Buffalo Bills Strike Agreement for a $1.4 Billion Taxpayer-Funded Stadium

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Ms. Hochul, a Democrat, just announced the deal four days before the state budget is paid In Albany, it offers state legislators a relatively small window to scrutinize the details of the state portion of the funding they must ultimately decide whether to approve.

The subsidy will make the already full state budget negotiations even more contentious. some left-wing Democrats from the lower state already scribbling public finance as corporate welfare.

Indeed, negotiations for a new stadium have reignited a heated debate over whether the government is in the business of subsidizing arenas for professional sports teams; Economic research has found that sports stadiums rarely have a significant, if any, effect on overall economic growth.

Public subsidies in the form of tax breaks and free land were used to fund the construction of arenas for the New York sports teams, but many teams, from the Yankees to the Mets, financed most of the costs themselves. Playing in New Jersey, the Giants and the Jets paid for nearly all of their stadiums that opened in 2010.

Negotiations also sparked doubts over whether the Bills would leave New York without a large government subsidy, but the owners never threatened to eliminate the team.

The Bonds belong to Pegula Sports and Entertainment, a company run by Terry and Kim Pegula, a wealthy western New York-based couple; According to Forbes, Mr. Pegula, who made his fortune through fracking, has a net worth of $5.8 billion.

The new outdoor stadium, which would be built across the street from the Bills’ current home in Orchard Park, a Buffalo suburb, would have just over 60,000 fans, about 10,000 fewer than the existing stadium. But overall it will have a larger footprint and include around 60 box suites, a more lucrative source of revenue for teams.



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