BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - New York State Senator Tim Kennedy agrees there is a sense of urgency to reach a deal on a new stadium for the Buffalo Bills.
"We have a lease that's expiring," Kennedy said. "We recognize that there needs to be a new stadium built and renovations at the existing stadium are not going to help keep the Bills here for the next 20 to 30 years. This is going to be an ongoing conversation until we do build a new stadium."
The clock is ticking on negotiations for a $1.4 billion stadium. Pegula Sports and Entertainment Executive Vice President, Ron Raccuia, told WBEN renovations are not feasible because of fears the upper deck will no longer be usable in approximately five years. Replacing the upper deck alone is estimated to cost $500 million. Additional renovations to the stadium could bump the cost to nearly $1 billion.
"That just doesn't make any sense when you can do a new stadium and it will be more effective and sustainable long-term for not only the franchise, but the county and state as well," Raccuia said.
Raccuia also said PSE will not extend its current stadium lease with the county and state unless there is an agreement reached on the stadium. The lease expires July 2023. He said there has been no threat to leave Western New York but also gave no deadline for when an agreement needs to be reached.
"We're not even focused on that, yet," Raccuia said. "We're just committed to getting everybody together as quickly as possible to get to a solution."
Kennedy said he's not worried about the lease threat.
"They're just giving us the facts," Kennedy said. "We have to deal with the facts. Everybody recognizes the need for a new stadium to lock the Buffalo Bills here in Buffalo and Western New York for the future is a necessity. With that being said, I think right now the moment is upon us where we should have all sides together and those sides are in the moment working together to come up with a resolution to keep the Buffalo Bills here for the long term."
It's unknown exactly when the stakeholders, which includes PSE, county and state government, and the NFL, will meet again to negotiate. We were told by the spokesman for Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz that they will not discuss the negotiations in the media.
"No one is more committed to keeping the Bills in Buffalo than Governor Kathy Hochul, a long time Buffalo Bills fan," a spokesperson for Governor Hochul said. "Negotiations are ongoing and her administration looks forward to sharing details with the public as soon as negotiations are completed."
Questions remain about how much a new stadium would cost taxpayers. Public dollars are expected to be used to cover the overwhelming majority of costs. Kennedy said the numbers will evolve.
"We expect that that number is going to be over $1 billion, no matter what the final conclusion is on a new stadium," Kennedy said. "That's the going rate for any new stadium in any locality across the nation and for any sports team. The cost of doing business in the NFL is expensive, but what do we get in return? We get the fabric of our community, part of our identity not only in our nation but in the international community, and having an NFL team based right here in Buffalo, and it's the heart and soul of our community."
