Tonawanda, N.Y. (WBEN) - The developers behind a proposed data center at the former Tonawanda Coke site now tell the Town of Tonawanda Planning Board to place their request for approval on hold.
"It's my understanding that the developer who had an application with the planning board has has been told by the NYISO, that apparently there's a backlog now because there's a number of projects across the state that are submitting applications to NYISO, and that for whatever reason they're not going to be able to get to them for perhaps months and months, and they just wrote a letter to the planning board saying, 'Hey, until we, you know, hear back from NYSO, we're going nowhere here, and please put our application on hold,'" said Tonawanda Town Supervisor John Flynn.
The project was set to be on the agenda for discussion at Wednesday's planning board meeting, but no action was to be taken.
Flynn says he has heard numerous concerns from residents about the proposed data center.
"The main issues with data centers, as far as their electricity use, their environmental impacts, and a lot of times some of these data centers, they come to our community, they operate for a couple years, then they go bankrupt, or for whatever reason, and then you leave, an abandoned warehouse there, which obviously can't happen," he said.
Flynn's main concern with such a proposed project is the use of electricity.
"This data center is proposing to use the amount of electricity that is equal to the entire town of Tonawanda and Amherst combined," Flynn noted. "Wrap your head around that, all the businesses, all the homes in Tonawanda and Amherst combined, that's how much electricity this plant proposes to use, and yeah, I've got some concerns about that,"
Flynn adds he will continue to weigh all evidence for and against a data center in Tonawanda and analyze it.
This comes as the state is voting this week on having a one year moratorium on data centers.
"If that passes, then obviously they can't do anything for a year, so this will all be a moot point," Flynn added.
As for a town moratorium, Flynn says he's not in favor of that.
Riverview Innovation & Technology Campus issued the following statement: “There has been a great deal of public discussion – and confusion – surrounding the status of a proposed data center development at the Riverview Innovation and Technology Campus. To be clear, the project is not on hold, and we still firmly believe that our proposed project represents the best avenue to return this historically contaminated site back to active and productive economic use for Tonawanda and Western New York. The availability of power and any potential upgrades to existing transmission infrastructure that may be needed are major factors in making the project possible. We have been having discussions with the New York Independent System Operator and National Grid on those issues, including the potential costs and timelines involved. While we await further details and clarification from NYISO and National Grid, we have temporarily delayed the project’s SEQRA and site plan review process with the Town of Tonawanda Planning Board. Once we have all of the necessary information from NYISO and National Grid to chart a path forward, we will resume the Town review process. At this time, we have every intention to continue our proposed development, as we continue and complete the massive environmental clean-up effort we have been leading at the site for the past several years. Others left the site for dead. We have been steadfast and transparent in our vision and commitment to resurrect it.”
