{"id":77131,"date":"2026-07-13T18:14:04","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T22:14:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/?p=77131"},"modified":"2026-07-13T18:14:04","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T22:14:04","slug":"genesee-county-sierra-club-and-tonawanda-seneca-nation-file-lawsuit-challenging-town-of-alabama-zoning-agreement-suit-alleges-agreement-to-strip-town-of-zoning-discretion-violates-state-law-and-is-vo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/13\/genesee-county-sierra-club-and-tonawanda-seneca-nation-file-lawsuit-challenging-town-of-alabama-zoning-agreement-suit-alleges-agreement-to-strip-town-of-zoning-discretion-violates-state-law-and-is-vo\/","title":{"rendered":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Sierra Club and Tonawanda Seneca Nation file lawsuit challenging Town of Alabama Zoning Agreement; Suit alleges agreement to strip Town of zoning discretion violates state law and is void"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Press release<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Sierra Club and Tonawanda Seneca Nation filed suit today in State Supreme Court challenging a zoning agreement between the Town of Alabama and the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) to facilitate industrial development at the WNY Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park (STAMP) in Alabama, NY.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Link to filing below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/drive\/folders\/1Cb9fL3JmP_OyqK5iV0DsPIZ6SV70HnZQ\">IZA Litigation materials &#8211; Google Drive<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The suit alleges that the zoning agreement, which prevents the Town from making changes to its municipal zoning laws and comprehensive plan absent GCEDC approval, violates state law prohibitions against bargaining away legislative discretion and binding future Town Boards. Because the agreement is void, the suit alleges, zoning rules based upon it are void as well. The suit seeks a court declaration that the agreement and associated zoning rules are void, and asks the court to annul the agreement and the zoning framework it creates. If successful, the action would restore the Town Board\u2019s ability to adjust zoning rules at STAMP as it is able to do in the rest of the Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLocal residents, including Sierra Club members, have asked the Town to protect their community from STAMP noise and pollution by enacting stronger zoning laws, and the Town has responded that their hands are tied by this agreement,\u201d said Diane Ciurczak, Vice-Chair of the Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter. \u201cThat\u2019s not right, either for the community or for the planet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOur people share many of the same concerns as our neighbors in the Town of Alabama,\u201d said Chief Roger Hill, Snipe Clan Sachem of the Tonawanda Seneca Nation. \u201cThis zoning agreement makes it impossible for the people who live here to protect their community and the environment we all share.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite nearly twenty years of effort and more than $410 million in taxpayer subsidies, <a href=\"https:\/\/na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.investigativepost.org%2F2024%2F07%2F23%2Fstamp-struggling-to-fill-industrial-park%2F&amp;data=05%7C02%7C%7C2408d87132d34dafc96408dee12616ca%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639195752351341278%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=VAkg0qU3lDdoUUmd3Q4tUrcrt4iS9s6%2BaoqYEaTUDjE%3D&amp;reserved=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GCEDC has struggled to attract viable tenants<\/a> or to construct basic infrastructure at STAMP. GCEDC and the Town of Alabama Planning Board are currently reviewing a proposal from STREAM U.S. Data Centers to site a 2.2 million square foot, 500 megawatt hyperscale data center at STAMP.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Sierra Club is the largest and oldest environmental nonprofit organization in the United States, and its Atlantic Chapter has about 37,000 members throughout New York State. The Tonawanda Seneca Nation is a traditional Haudenosaunee Nation whose treaty-protected Reservation Territory shares a boundary with the STAMP site.&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Press release The Sierra Club and Tonawanda Seneca Nation filed suit today in State Supreme Court challenging a zoning agreement between the Town of Alabama and the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) to facilitate industrial development at the WNY Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park (STAMP) in Alabama, NY. \u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"continue-reading-button\"> <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/13\/genesee-county-sierra-club-and-tonawanda-seneca-nation-file-lawsuit-challenging-town-of-alabama-zoning-agreement-suit-alleges-agreement-to-strip-town-of-zoning-discretion-violates-state-law-and-is-vo\/\">Continue reading<i class=\"crycon-right-dir\"><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8eTP4-k43","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":77148,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/14\/genesee-county-alabama-local-leaders-respond-to-nys-moratorium-on-large-scale-data-centers\/","url_meta":{"origin":77131,"position":0},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Alabama\/Local leaders respond to NYS moratorium on large scale data centers","author":"aka","date":"July 14, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Story by Brian Quinn for Video News Service The announcement this morning that Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an executive order imposing a moratorium on large-scale data centers drew reactions from local leaders and opponents of the proposal by Stream U.S. Data Centers, which proposes a project on the Western New\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Alabama&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Alabama","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/alabama\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4CFDAC63-1257-4BF0-A360-E7AE3B7CD56D-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C762&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4CFDAC63-1257-4BF0-A360-E7AE3B7CD56D-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C762&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4CFDAC63-1257-4BF0-A360-E7AE3B7CD56D-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C762&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4CFDAC63-1257-4BF0-A360-E7AE3B7CD56D-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C762&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4CFDAC63-1257-4BF0-A360-E7AE3B7CD56D-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C762&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":65768,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/07\/01\/genesee-county-tonawanda-seneca-nation-and-sierra-club-file-litigation-challenging-environmental-review-process-of-massive-data-center-at-stamp\/","url_meta":{"origin":77131,"position":1},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Tonawanda