Buffalo, NY (WBEN) When it comes to a new stadium for the Buffalo Bills, it's all about the location and the the timing of a deal.
Barring a surprise, the location seems to be set as Orchard Park, based on comments made by New York Governor Kathy Hochul to WBEN Monday.
The timing, however, remains in question as Hochul widened the window of time during which a deal could be formalized.
Could there be a stadium deal reached soon between New York, Erie County and the Buffalo Bills? Governor Hochul offered a pair of timelines Monday, and one analyst says that's a reasonable time frame.
Jack O'Donnell of O'Donnell and Associates says that timeline sounds fair. "We know the governor will put out her budget proposal in early January, so having it by the end of the year will allow her to bring this up in the beginning. The state budget deadline is April 1st, so having a deal by March with money in place is a good idea," says O'Donnell.
But there's no way this will not be slipped into the budget under the radar. "Anything to do with the Bills or the kind of dollars we're talking about, there's going to be a lot of fanfare," says O'Donnell. "I think it's something she's committed to and it has the strong support of the WNY delegation, I'm pretty confident it's something that will be done in the state budget."
O'Donnell says with an increase in state revenues and federal money, now is a good time to get a stadium deal reached. "Not just from the infrastructure bill, but the COVID relief measure that was passed at the beginning of the year, that money is just coming in," explains O'Donnell.
O'Donnell says the precedent is there because the state has support similar venues in the NYC area.
Assemblymember Patrick Burke says the budget deal will not be passed without a fight. "I think it will be a fight no matter what. It's an unpleasant thing to do to use public money so we can build a new stadium so a billionaire can pocket more profit," says Burke. He says while it's a bitter pill to swallow, a more bitter pill would be to see the Bills leave town.
Burke expects pushback from the New York City delegation. He says there could be two different arguments. "If it becomes a New York City vs. Buffalo battle, I think we win that easier. If it becomes a matter of should we give money to stadiums because there's no real economic benefit for the community where it's being funded, that will be more difficult because we already know building stadiums with public money has little economic benefit," explains Burke.
Burke says the argument the state has funded money for sports venues for NYC does hold water when it comes to Buffalo. "That's an argument we are saying, along the line of don't get preachy now because you didn't mind when money was coming to your area, but you mind because it's coming to Buffalo or outside of New York City," says Burke.
When reached to comment on the governor's comments, Pegula Sports and Entertainment Executive Vice President Ron Raccuia stated:
"We appreciate the governor's comments this morning. There's a lot of work to be done and we continue those efforts."
