Bills ownership wants a deal done as soon as possible.
The National Football League’s Buffalo Bills’ ownership wanted to see progress made toward building a new stadium for the team by December 31st and it appears that is happening. The proposed Bills new venue will probably end up near the present stadium in Orchard Park. It is just cheaper to build a stadium in Orchard Park than in the city of Buffalo. New York’s Empire State Development agency said the Bills’ franchise does need a new stadium. A new place in Orchard Park would come in with an estimated $1.3 billion price tag or nearly a half billion dollars more expensive than a stadium renovation. Putting a stadium in Buffalo would add an extra $350 million to the cost. Orchard Park came in second in the analysis of three Buffalo area proposed stadium sites.
The Empire State Development agency has released some of the stadium’s findings on its website and in the New Stadium PDP Appendix there are bullet points with the following titles. “Generate more revenue”, “Sports betting should be considered”, along with “WiFi and DAS”. “No roof. Outdoor football” and “Natural grass”. The Bills’ franchise brings in about $27 million per year for the City of Buffalo, Erie County, and New York State. That is not an economic generator and is a drop in the bucket for economic activity. Bills’ ownership wanted a deal in place by January so the new facility can be built by 2026. There are some significant questions that need answers, How much money will the Bills’ ownership put into the facility? How much money New York state residents will contribute? How much money Erie County residents will put up? But the process of putting together a financial package presumably has started. The Bills’ present stadium is 48-years old and has undergone a number of renovations. It all comes down to dollars and cents.
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