Good Morning, Buffalo: Cost of new Bills stadium increases to $1.54 billion, officials say, as new renderings are released

Cost of new Bills stadium increases to $1.54 billion, officials say, as new renderings are released

Buffalo Bills executive vice president/chief operating officer Ron Raccuia’s excitement level for the planned 2026 opening of the team’s new stadium recently ratcheted up when he was emailed the latest set of seven renderings.

“It’s increasing a lot,” he said during an interview with The Buffalo News at the NFL’s annual meeting inside the Arizona Biltmore. “We’re closer to reality now.”

Also increasing: The projected cost of the stadium.

All signs continue to point to an imminent agreement among the team, the state and Erie County and Raccuia projects a ceremonial groundbreaking within 30-45 days, but he told The News on Monday that the new cost is $1.54 billion and the Bills are responsible for the $140 million overrun.

In Buffalo, County Executive Mark Poloncarz talked with reporters about the higher cost. Poloncarz stressed it won't cost taxpayers any more money because the terms of the stadium deal cap public contributions toward the project.

– Ryan O'Halloran and Sandra Tan

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WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT

Historic upstate theaters seek dedicated funding from New York State lawmakers: Historic theaters in upstate New York add cultural vitality to downtowns and boost local businesses, but because they are large and around a century old, they're costly to maintain. A state budget request would reduce the theaters' economic burden and help ensure their viability through annual, dedicated funding. Read more

'Like a human calculator': Amherst fifth grader wins state chess tournament: When Bryan Lin started taking chess classes, his instructors assumed he had played before. But he hadn't. And now the fifth grader from Amherst has won the state scholastic chess championship. Read more

Judge dismisses misdemeanor charge against former Buffalo Sabre Tony McKegney: McKegney, 65, was accused last year of violating an order of protection by calling and emailing a woman. He initially faced felony charges, which were reduced to a misdemeanor in the fall. Read more

WIVB meteorologist Todd Santos signs new deal, returns to full-time role: A year after expressing a desire to have “flexibility” to have more time with his wife and three young children, WIVB-TV (Channel 4) chief meteorologist Todd Santos has signed a new three-year contract that gives him a better work-life balance. Read more

WEATHER

Don Paul's weekly forecast: Disappointing, but not a total loss: Tuesday will be a small step up, with partial clearing brightening the sky, though temperatures will remain seasonably cool, in the upper 30s-low 40s. Wednesday starts bright, breezy and cool, but finishes poorly with mixed snow and rain ahead of an approaching cold front, writes Don Paul. Read more

FOOD & DRINK

At Extra Extra Pizza, Five Points gets Brooklyn-style pies: What does it take to thrill a pizza-crazy town? Introduction of famed styles from far-off lands just might work. In this case, pies fashioned in time-honored ways handed down from generation to generation, in the wilds of Brooklyn. Three veteran restaurant workers envisioned a Brooklyn slice shop where they would work for themselves, not pad someone else’s pockets. So they opened Extra Extra Pizza at 549 W. Utica St. last year, with help from the Westminster Economic Development Initiative, developer Frits Abell and others. Read more

BUFFALO NEXT

Cummins to invest $452 million in Jamestown engine plant: In one of the biggest economic development projects to hit Chautauqua County in years, engine manufacturer Cummins Inc. plans to invest $452 million to upgrade its massive Jamestown Engine Plant so it can produce new engine block platforms that can handle diesel, hydrogen or both. Read more

Buffalo's Evergreen Health sues state to halt controversial change to Medicaid pharmacy program: Only days remain before the state Health Department implements a long-planned – and controversial – overhaul of its Medicaid pharmacy benefit program. If the change goes forward as planned, it could cause a disruption to a crucial federal funding stream for safety-net community health providers such as Buffalo-based Evergreen Health. That's why Evergreen and Heritage Health and Housing, a federally qualified health center in Harlem, on Friday filed a lawsuit against the Health Department and Acting Health Commissioner Dr. James V. McDonald, seeking a temporary restraining order to halt the implementation of a policy that was originally planned under former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Read more

Douglas Jemal wins approval for Elmwood-Bidwell project: Washington developer Douglas Jemal won final approval for his revised Elmwood-Bidwell project Monday evening, after he and his team conducted a full-court press in the past two months to meet with neighbors, explain the proposed project, make adjustments to appease concerns and ultimately try to overcome some of the opposition. Read more

BILLS

Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott says plan is for him to call defensive plays: McDermott told reporters Monday at the NFL owners meetings that the current plan is that he will be handling the play-calling, which has seemed like the most likely scenario since the news broke on Leslie Frazier at the NFL scouting combine. Read more

SABRES

Observations: Lukas Rousek gets first NHL goal as Thompson-less Sabres fall to Habs in shootout:  Winger Lukas Rousek, summoned from Rochester because Tage Thompson's upper-body injury forced the Sabres' No. 1 center from the lineup for the first time this season, scored a goal on his first NHL shift and added an assist in Buffalo's 4-3 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens in KeyBank Center. Read more

Buffalo Sabres' Ilya Lyubushkin sitting out warmups on Pride night for safety concerns: Fearing retribution at home in Russia, Lyubushkin elected not to participate in pregame warmups Monday night in KeyBank Center when the team wore Pride-themed jerseys in support of LGBTQ+ communities. Read more

PHOTOS

#EveryDayAPhoto: Check out our photo series each morning to see our favorite image of the day.

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