Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - It appears a new stadium deal for the Buffalo Bills is coming down to the wire.
With the NFL Owners Meetings officially underway in Palm Beach, Florida and the New York State budget due on Friday, it is expected if a deal for a new Bills stadium were to be finalized and announced, it will be some time before Friday.
Bills owners Terry and Kim Pegula are currently taking in the NFL Owners Meetings to start this week, as they officially got started on Sunday and will through Wednesday. Just ahead of the opening for the NFL Owners Meetings, the NFL Stadium and Finance Committee voted to recommend the approval of a $200 million loan as part of the league's G4 funding program. This program helps fund new stadium projects, as well as stadium renovations across the league.
Now the loan will require 24 of the NFL's 32 owners to formally OK the movement during a vote scheduled for Monday.
Meanwhile, the New York State Legislature had yet to be introduced to any sort of formal information regarding a Bills stadium deal as of Friday. Many State Legislators are aware that conversations remain ongoing between the Bills, New York State and Erie County, and they are expecting something to come their way, as the three parties put together the final details of a potential deal.
"My hope, and our goal is to get this done by the time this budget is through to completion," said State Senator Tim Kennedy during an event in Lackawanna on Friday. "We want to keep the Buffalo Bills here in Buffalo, New York, where they rightfully belong. They're a part of the fabric of our community. We in our community deserve to have the Buffalo Bills here, and we don't want to see them go anywhere. So it's imperative that we get this done, and we get it done right. We're waiting for the Governor and her team to put the finishing details on that agreement, and it'll come before the Legislature."
Meanwhile, from the team's perspective of negotiations, they feel the process to get a deal done has been long, but has gone relatively well, to this point.
"We feel like we're in a very good spot, and we hope to have an announcement shortly on the future home of the Buffalo Bills," said Executive Vice President of Pegula Sports and Entertainment, Ron Raccuia.
While a proposal has not come before the State Legislature, Kennedy believes Gov. Kathy Hochul is going to present the agreement to Legislators when she feels it is necessary.
"When the final stamp of approval between the Bills and the state and the county is completed, it'll be presented to the legislature, I'm assuming, as a part of this budget negotiation," Kennedy explained. "As we negotiate everything in the final days leading up to the passage of the budget, which is all encompassing on every issue across the state, the Buffalo Bills' stadium should, I expect, to be a part of it."
Over the past several months, the parties in these negotiations have been talking over the potential for a new stadium deal to finally come to fruition. There were multiple dates during these negotiations that were hopeful times for a deal to be struck to replace Highmark Stadium, which has been the home of the Bills since 1973.
From the start, the writing was on the wall that Highmark Stadium eventually needed replacement as the home of the Bills. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell even made mention that a new stadium was needed to be in the cards for the Bills dating back to 2019.
However, when it came to get the ball rolling on discussions relating to a new Bills stadium, it was a change of office in Albany back in August that started the notion.
"Well, certainly Gov. Hochul taking her position helped tremendously. That, I think, is probably the key to the entire process," Raccuia said. "But really, we all went into this with the same goal in mind. That was to secure the Bills in Buffalo long-term, to replace Highmark Stadium with the new stadium, and to do this as quickly and as effectively as possible for all parties in a public-private partnership."
While speaking at an event in Lackawanna on Wednesday, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said that while there was no signed agreement between all parties yet, he was pleased with where everything was at in a 15-minute discussion. Poloncarz also made mention of the complexity of these negotiations, saying it has been a very complicated process to this point.
Raccuia shares the same sentiment as Poloncarz, relating to the complexity of talks for a new stadium for the Bills, saying there are a lot of moving parts between the Bills, the state, the county and also the NFL.
"This is something that is going to be in our community for the next 30-plus years. It's the largest single construction project in Western New York history," Raccuia said. "These projects take time, we pushed a pretty aggressive agenda, and I think even if, and when, the deal is done over the next few days, it may be as quick as any stadium deal has been done in the history of the NFL. Not sure, but usually they take multiple years. This one will probably come in at 10 months or so from start-to-finish. So we tried to push it as quickly as we can. We think we're going to be successful with that. The deadline is April 1, we'll get it done before then - as the Governor and the County Executive said, - and we'll go from there."
While talks of a stadium deal have gotten the support from local State Legislators in Upstate New York, there are certainly some questions relating to the stance of State Legislators in Downstate New York, and whether or not they will support the expected total for a new stadium in Orchard Park.
"I think there are different levels of support for the Buffalo Bills, depending on where in the state and what someone's political philosophies may be," Kennedy said. "But in the conversations that I've been having with folks in my conference, they've been generally supportive. So hopefully, we'll be able to get this done and done quickly."
As New York State is getting set to contribute to the building of a new Bills stadium, the NFL's role with the G4 funding is certainly an integral part of these talks.
"The G4 funding mechanism that the NFL has for all 32 clubs has been utilized in every stadium deal that's been done for, at least, the last 20-plus years at the NFL. They're a key component to it," Raccuia explained. "They're our business partner, they've been great partners to the county and the state. They have a big role to play, and hopefully that's all resolved very shortly."
As the owners will get set to vote on the $200 million loan to the Bills for the construction of a new stadium on Monday, Kennedy believes the NFL Owners Meetings is taking place at a time that works in favor and to the advantage of the State Legislature.
"I think timing is everything," Kennedy said. "The fact that the Governor, along with the County Executive and the Buffalo Bills, have all been negotiating in good faith and working to keep the Bills here for decades to come is all part of a final deal that will ensure that not only we keep the Bills here, but that the NFL is a part of it. The fact that the NFL is meeting while we're in the process of putting this budget together, I think it bodes well for keeping the Bills here."
As for what happens after a Memorandum of Understanding is signed between all parties and the state budget is approved, Raccuia says there's still a lot of work left to be sorted out.
"Erie County Legislature has to approve it. We have to work on the long-form agreements. The lease extension at Highmark Stadium, the new lease at the new Bills stadium, a project labor agreement, a construction agreement, certainly a community benefits agreement. All of those long-form documents still have to be completed, and hopefully we get those done over the next several months," he said.
According to her public schedule, Gov. Hochul is expected to be in Albany on Monday.
You can listen to our entire conversation with Raccuia below:
