By Kyle Silagyi / Billswire.usatoday.com
The Buffalo Bills’ precarious stadium situation has lingered over the heads of Western New York residents for years.
It looks as though it’s going to linger a bit longer.
According to WGRZ, the team’s ownership group does not intend to release the results of its privately funded stadium study to the public.
Pegula Sports and Entertainment, the owners of the Bills and NHL’s Sabres, hired CAA Icon to conduct a comprehensive stadium search in November 2018. PSE tasked the independent consulting firm with “[assisting in] its efforts in determining the next steps for the Buffalo Bills stadium and for potential renovations of KeyBank Center, the home of the Buffalo Sabres.”
According to Buffalo Business First’s Paul Lane, CAA Icon is roughly halfway done with its initial study. PSE expects to receive the findings of its study in late 2019 or early 2020, per Lane.
A company spokesperson later told Lane that they do not plan to share the information with the public.
The results of the study will likely be paramount in deciding the future of New Era Field. The venue, which currently houses the Bills, broke ground in 1972 and opened in 1973.
It’s currently the league’s sixth-oldest venue. After the Rams and Raiders move into new homes next year, ‘The Cap’ will be the NFL’s fourth-oldest facility
The results of the study will help PSE determine its course of action when it comes to the Bills’ stadium, whether it should renovate the team’s existing stadium or construct a new facility elsewhere in Western New York.
The group has made extensive renovations to New Era Field since taking ownership of the team in 2014, pouring $350 million into “venue upgrades and expansion.”
Replacing the stadium entirely is also a possibility. A venue situated in Downtown Buffalo has been rumored for decades.
All options are on the table at this point. PSE executive Ron Raccuia said that the company has not “eliminated one single thing” while speaking to reporters Thursday, according to Lane.
What CAA Icon deems to the most suitable course of action regarding the future of the Bills’ stadium remains to be seen.
The public will just have to wait a while to see it.