Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown is awaiting a more than $40 million payday to the city of Buffalo following an agreement reached between New York State and the Seneca Nation to end their legal battle and pursue a new gaming compact.
"My administration and the state was confident all along that this money would be paid to the state and the host municipalities," stated Brown in city hall Thursday morning. "We believe that after any deductions the city will receive over $40 million."
Brown said the city had previously received payments of about $7.5 million from casino revenue sharing.
Mayor Brown expects the payment to come to the city as soon as within two week and says the city has a strategic plan on how to utilize the funds for quality of life issues and projects in the city of Buffalo. The funds will be reflected in the upcoming new city budget, says the mayor.
Throughout Brown's tenure in city hall, the relationship between the state and Seneca Nation has been challenged and twisted in legal challenges and a five year stalemate ends with the agreement reached and announced last night.
When asked about the timing of the agreement between the parties, Brown acknowledged that a changing tide in gambling policies and legislation in the state may have played a role, along with politics. “Maybe it coincides with Governor Hochul.”
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