helicopters that will be operated by Rainbow Air are also the most 'eco-friendly' in operation currently. 'The flight path also provides, in case of emergency, the best survivability,' Leonard said. 'It gives (the helicopter pilots) options.' One of those pilots, Mark Chamberlain, told the council that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-approved flight plan was adopted after considering safety and noise as the most important issues. 'It was designed with the help of the FAA and the considerations were safety first and then noise, which has been an issue before, Chamberlain said. He said the flights will operate at a height of 3,000 feet, 500 feet higher than the company's previous flight plan. Take-offs from the new helipad will also get out of neighborhood air space and over the Niagara River quicker than before. 'We were looking to reduce the noise footprint,' Chamberlain said. 'The Airbus H-130 is the only helicopter allowed to fly over national parks and it's the quietest in the industry.' Rainbow Air has described its new heliport and headquarters as 'the largest private tourism development in Niagara Falls in many years.' The project is located adjacent to the former Carborundum Center on Buffalo Avenue. It includes two new helipads and a 30,000-square-foot building that houses aviation-related features. Representatives of Rainbow Air said they have upgraded their fleet with brand new Airbus H-130 helicopters that seat seven passengers plus the pilot. They also noted that the interiors in the new choppers are quiet enough for an audio tour to be played on speakers in the cabin, with translations into several languages for international guests. Rainbow Air, which was established in 1995, had previously operated its tours from a landing pad near the Niagara River gorge. The tour company said that the gorge pad location required an inconvenient take-off procedure and was the source of constant noise complaints from some South End residents and businesses. The company has been operating from the Niagara Falls International Airport during the construction of its new tourism center. From its new location, helicopters will fly over Goat Island before making a loop over downtown Niagara Falls. After flying over the Rainbow Bridge, the helicopter will go along the Canadian side to get a view of the Horseshoe Falls before following that route back to the helipad. Flights will last between 12 and 14 minutes, depending on the weather conditions. The tourism center is accessed off Acheson Drive from Buffalo Avenue. It includes room for three helicopters and two helipads, an outdoor dining/gathering area and parking for both cars and buses. The single-story indoor facility contains a maintenance hangar, an aviation heritage center that will present Niagara Falls' role in the history of flight, and a retail sales area with convenience food and drink items. The facility also has an entertainment center with 15 custom-designed 3-D flight simulators that allow visitors to have the experience of flying over the Falls. The project's architect, Aaron Faegre, said the new home for Rainbow Air was chosen to allow the company's helicopters 'a quick departure to the south, over the Niagara River,' which will allow the aircraft to 'climb to altitude quickly and minimize noise.' The flight path of the helicopters in and around the Falls is tightly controlled by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Air Transport Canada. Rainbow Air officials said they have conducted studies that show that the noise from departing helicopters at the new site is no greater than the noise of trucks operating on Buffalo Avenue. 'We sought to minimize noise downtown by moving here,' Faegre said. Rainbow's director of operations, Paul Faltyn, has said the project will allow Rainbow to become 'a year-round destination' in the Falls.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
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Falls accepts NFR data center proposal for further review
The Niagara Falls City Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to 'accept as complete' an application filed with city planners by Niagara Falls Redevelopment (NFR) to establish a Negotiated Planned Development District, also known as a Planned Unit District (PUD) for the purpose of developing a proposed $1.5 billion data center campus in the South End. Council members also approved taking on the role of 'Lead Agency' in the environmental review of the project. NFR's application was also referred to the Niagara Falls and Niagara County planning boards and the city's Zoning Board of Appeals for further consideration. Members had a few questions for acting City Corporation Counsel Thomas DeBoy regarding the application. DeBoy told Member Brian Archie (D) that NFR does not own all of the roughly 53 acres of land that would comprise the total project. 'But that doesn't prevent them from filing the application,' he said. The first stage of the project, which NFR has dubbed 'Data Center at Niagara Digital Campus PUD,' is projected to occupy the same parcel of 12 to 15 acres of prime South End tourist district land that the city has proposed to use for its Centennial Park project. Control of that land has already been awarded to the city through the courts by an eminent domain proceeding. The city has also recently filed a claim that asserts that roughly 5 acres of the disputed land, formerly the 10th Street Park, was never properly transferred to NFR as part of a 2003 settlement of an earlier lawsuit between the Falls and the South End land owner. The resolution, approved by the council, specifically states that nothing contained in it 'waives any rights of the city to recover the park property.' Asked by Council Member Donta Myles if approving the application could lead to 'more litigation', DeBoy told him, 'You could be sued either way you vote.' NFR has said its data center campus project 'is anticipated to bring 5,600 jobs to Niagara Falls during construction, as well as more than 550 permanent jobs when all phases of the data center are up and running.' NFR's original project application, filed in October, was determined to be incomplete by city planners. At almost 500 pages then, the application called for the Data Center at Niagara Digital Campus to be developed in five phases. The campus would include eight two-story buildings and one one-story building, for a total of 1,232,715 square feet of space. The full development would cover approximately 53 acres of what NFR has described as 'mostly vacant land.' The property would be bounded by John B. Daly Boulevard, Falls Street, 15th Street and Buffalo Avenue. Included in the application is a rezoning request, copies of traffic and noise studies, an environmental and energy impact plan, a full environment assessment form, a verified ownership petition, a survey and legal description, a historical property assessment, and aerial maps showing the placement of the data center and various other key elements of the plan. The project application was originally filed just over a month after New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals, rejected a second appeal by NFR seeking to have its justices weigh in on the legality of the use of eminent domain to take NFR's land, described as 907 Falls St. and an adjacent portion of property along John Daly Memorial Parkway, for the proposed Centennial Park project. After the appeals court ruling, Mayor Robert Restaino said the city would move forward with 'a valuation and acquisition' of the property where NFR wants to build its first proposed data center building. The city council is currently weighing an appraised bid on the property of more than $4 million.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
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Niagara Falls City Council will consider accepting NFR data center application
The Niagara Falls City Council will consider a resolution at its meeting tonight to 'accept as complete' an application filed with city planners by Niagara Falls Redevelopment (NFR) to establish a Negotiated Planned Development District, also known as a Planned Unit District (PUD) for the purpose of developing a proposed $1.5 billion data center campus in the South End. Council members will also be asked to approve taking on the role of 'Lead Agency' in the environmental review of the project. If approved, the resolution would refer NFR's application to the Falls and Niagara County planning boards and the city's Zoning Board of Appeals for further consideration. The first stage of the project, which NFR has dubbed 'Data Center at Niagara Digital Campus PUD,' is projected to occupy the same parcel of 12 to 15 acres of prime South End tourist district land that the city has proposed to use for its Centennial Park project. Control of that land has also been awarded to the city through the courts by an eminent domain proceeding. The city has recently filed a claim that asserts that roughly 5 acres of the disputed land, formerly the 10th Street Park, was never properly transferred to NFR as part of a 2003 settlement of an earlier lawsuit between the Falls and the South End land owner. The resolution specifically states that nothing contained in it 'waives any rights of the city to recover the park property.' NFR has said its data center campus project 'is anticipated to bring 5,600 jobs to Niagara Falls during construction, as well as more than 550 permanent jobs when all phases of the data center are up and running.' NFR's original project application, filed in October, was determined to be incomplete by city planners. At almost 500 pages then, the application called for the Data Center at Niagara Digital Campus to be developed in five phases. The campus would include eight two-story buildings and one one-story building, for a total of 1,232,715 square feet of space. The full development would cover approximately 53 acres of what NFR has described as 'mostly vacant land.' The property would be bounded by John B. Daly Boulevard, Falls Street, 15th Street and Buffalo Avenue. Included in the application is a rezoning request, copies of traffic and noise studies, an environmental and energy impact plan, a full environment assessment form, a verified ownership petition, a survey and legal description, a historical property assessment, and aerial maps showing the placement of the data center and various other key elements of the plan. It was originally filed just over a month after New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals rejected a second appeal by NFR seeking to have its justices weigh in on the legality of the use of eminent domain to take NFR's land, described as 907 Falls St. and an adjacent portion of property along John Daly Memorial Parkway, for the proposed Centennial Park project. After the appeals court ruling, Mayor Robert Restaino said the city would move forward with 'a valuation and acquisition' of the property where NFR wants to build its first proposed data center building. The city council is weighing an appraised bid on the property of more than $4 million.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NFR files legal answer to city bid to acquire company's 5 acres
