Residents and community advocates around the former home of the Buffalo Bills are imploring the team to invest in the area the team left behind more than 50 years ago.
They’re asking that the Bills use funding committed annually by the team to support community initiatives that will help build up Buffalo's East Side, including the Jefferson Avenue area and the Fruit Belt, where the team used to play before moving to Orchard Park in 1973.
Bills pushing back on call for release of new stadium workforce information
Members of the Community Benefits Oversight Committee are focused on their desire to find out the number of contracts that have been awarded so far on the $2.1 billion new stadium project to companies that were under $50,000 and under $25,000, but the Buffalo Bills are pushing back on the release of that information.
They say since the Bills left War Memorial Stadium, nicknamed the Rockpile, the area around the former stadium has only deteriorated.
Buffalo is one of the poorest cities in the U.S., with a 28.3% poverty rate, and tens of thousands of people in the city struggle to provide for their families and pay bills and for groceries, advocates said. That is a common problem on the East Side, according to residents.
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“We’re still waiting for you to come back and come help us where you left us,” said Dennice Barr, an advocate for the Fruit Belt, during a public hearing Tuesday hosted by the Community Benefits Oversight Committee in the Frank E. Merriweather Jr. Branch Library.
“Even at these levels of poverty, we’re still supporting the Bills, and we need that same commitment from you,” she added.
CBA oversight committee public hearing
Penny Semaia, vice president of stadium relations for the Bills, makes a presentation before the public had its opportunity to chime in Tuesday night. Michael Petro
The public was invited to talk about priorities the team should focus on when it spends more than $3 million annually on local initiatives over 33 years, covering the construction of and a lease agreement for a new $2.1 billion stadium in Orchard Park. The team reported spending around $3.6 million on these community initiatives in the first year of its Community Benefits Agreement.
Nearly two years after the CBA tied to the building of the new stadium was signed, this was the first time the public got a chance to chime in about how the team should be investing money into the region. The Bills community investment is expected to total more than $120 million over 33 years.
Speakers also asked the Bills to use their community investment to prioritize youth and youth programs, activities and employment, housing opportunities, transportation – both around the city and from Buffalo to the stadium – homelessness, neighborhood improvements and street paving, cultural initiatives, creating a clearer process for applying for the funds, and better dissemination of information about meetings and opportunities for the public to share their views.
More than 20 people spoke during the over two-hour program in a near-packed Dr. Eva M. Doyle Auditorium inside the library. Many were from organizations supporting causes such as youth employment and training, stopping human trafficking, providing educational opportunities in the city, dressing young men with suits and aiding troubled women in need.
Oversight committee requests more details for Buffalo Bills' future community spending
The Buffalo Bills have submitted a report about the $3.7 million the team says it put into community commitments during the first year of the Community Benefits Agreement tied to the new stadium, but the committee overseeing the process wants more details and a better understanding of the process.
One speaker asked the Bills to do more to support and fund training for the Orchard Park Fire District, which is the only volunteer district to protect an NFL football stadium. Another encouraged the team to do more to recognize the Seneca Nation and its history.
Annette Lock, executive director of operations for The Salvation Army in Erie County, said there will be some people – many from marginalized communities – who never get to enjoy the stadium. Some are people who have been left behind in “Buffalo’s renaissance,” she said.
“They’re not concerned about whether the stadium has a dome, they’re more worried about the roof over their own head,” she said.
Bills using data analytics to provide more community spending details
After reviewing the first year of Community Benefits Agreement-related spending by the Buffalo Bills, oversight committee members asked for details on where and why the money was spent in certain places, a breakdown of how much was given to specific groups and what its impact is in certain communities and for the groups and organizations being aided. The Bills are developing a new metrics process to break down the investments and parse out each one’s community impact.
The request of the public for the Bills to invest more in the youth of the area was one of the loudest calls during the meeting.
Residents say some young people do not have everyday essentials, such as food and transportation, and also have challenges with education, employment and mental health.
“Our youth are seriously struggling and in need of support,” resident Devan Patterson said.
New digs
Buffalo Bills fans tailgate in the parking lot before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, with the new stadium construction as a backdrop. Derek Gee/Buffalo News
Transportation is also a major issue, with city residents reporting having a difficult time navigating public transit to even get to the stadium.
“It’s not a good look,” resident Diann Takens said. “It shouldn’t be that hard to get to the Bills stadium for a home game.”
Rachel Rzayev, general counsel and project manager at CB-Emmanuel Realty, called for larger capital investments by the Bills into housing and mixed-use development that could help revitalize city areas.
Some residents called for more community engagement to help get information out to the public.
“Be on Jefferson, and talk to the community,” resident Renetta Graham said. “We deserve the information.”
Local developer Ben Upshaw said he speaks to people from city neighborhoods who remember a vibrant and busy Jefferson Avenue when the Bills played in the area. But that all went away when the team moved, he said.
“I can’t express the hurt,” Upshaw said. “It’s going to take years of investment to make up for the years of disinvestment.”
The public’s comments will help shape the recommendations the committee makes to the Bills, but the team has the final say in determining where the funds are allocated each year.
“We want to make sure we hear you,” said Rev. Mark Blue, chair of the oversight committee.
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