BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

MASSENA -- A proposed law by the town of Massena would allow data centers to set up shop in an industrial zone in the town but residents will have an opportunity to weigh-in during a public hearing first. 

That hearing will be held on Jan. 21 at 4:30 p.m. at the Massena Town Hall just prior to the board's next regular board meeting. 

Officials say the amendment to the local law is required because data centers are not currently permitted under the town's zoning laws. 

The potential amendment stems from a request by the St. Lawrence County Planning Board, which requested town Code Officer Pat O'Brien review a site plan for Petawatt Holdings. 

The firm was clearing property on County Route 42 to construct a data center substation in an area that is currently zoned for industrial use. 

County officials kicked the project back to the town after reviewing language related to permitted uses and finding that utilities and substations were not listed as permitted uses in an industrial zone. 

What is permitted in such zones includes "manufacturing, assembling, converting, altering, finishing, cleaning, recycling, or any other processing and incidental storage of products and materials, including but not limited to greenhouses for the growing or the cultivation of delicate or out-of-season plants," county officials said. 

Other permitted uses include  other options like wholesaling, storage and warehousing, research labs, truck and rail terminals, as well as docking, fueling and waste storage, among others. 

County officials said the proposed use by Petawatt fell "in an interesting area" as it related to industrial zones. 

Though they felt the operation "should be" permitted in the zone, the language of the code did not validate those claims. 

In response, county officials sent the request back to town officials with four conditions and a non-binding recommendation. 

That recommendation states that if the town's Zoning Board of Appeals decided Petawatt's request was valid and is indeed a permitted use, that the town update its code to include support services as a permitted use.

No action has been taken by the Planning Board, offering residents the opportunity to weigh-in before any final decisions are made. 

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