Erie County approves stadium funding, clearing final hurdle for Bills' new home

The final hurdle toward the financial side of the brand new Buffalo Bills stadium has been cleared. On Thursday, Erie County lawmakers voted to approve the memorandum of understanding for their portion of the agreement.

In March, the NFL owners voted to approve the financing for owners Kim & Terry Pegula to move forward with their part of the agreement. That’s a $200 million loan that will be repaid through the ticket sales for away teams at the stadium over the next couple decades.

Later that month, governor Kathy Hochul announced that New York State had reached an agreement to fund $600 million of the project. In April, lawmakers in Albany approved the governor’s budget—which included the necessary funding.

The final piece of public money was $250 million from Erie County. That was approved Thursday.

The Pegulas will contribute $350 million in private money to the $1.2 billion project, but the majority of the owners’ portion will come from fans in the form of Personal Seat Licenses (PSLs) that give the holder the opportunity to buy season tickets.

The team has already begun groundwork at the new location, which is across the street from the current stadium, in anticipation of the final approvals.