Niagara Falls City Council met last night to discuss the application by HOCO Entertainment and Resorts for a zoning amendment to their property. The council voted unanimously in favour on 4 recommendations by city planning staff, with one councilor declaring a conflict of interest on the fourth.
The zoning amendment clears the way for HOCO to proceed with plans to build up to 20 amusement rides, including a 175′ (55m) Ferris wheel and two rollercoasters. The plans also include construction of a 28-storey, 294 room (all of them suites) hotel and two water parks (one indoor, one outdoor).
Two citizens spoke at the meeting to voice their concerns that the new developments would increase the noise in their homes located near Clifton Hill.
The proposed changes will happen in 3 phases, with phase one beginning in October. Phase one includes an expansion to the current Great Canadian Midway, construction of a new building on the current site of Niagara Marketplace and the building of the flagship ride, a 175′ Ferris wheel. The Ferris wheel features enclosed cabins for a climate controlled ride year round. HOCO President Harry Oakes said since the Millennium wheel opened in London, the London Eye has become that city’s premier tourist attraction and other high scale Ferris wheels have been constructed around the world. This new class of Ferris wheel gets away from the carnival type ride Niagara Falls has seen in the past with clean lines and architectural design.
The $100 million project is expected to take between 5 and ten years to complete all three phases.
Once again Chris did a great job taking screenshots of the proceedings. Here are a few of them:
This is HOCO Entertainment and Resorts President Harry Oakes. The Oakes family has had property in Niagara Falls for a long time.
The building of the London Eye has led to an increased interest in modern Ferris wheels around the world.
A few years down the road, HOCO also plans on building a 28-storey hotel at the back of the property (close to the Skylon Tower).
This image shows the entire HOCO property (it’s huge!) and how the new developments will fit in. Clifton Hill is on the right hand side. The Great Canadian Midway is the large building in the lower right corner. The green building near the top left is the existing Comfort Inn Clifton Hill. Near the centre of the image is a roller coaster. Near the bottom left corner is where the new hotel would be (you can see the blue pool).