Falls City Council pulls proposal for bitcoin mining facility, new helipad
May 5 – The Falls City Council pulled from its agenda Wednesday night proposals that would have issued an operating permit for the city’s first authorized bitcoin mining facility and approved the construction of a new helipad and tourism center for a long-term flight provider.
The council “pulled” the permit application of Northeast Data, which does business as BlockFusion, a cryptocurrency mining operator, to receive the first operating permit for high-energy use in the Falls. Falls’ planning board had unanimously recommended the council approve the permit.
The planning board held a special meeting on April 25 to put the permit application on the council’s agenda for the Wednesday night meeting. Lawyers for BlockFusion had asked the planning board to speed up the application for approval by the municipality.
Planning Board Chairman Tony Palmer had noted that the company’s 233-page application submission was “exhaustive” on how the company would comply with the city’s recently revised zoning code that places new restrictions on high-energy-use industries such as crypto mining, data centers and cannabis cultivation.
BlockFusion lawyers told the board their application meets “all the qualifications” for a high-energy use operating permit. They said the board should “take our voluminous submission as a desire to comply with the new regulations.”
Council members said city officials had requested a delay in processing the permit to resolve an undisclosed issue with the application.
BlockFusion had operated a crypto mining facility on Frontier Avenue, but shut down operations in November after the city notified the company that it was in violation of the new changes to the high-energy use zoning code. Officials said BlockFusion immediately submitted its operating license application and made changes to comply with the new regulations.
The city also sought a preliminary injunction to block the continued operation of two other cryptocurrency mining facilities in Falls. One of these plants is no longer operational due to a power generation problem.
The other is reportedly preparing an application for a permit as part of a legal settlement with the city.
The council members also pulled a resolution to rezone a property on Acheson Drive off Buffalo Avenue to allow construction of a new heliport and tourism center for Rainbow Air.
At its April 25 special meeting, the Planning Board gave its unanimous approval to both the rezoning recommendation and a site plan that would allow Rainbow Air to move its operations to a property adjacent to the former Carborundum Center on Buffalo Avenue. In addition to building a new helipad, the company will also expand its operations by building a 30,000 square meter tourism centre.
Rainbow said the $10 million project is designed to allow them to become a year-round tourist destination.
The project architect, Aaron Faegre, told board members the company hoped to begin construction on the heliport facility this summer.” Company officials say they are hopeful they can begin operations at the new site by 2024.
Faegre said he wanted to “get steel in the ground” by May.
The request was made by the city council to allow for further consideration by the members.
Council member Kenny Tompkins said council members did not have enough information about the company’s projected new flight route.
Faegre previously told planning board members that the new location was chosen to allow the company’s helicopters “a quick departure south, over the Niagara River” that will allow the aircraft to “climb quickly and minimize noise.” The flight path of the helicopters in and around the Falls is strictly controlled by the US Federal Aviation Administration and Air Transport Canada.
Rainbow Air officials have also said they have conducted studies showing that the noise from departing helicopters at the new location is no greater than the noise from trucks traveling on Buffalo Avenue.
On Thursday, Tompkins said council members had received additional information from the company and that the recommendation may be back on the council’s agenda later this month.
