In the end, the deal wasn’t as bad as western New York taxpayers might have expected. Rather than be on the hook for $1.1 billion to build the Buffalo Bills a new stadium, they’ll only owe $850 million.
That means the public is slated to fund roughly 60 percent of a stadium whose primary benefit will be to an owner whose net worth is estimated at $5.8 billion. Terry Pegula’s overall contribution to the project will be an estimated $550 million — $150 million of which comes via forgivable loans from the NFL itself. His team won’t be responsible for nearly $13 million annually in upkeep costs, either; that falls on the state of New York.
The proposal was unanimously approved by NFL owners because, yeah, why wouldn’t it be, it’s a sweet deal. It anchors the Bills in Buffalo — or, more accurately, Orchard Park since building a stadium downtown would have cost an estimated $350 million more in land acquisition — into the 2050s. It also creates the backdrop for Pegula to increase his already massive wealth without the specter of becoming a local villain by credibly threatening to move the team.
Governor Kathy Hochuli is lauding the deal as a success, because she kinda has to. In her exclusive interview with the Buffalo News, she noted the cost “is far less than anyone had anticipated,” and that it will keep the New York’s only NFL team in the Empire State into the foreseeable future rather than fulfill the extremely hollow threat of a possible move to…
