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Summary
- Buffalo Bills have signed a deal with Erie County to develop new stadium valued at $1.45 billion
- Erie County officials have 30 days to review the contract and approve the same
- The major funding of this new stadium will come out of the pockets of taxpayers
The Buffalo Bills have played their home NFL games at the Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park since 1973. There were discussions of carrying out renovations at the Highmark Stadium for the Bills to continue to play at their home stadium but the estimated costs for renovation were too high.
Buffalo Bills Sign $1.45 Billion Contract For New Stadium
The Buffalo Bills were told in Nov 2021 that renovations to the Highmark Stadium would cost them an estimated $862 million. As a result, there were talks of developing a new stadium and those talks are now coming into fruition as the Bills have signed a new stadium contract deal with Erie County.
The new stadium deal between Erie County and the Buffalo Bills is estimated to be around $1.45 billion and will required the Bills to lease the new stadium and make it their home for the next 30 years. Erie County legislature now has up to 30 days to review the new contract and approve the same.
The location for the new stadium is just across the street from Highmark Stadium and was initially estimated to be around $1.4 billion. The costs have now gone up by close to $100 million for the 60,000 seat open air stadium. By the start of the NFL’s 2026 season, a vast majority of the construction work is expected to be completed.
Tax Players Will Pay For The Stadium
Erie County was very keen on retaining the Buffalo Bills and is likely to approve the contract during the next 30 days. The vast majority of the $1.45 billion in funding will come from the pockets of New York tax payers who are set to contribute $850 million. This makes it the biggest tax payer funding for any NFL stadium facility.
The contractual lease states that if the Buffalo Bills should relocate from the new stadium before the 30 year period, the Bills will have to pay back all public funds within the first 14 years of the contract.
The Bills released a statement and said they were pleased with the new stadium contract and are confident of carrying out a ground breaking ceremony in spring.
