With the news that a group of consultants for the Cuomo administration charged with evaluating potential sites for a new Buffalo Bills stadium has eliminated Niagara Falls from consideration, all we can say is, "thank God!".
Having the Bills play in Niagara Falls would be cool, there's no doubt about it. But it doesn't seem as if those pushing the move, including Falls Mayor Paul Dyster and County Legislator Jason Zona, have done a thing to weigh the financial implications of such a move.
Off the top, Erie County, the current home of the Bills, is on the hook for a multi-million subsidy every single year. Secondly, a new Bills stadium will cost upwards of a billion dollars. There is not a scenario in play under which the host county would not be on the hook for a significant portion of the bill.
Not a single story that I researched have either Dyster or Zona talking about the impact of such a move on the taxpayers of Niagara County, and that is irresponsible. In one piece in which Zona is discussing a resolution he sponsored to move the Bills to Niagara Falls, Zona is quoted as saying, "This is just a symbolic resolution that we don't want to lose our football team." That's cute. I'm sure the billionaires involved in the process of attempting to buy the Bills appreciate the hollow gesture.
The reality is that Niagara County can't afford to host the Buffalo Bills, never could afford to host the Bills, and this showboating makes those advocating for such a move looks like amateurs who have nothing better to do than waste the time of people who are important to the process.
On a somewhat related note, the Bills will once again torment their fans with another painful season that will see the team finish 6-10 and out of the playoffs for the 15th straight season. EJ is not ready for prime time, and drafting Watkins when you don't have a QB who can get him the ball will show to be an exercise in futility. The only reason they'll win six games is because of their D. Oh well, another lost season for the Bills and their fans is right around the corner.
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