Council squabbles

Rainbow Air has a flight path. The Niagara Falls City Council will be lead agency for the Urbacon Planned Unit Development. The intersection of Main and Portage will be redesigned to make it safer. A council meeting later this month will not be move back a week.

That’s what the city council achieved Wednesday night in a contentious meeting including bickering between Councilperson Donta Myle and Acting Corporation Counsel Tom DeBoy.

The council heard from multiple reps of Rainbow Air about the proposed flight plan which will include a higher flight path and quieter helicopters.

Even the air traffic controllers from Niagara Falls Airport were represented in giving the thumbs up on the flight plan. Rainbow Air is the largest private sector new-development focused on the tourism industry since the Maid of the Mist bought new boats.

The difference is the Maid doesn’t pay property taxes. Rainbow Air will.

Among those who spoke at the hearing was developer Merle Smouse who owns and has rehabbed multiple short term rentals and expressed concern over noise pollution as well as a lack of consideration for the 120 or so property owners who have placed rental properties in service since the short term rental zone was approved a few years ago.

Myles led the charge to vote against moving the meeting. He was chastised in the past for skipping special meetings called for routing business at the whim of the mayor and wondered why a meeting was being moved to accommodate two council members. The motion failed to pass by a 2-2 vote with Brian Archie joining Myles in voting no after David Zajac abruptly left the meeting because of a family emergency.

The reworking of Main and Portage should make it safer for pedestrians and cyclists.