The private law firm representing Niagara Falls Redevelopment has filed a formal answer to Mayor Robert Restaino's administration's claim that the city — not the company — owns 5 acres of the 10-acre site identified by the city as the preferred site for the proposed Centennial Park arena and events campus. The answer includes a counterclaim seeking 'consequential damages,' including reimbursement for taxes paid, for the 'value and benefit' conferred on the city as a result of NFR's 'justifiable reliance on the city's actions for more than 20 years.' Attorneys from NFR's law firm, Harter, Secrest & Emery of Buffalo, filed the company's verified answer on May 16, denying the city's contention that the 5 acres — located at the intersection of 10th and Falls streets — was designated as public parkland, served as a public park for decades and was never properly conveyed when the city agreed to turn it over to NFR more than two decades ago. In its answer, NFR argues that the 5 acres, which were transferred by the city to the company under a development agreement on Aug. 4, 2004, were not subject to the 'requirements and encumbrances' of the Public Trust Doctrine, a legal principle that designates certain resources, such as parkland, as held in trust by the government for public use. The city, through its attorneys with the Buffalo law firm Hodgson Russ, has argued in legal filings that NFR failed to obtain proper approval from the state legislature before accepting the property as its own and using it for 'non-public purposes.' In its answer, NFR suggests no such approval was necessary while also denying the city's allegation that the land transfer required authorization from the Niagara Falls City Council. 'The subject parcel is not encumbered by the Public Trust Doctrine, and its Aug. 4, 2004 conveyance from the city to NFR did not require approval from the New York State Legislature or the Niagara Falls City Council,' NFR's answer reads. 'For a parcel to be encumbered by the Public Trust Doctrine, there must either be an express or implied designation that demonstrates the clear and unmistakable intent of the owner to dedicate the land as public parkland. Here, no such express or implied designation ever occurred.' In its counterclaim, NFR describes the city's chances of succeeding in its quiet title claim as an 'unlikely event' while arguing that should the 2004 property be ruled null and void it is owed compensation from the city. The company's compensation list of requested compensation covers: the expenditure of 'considerable resources' related to the property, including money, services, labor, materials and equipment; paying the purchase price for the 5 acres; paying taxes on the parcel; maintaining the parcel; performing environmental cleanup work on the site moving playground equipment off-site and 'spending millions of dollars to develop a data center on the subject parcel, which the city, directly through its agents and representatives, encouraged NFR to spend.' 'NFR has expended these resources with the reasonable and justifiable expectation that, in accordance with the city's actions, NFR rightfully owns the subject parcel,' the company notes in the counterclaim found in its verified answer. The question of ownership of the 5 acres looms large in an ongoing eminent domain proceeding in which the city is poised to acquire, using its power of eminent domain, two NFR properties totaling roughly 10 acres off John B. Daly Boulevard at the intersection of 10th and Falls Street for the purpose of developing Centennial Park. NFR spokesperson James Haggerty released a copy of the company's response to the city's so-called 'quiet title claim' in response to questions from the newspaper on Thursday. The release came hours before Falls lawmakers were scheduled to vote on a request from Restaino to approve an offer of just over $4 million for NFR's land. The offer was tabled by the city council during Thursday's meeting. In a previous eminent domain case involving NFR, the company sought $75 million for the former Niagara Splash Park site, which is located across the street from NFR's 10-acre parcel. In that case, a judge determined that the state of New York, which acquired the Splash Park land for use in the development of Seneca Niagara Casino, ultimately owed NFR $17.8 million for the land. Haggerty described the city's initial $4 million offer for the proposed Centennial Park site as being based on a 'so-called appraisal' Restaino 'made up out of thin air.' 'In the end, though, it doesn't matter,' Haggerty said. 'Just as happened with the Splash Park parcels years ago, the court will decide the fair market value of this private property after considering actual appraisals submitted by both sides as this litigation moves forward — all clouded and complicated, of course, by the mayor's claims in his new quiet title action that the city already owns half the property it is seeking to acquire through eminent domain.' Haggerty also criticized Restaino and city lawmakers for not only suggesting the city's offer was based on a 'mysterious' appraisal but also for taking action before the mayor released the contents of a feasibility study conducted by a private firm to examine the potential pros and cons of building Centennial Park. He also referenced NFR's idea for the same 10-acre site, which company officials insist is needed to allow for the development of the first phase of what they claim would be a $1.5 billion data center in the city. 