North Tonawanda, N.Y. (WBEN) - Dozens of residents were carrying signs outside North Tonawanda City Hall Tuesday evening as the city council gathered for its regular meeting inside.
Concerned and angry residents are keeping the pressure on lawmakers as the Digihost cryptocurrency operation is up and running on Erie Avenue, months after a failed attempt in the council to place a moratorium on the project.
Council President Robert Pecoraro told WBEN Tuesday that while he voted in support of the Digihost operation, he is extremely concerned and disappointed in the noise being generated by the company and vows action.
"The noise is a problem," said Pecoraro. "If it's between a resident with quality of life issues and a business, the residents of North Tonawanda deserve their quality of life and deserve their lives back, and I'm going to ensure I do everything in my power to make sure that this is not disrupted."
That's not enough for residents Darlene Bolsover and Deborah Gondek who were leading the demonstration outside and who will be in court in Niagara County Wednesday seeking an injunction to pause the operation and allow for a full environmental review and public hearing.
"If it's such a really good project, once we get all the information, we can still more forward with it," said Gondek. "But right now, we don't know."
Darlene Bolsover and Deborah Gondek will be in court in Niagara County Wednesday in an attempt to put a hold on the operations of Digihost on Erie Avenue in North Tonawanda. They say the operation is noisy, not fully vetted and also not in full permit compliance. They were part of a protest before Tuesday's NY council session.
Posted by WBEN NewsRadio on Tuesday, March 1, 2022
While there are many concerns about the operation on Erie Avenue, noise is the main complaint and the one protesters focused on during their gathering Tuesday.
"They've got a very loud humming, and that's not acceptable," Bolsover said in explaining what resident shave been complaining about since the Digihost operations began.
"You hear this strange, like a jet engine wind," said Krystal Torres, a nearby resident who was outside city hall with her kids Tuesday. "I think they want to warm us up to that and get us used to that, but it's not even fully functioning yet," said Torres. "We're scared."
There was no formal agenda item regarding Digihost before the council Tuesday, however, lawmakers did hear from concerned residents formally during the public comment portion of the meeting.
