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Erie County Legislature hears directly from Bills, Poloncarz about new stadium deal

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, sitting amongst members of the Erie County Legislature, delivers a presentation Thursday, April 28 on the deal he negotiated with New York State and the Buffalo Bills to build the pro football franchise a new stadium in Orchard Park.
Michael Mroziak
/
WBFO News
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, sitting amongst members of the Erie County Legislature, delivers a presentation Thursday on the deal he negotiated with New York State and the Buffalo Bills to build the pro football franchise a new stadium in Orchard Park.

Erie County lawmakers on Thursday heard directly from the county executive and a representative of the Buffalo Bills about the Memorandum of Understanding for the deal to build a new stadium for the pro football franchise. Legislators are being asked to approve the MOU, so that final negotiations may be completed to move the project forward.

The county, state and Bills’ owners have reached an agreement to construct a new stadium in Orchard Park on a plot of land next to the Bills’ current home venue, Highmark Stadium. The overall cost of the new stadium is estimated at $1.4 billion. Erie County is committing $250 million to the project. New York State, through its Erie County Stadium Corporation, will contribute $600 million, while Pegula Sports and Entertainment, the Bills’ parent company, will invest the remainder, including any unforeseen construction cost overruns. The Bills will also pay for demolition of Highmark Stadium when the new facility is opened.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul stated previously that without a deal in place for a new stadium, the Bills would likely leave for another market, likely one which previously hosted a National Football League franchise but lost it.

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz renewed that concern Thursday but told legislators the agreement includes language that secures the team’s long-tern stay in Western New York, or at least makes it very expensive for the team to leave.

“This is the guarantee that the team is here for 30 years. We don't want 15, 16 years from now for the team to move,” Poloncarz said. “The Pegulas are making a large investment in this project, the county is, and the state. I feel comfortable based on the terms that we have in the MOU, what we have currently, that we will have a very strong non-relocation agreement that will ensure that the Buffalo Bills will be here for 30 years.”

Final details need to be completed among the three parties by Sept. 1. Poloncarz added Thursday that the Bills are not allowed to negotiate with any other cities before then, as part of their agreement.

Ron Raccuia, executive vice president of PSE, assured lawmakers the team had planned to stay in the region, and had looked at building a new facility in Orchard Park as far back as 2019. Personal seat licenses, fees ensuring the right to purchase season tickets, will be one of the new revenue sources in place at the new stadium.

Raccuia suggested to reporters that fee might be around $1,000, perhaps a little less, but he then added that once a fee is determined it will be in line with the community.

“This stadium is going to be built for the Buffalo Bills fans, for our community, and for our team. The main function of this stadium is to be winning football games. So, loud and tense. That's our fan base. We need them in the stadium, so we're not going to price them out for that very reason,” Raccuia said. “This is a unique and really exciting opportunity, because we get to build a football stadium for Buffalo, for the Buffalo Bills.”

Among the concerns addressed was bidding for construction jobs. A project labor agreement will be negotiated as part of the stadium deal. Poloncarz says any contractors — union and non-union — are welcome to bid, if they abide by the rules set within the PLA, including a percentage of jobs being held by minority and women-owned business interests.

“It does not preclude a non-union shop from putting forth a proposal. Remember, all the construction has to be done pursuant to the county's rules. So, lowest responsible bidding party that meets the MWBE web requirements of New York State and the county, and also the PLA requirements. So that'll be all part of it.”

Erie County Legislature Minority Leader Joseph Lorigo was among those expressing concern that non-union contractors would be shut out of the process. He also stressed the desire to have as many local workers on the job, saying they should have “the first bite at the apple.”

Lorigo was also asked by reporters about how the county would pay its share of the deal, using sources including revenue surpluses and bond sales. Lorigo suggested the more debt they can reduce, the better.

“From my perspective, I think we should be putting more money down,” he replied. “We know that we have a $150-$170 million surplus. I know from the county executive’s administration, that they're looking to put $40 million into fund balance. I don't think we need to do that much, especially when we have a one-time expense that we're looking at in terms of the stadium. We haven't seen any specific dollar figures on what the debt service is going to cost taxpayers over the next 20 or 30 years. If we can reduce that by putting more money down up front, it's absolutely something that we should be doing.”

The legislature will hold committee meetings next week, during which time more stadium talk is planned. Lorigo suggests the legislature could vote on whether the pass the MOU as early as its next full session, May 12.

Michael Mroziak is an experienced, award-winning reporter whose career includes work in broadcast and print media. When he joined the WBFO news staff in April 2015, it was a return to both the radio station and to Horizons Plaza.