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LOCAL MATTERS 15
its dying paper mills and idled aluminum smelters, from “smoke stacks to server racks.” Another pitch: Cryptocurrency is a young person’s game, and the North Country needs more of those, said But he and his father point out that Brienza’s dad, Greg. The industry could local companies make money doing the help attract millennials who are interwiring and ventilation for heat-gener- ested in the tech sector, he said. ating crypto-company facilities. And David Bowman agrees. The their automation could spin off to other 27-year-old grew up in Peru, outside of types of industries, they believe. They Plattsburgh, and founded a small crypalso contend that the nascent industry tocurrency company called Plattsburgh is putting Plattsburgh on the radar of BTC in 2015 with just a few machines. high-rolling investors. Hedge fund He now pays Brienza’s company to run managers and others have been flying them. in to check out the emerging “mining” Bowman, who graduated from SUNY scene, Brienza said. Plattsburgh and then earned a master’s from Georgetown University in biochemistry, isn’t in the crypto biz Ryan Brienza (left) and David Bowman with Bitcoin mining machines full time. He’s enrolled in medical school in Grenada, and that’s his priority. But he believes the Bitcoin industry could make Plattsburgh “like a Silicon Valley for the area.” A short drive from the Imperial Industrial Park, Coinmint runs a much larger operation out of an old strip mall called Skyway Plaza. Last Thursday, mining machines inside a retrofitted one-story retail building issued a loud rumble that could be heard outside. Loading bays and doors were open to let the heat they generated escape. Several large fans churned. Signs hung over the doorways warned “No “The last time [the region] got Trespassing” without revealing the national news was in the prison company name. break,” Brienza said, referring to the But many Plattsburgh residents 2015 escape from nearby Clinton know it’s there, and they aren’t necesCorrectional Facility in Dannemora. sarily happy about it. The moratorium The story of a prison worker who is “only fair,” said internet cable installer helped two convicts find their way out William Giddings as he shopped at a of the state prison is in production for a Family Dollar store, one of the few retail Showtime series directed by Ben Stiller, tenants left in the building. and just last month crews filmed street His electric bill — which covers heat scenes in Plattsburgh. and lights — rarely exceeds $70 a month The cryptocurrency biz might not be even in the dead of winter. But it hit $170 miniseries material, but it’s had plenty in February, and he expects the same in of plot twists. “It’s kind of like the Wild March, said Giddings. West at the moment,” said Brienza, who, He blames Coinmint and said resialong with other crypto entrepreneurs, dents should not suffer for its success. “I is investigating options in other cheap- don’t own the business,” he said. “I don’t power communities near Plattsburgh. get any money out of it.” The mantra of cryptocurrency companies is to transition the region, with Contact: molly@sevendaysvt.com
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