Seneca Nation and Sierra Club file litigation challenging Environmental Review Process of massive Data Center at STAMP","author":"aka","date":"July 1, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Litigation alleges that developer violated state law in approving the project; petitioners seek a Temporary Restraining Order to prevent irreparable harm Press release The Tonawanda Seneca Nation and the Sierra Club filed suit today in New York State Supreme Court challenging two resolutions issued by the Genesee County Economic Development\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Genesee County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Genesee County","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/genesee-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":69291,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/10\/21\/genesee-county-tonawanda-seneca-nation-and-sierra-club-declare-victory-in-litigation-against-massive-data-center-seek-dismissal-of-suit-following-rescission-of-approvals\/","url_meta":{"origin":77131,"position":2},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Tonawanda Seneca Nation and Sierra Club declare victory in litigation against massive data center;\u00a0seek dismissal of suit following rescission of approvals","author":"aka","date":"October 21, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Press relase GENESEE COUNTY, NEW YORK - Today, the Tonawanda Seneca Nation and the Sierra Club filed papers to dismiss litigation in New York State Supreme Court. The filing caps a major victory: the rescission of approvals issued by the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) for the development of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Genesee County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Genesee County","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/genesee-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":71010,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/12\/18\/genesee-county-citizens-hold-signs-in-protest-of-gcedcs-intent-to-seek-lead-agency-status-for-data-center-project\/","url_meta":{"origin":77131,"position":3},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Citizens hold signs in protest of GCEDC\u2019s intent to seek lead agency status for data center project","author":"aka","date":"December 18, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Mike PettinellaFor Video News Service With about a half-dozen people opposed to the siting of a data center at Western New York Science & Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park looking on, Genesee County Economic Development Center directors on Thursday unanimously approved a resolution declaring the GCEDC\u2019s intent to act as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Genesee County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Genesee County","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/genesee-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1000235359.jpg?fit=1200%2C730&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1000235359.jpg?fit=1200%2C730&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1000235359.jpg?fit=1200%2C730&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1000235359.jpg?fit=1200%2C730&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1000235359.jpg?fit=1200%2C730&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":69850,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2025\/11\/08\/genesee-county-allies-of-the-tonawanda-seneca-nation-hold-rally-in-front-of-city-hall-to-celebrate-and-continue-the-fight-against-a-larger-proposed-data-center-at-stamp-in-alabama\/","url_meta":{"origin":77131,"position":4},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Allies of the Tonawanda Seneca Nation hold rally in front of City Hall to celebrate and continue the fight against a larger proposed data center at STAMP in Alabama","author":"aka","date":"November 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Allies of the Tonawanda Seneca Nation held a victory rally and press conference at City Hall in Batavia on Saturday afternoon. Speakers celebrated the group's collective efforts and hard work over the past few years in fighting proposed data centers looking to take up residence in Alabama, NY, near the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Alabama&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Alabama","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/alabama\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251108_122726-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C540&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251108_122726-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C540&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251108_122726-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C540&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251108_122726-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C540&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/20251108_122726-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C540&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":74842,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2026\/05\/05\/genesee-county-town-of-alabama-planning-board-continues-to-study-the-site-plan-for-stream-u-s-data-centers-proposed-19-46-billion-project\/","url_meta":{"origin":77131,"position":5},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/Town of Alabama Planning Board continues to study the site plan for STREAM U.S. Data Centers&#8217; proposed $19.46 billion project","author":"aka","date":"May 5, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Story by Brian Quinn As the town of Alabama Planning Board continues to study the site plan for STREAM U.S. Data Centers' proposed $19.46 billion project at the Western New York Science & Technology Advanced Manufacture (STAMP), the board keeps getting public input. There were almost 75 speakers during the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Alabama&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Alabama","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/alabama\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260504_194309-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C509&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260504_194309-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C509&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260504_194309-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C509&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260504_194309-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C509&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/20260504_194309-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C509&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77131","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77131"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77131\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77132,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77131\/revisions\/77132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77131"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77131"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77131"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}