'The taxpayers continue to pay legal fees for all the mayor's litigation and are forced to watch as he works tirelessly on the taxpayer's dime to prevent NFR from building its economy-transforming, privately funded, $1.5 billion data center,' Haggerty said. In addition to the company's answer to the city's quiet title claim, Haggerty released legal requests sent last week by NFR's attorneys to the city that seek more detailed information about what he described as Restaino's 'scheme' to acquire NFR's 5 acres without having to pay fair market value for them. Examples of information sought by NFR include identities of individuals who may have knowledge regarding documents and information about 'any express or implied designation of the 10th Street playground as parkland,' documents used by the city to draft its legal complaint or support the city's position and identification of city officials who communicated with 'any third-party,' including New York state government agencies, concerning the action. 'Under court supervision, NFR will now see all documents, emails and text messages related to the mayor's attempt to avoid paying fair market value for this land,' Haggerty said in a statement from the company. 'Mayor Restaino may be able to ignore Freedom of Information Law requests, but he cannot ignore the courts, and we look forward to his testimony in this action,' Haggerty added. Dan Spitzer, an attorney representing the city, classified the requests as 'standard deposition notices' served in response to the city's quiet title claim. While Haggerty suggested both Mayor Restaino and his brother, City Administrator Anthony Restaino, were served 'subpoenas' in the case last week, Spitzer said that was inaccurate. He classified the requests for additional information as 'standard deposition notices' sent in response to the city's lawsuit. 'There have been no subpoenas served on the city, nor would it be proper to do so,' Spitzer said. 'While the misinformation is consistent with the legal abilities and veracity frequently demonstrated by NFR, we suspect what you are referring to are the standard deposition notices.'
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hearing sought for Rainbow Air's new flight plans
Niagara Falls City Council members will consider scheduling a pubic hearing to review a proposed new flight plan for Rainbow Air at their meeting on Thursday. The hearing is expected to be scheduled for 6 p.m. on June 4 in the council's chambers. Rainbow Air is seeking to modify its current operational flight plan as it prepares to begin operations at its new $15 million tourism center at 56 Acheson Drive. The helicopter tour operator has described its new headquarters as 'the largest private tourism development in Niagara Falls in many years.' The project is located adjacent to the former Carborundum Center on Buffalo Avenue. It includes two new helipads and a 30,000-square-foot building that houses aviation-related features. Representatives of Rainbow Air said they have upgraded their fleet with brand new Airbus H-130 helicopters that seat seven passengers plus the pilot. They also noted that the interiors in the new choppers are quiet enough for an audio tour to be played on speakers in the cabin, with translations into several languages for international guests. Rainbow Air, which was established in 1995, had previously operated its tours from a landing pad near the Niagara River gorge. The tour company said that the gorge pad location required an inconvenient take-off procedure and was the source of constant noise complaints from some South End residents and businesses. The company has been operating from the Niagara Falls International Airport during the construction of its new tourism center. From its new location, helicopters will fly over Goat Island before making a loop over downtown Niagara Falls. After flying over the Rainbow Bridge, the helicopter will go along the Canadian side to get a view of the Horseshoe Falls before following that route back to the helipad. Flights will last between 12 and 14 minutes, depending on the weather conditions. The tourism center is accessed off Acheson Drive from Buffalo Avenue. It includes room for three helicopters and two helipads, an outdoor dining/gathering area and parking for both cars and buses. The single-story indoor facility contains a maintenance hangar, an aviation heritage center that will present Niagara Falls' role in the history of flight, and a retail sales area with convenience food and drink items. The facility also has an entertainment center with 15 custom-designed 3-D flight simulators that allow visitors to have the experience of flying over the Falls. The project's architect, Aaron Faegre, said the new home for Rainbow Air was chosen to allow the company's helicopters 'a quick departure to the south, over the Niagara River,' which will allow the aircraft to 'climb to altitude quickly and minimize noise.' The flight path of the helicopters in and around the Falls is tightly controlled by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Air Transport Canada. Rainbow Air officials said they have conducted studies that show that the noise from departing helicopters at the new site is no greater than the noise of trucks operating on Buffalo Avenue. 'We sought to minimize noise downtown by moving here,' Faegre said. Rainbow's director of operations, Paul Faltyn, has said the project will allow Rainbow to become 'a year-round destination' in the Falls.
