GENESEE COUNTY/Protester voices opposition to data center at GCEDC meeting

Citizens continued their vocal opposition to the Project Double Reed data center at a recent Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) monthly board meeting. Protesters, some dressed in frog costumes, held signs outside the MedTech building where the meeting took place, while Brandon Lewis, owner of The Firing Pin, addressed the board directly. Lewis urged GCEDC directors to listen to their constituents who oppose the 500-megawatt, 2.2-million-square-foot data center slated for the WNY Science & Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park in the Town of Alabama. He questioned the board members' accountability, particularly those who are appointed rather than elected, and criticized their absence from a previous public hearing. GCEDC President/Chief Executive Officer Mark Masse acknowledged the protesters' right to voice concerns and clarified that no board or staff members receive financial benefits from the project beyond reinvesting fees into countywide economic development. He also announced that another public hearing will be scheduled soon at the Alabama Fire Hall and that a transcript of a prior five-hour session would be posted online. Separately, the GCEDC approved a contract with GHD of Buffalo for an acoustic study peer review, part of the state environmental quality review package for the data center. This review will address noise concerns, including the frequency of the data center's hum, following an initial noise study conducted by STREAM U.S.