Restaino v. NFR battles on

The battle between Niagara Falls Redevelopment and Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino is raging.

The latest ruling is the denial of an appeal by NFR over the city’s assertion it can use eminent domain for Centennial Park, first proposed as a “multi-purpose event center” called a “hockey rink” by pessimists and now referred to as a “convention center” by supporters.

In the name game NFR is now called “The Milstein Group” by Mayor Restaino. NFR says it wants to build a $1.5 billion data center on the disputed land providing a thousand jobs and more than $100 million in tax revenue.

The long-awaited Centennial Park feasibility study on the project has not been released. The below press release, issued Tuesday by City Administrator Anthony Restaino. It includes the first reference of the project cost approaching $200 million. The Express expects the final number to be $250 million or so.

Using eminent domain for a sports facility is a tricky track. Take for example 1958. Robert Moses, who had a massive role in the decimation of Niagara Falls.

Moses wanted to build an expressway in Brooklyn to divide the haves and havenots and make it easier to commute to work much as he built an expressway to divide Niagara Falls from its river.

In order to make his Brooklyn expressway happen, he needed land. Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley needed a new stadium. Moses argued a stadium was not a public benefit and could not use eminent domain to facilitate construction.

It led O’Malley to move the Dodgers to LA. O’Malley usually gets blamed. Moses should.

Later, Moses moved to Niagara Falls and tore the heart out of this community.

With the Schoellkopf Power Plant, and 25% of the Niagara Falls tax base gone, he was at the core of the formation of the NY Power Authority.

NYPA, and Moses, tricked the Tuscarora out of land for a reservoir, ruining Fish and Gill creeks in the process. Then they constructed the new facility with state funds and made it a state entity. The tax base was never replaced.

Moses then built an expressway to make it easier to get to Lewiston, dividing the city from its river.

Niagara Falls has never recovered. Moses’ negative impact on the city was almost as great as the decline of the chemical industry.

With all of that said, here is the statement from Mayor Restaino.

STATEMENT BY NIAGARA FALLS MAYOR ROBERT RESTAINO REGARDING STATE APPELLATE COURT RULING

NIAGARA FALLS, NY-"The ruling by the New York State Appellate Division clearly demonstrates that Niagara Falls Redevelopment is running out of legal options in its latest

attempt to persuade the courts to reject the city's eminent domain action in our efforts to build Centennial Park.

As the city has argued and the courts have continued to resolutely uphold, NFR never properly gained title to what was previously the 10th Street Park where Centennial Park will be constructed.

NFR owns approximately 140 acres of property in downtown Niagara Falls and the fact that they are pulling out all the stops fighting the city over a few acres in which we are offering a

fair market value for is revealing. NFR has accused the city for 25 years that their rationale for not developing one acre of

property they own was due to the lack of development by the city in and around NFR's footprint.

Now, here we are with a proposed $200 million venue and events center that will bring tens of thousands of people annually to downtown Niagara Falls on property Legally owned by the city and NFR is doing all it can to stop this city-driven development.

This is not about a multi-billion-dollar data center as proposed by NFR that without the disputed acreage of 10th Street Park will not happen.

It's about a continued illogical pattern of preventing Niagara Falls from fulfilling its potential as a true world class tourism destination."