In a special ceremony held in front of City Hall on Sunday, August 18, Mayor Restaino of Niagara Falls and Mayor Austin Tylec of North Tonawanda presented KISS singer/bassist Gene Simmons with a “Key To The City” for both municipalities.

Additionally, Mayor Restaino announced that a downtown street in Niagara Falls will be named “Gene Simmons Boulevard” to acknowledge Simmons’ significant investment in the local business community.

Watch video, courtesy of Rock Interview Series, below.

According to Niagara Frontier Publications' Joshua Maloni, Simmons keynoted a press conference outside of the Tops of the Falls Restaurant on Goat Island. After speaking about his Rock Steady Sodas partnership with Paul and John Janik and Chris Haick, he traveled to City Hall, where he was given two keys to the city: One from Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino, and a second from North Tonawanda Mayor Austin Tylec.

Simmons was in town to mark the sale of the one millionth bottle of his MoneyBag Sodas, and to headline a fundraiser at the historic West Herr Riviera Theatre.

Niagara Falls Schools Superintendent Mark Laurrie served as master of ceremonies at the press conference. He said, “We're so honored. I'm so honored to be part of this celebration on this beautiful day. What a beautiful backdrop we have, and what a beautiful place Niagara Falls is. Niagara Falls rocks, and we're so glad that you're with us. We are so proud to have a worldwide icon like Gene Simmons with us, and MoneyBag Sodas, and all of the great things that they're doing.”

City of Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino said, “The setting couldn't be more perfect to celebrate this tremendous partnership and to welcome Gene Simmons to the wonderful City of Niagara Falls. You know, these types of partnerships – these things that come together when you have people like Gene Simmons wanting to lean in with a product that they believe can really make a difference in the market – then you have magic happening. And so, we're proud to be able to host this event for today. We certainly welcome Mr. Simmons and the band to our community.”

Assemblyman Angelo Morinello said, “Mark stole one of my words: Today is iconic. We have the falls behind us. We have Gene Simmons. We have the Janik brothers: third-generation Niagara Falls family. If you look at the history of the Janik family, and Gene Simmons, you'll see a lot of similarities: hard work, vision, putting in the effort to make things better.

“You know, I read a little bit about Gene Simmons. They looked at the fact that people were coming away from alcohol, but they still wanted experiences. And the meeting with the Janik brothers brought together that vision. Individuals still want to go out, but they just don't want to have alcohol. There are establishments opening, and they are ahead of the curve.

“Gene, your vision is just spectacular.”

Simmons said, “I've always believed in a very simple idea about America. We have astonishing beauty in the country. We have amazing cities – and we can point to Niagara Falls all day long as world-class. Very few things on the planet even get close to this. But the magic of America is its people, the entrepreneur spirit.

“Next time you're in the air, 30,000 feet away – it was invented by two brothers, two brothers in Kitty Hawk of all places, not in New York, not in L.A., not in the major cities. When you take a look at all the great advancement in human technology, and all the things that make our lives better, it's never from New York or L.A.; it's always from small towns with people who have big dreams, who make our lives better. Edison and his team were in New Jersey, not in New York; and Alexander Graham Bell, and so on – they're not in major cities.

“It always starts with people. I always bet on the horse, not on the cart. Always bet on the horse.”

Read more and see photos at Niagara Frontier Publications