Archives for March 27, 2014

‘The challenge is that those managing the trust will have fiduciary duty to get the highest return possible for Wilson’s estate, and it’s almost certain that the highest return will be had from somewhere other than Western New York.’

‘”We normally tell people like Ralph Wilson, ‘Do not sell the team if you’re getting old because the appreciation is tremendous,'” said Daniel S. Hoops, an attorney who specializes in estate planning and is a professor at Walsh College in Michigan, where Wilson’s estate is likely to be settled.’

‘”A lot of what he did was behind the scenes,” said Candace Johnson, deputy director at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. “He has given over $11 million to medical institutions, and Roswell Park was fortunate to get $2 million to fund innovative research projects as seed money. That was parlayed into another $10 million to $12 million for those projects.”‘

‘He was a sweetheart of a man who thoroughly enjoyed a sweetheart deal. I’ve never viewed that as greed, as many others did. For me, he was like many wealthy people. They’re not hooked on money itself or what it provides them. Money is their way of keeping score. In professional sports, that doesn’t work for me. Winning does.’

‘”Jim Kelly’s condition remains very treatable and potentially curable,” Dr. Costantino said. “Our immediate focus is on controlling his pain and beginning the process of eradicating the cancer.”‘

‘The lot holds about 100 cars, although the owner is said to be looking to use adjacent lots. Parking will cost $10.’

‘”We all know they have a lease. We know the terms of that lease, and we also know we have to find a long-term solution to keep the Bills there,” said Goodell, who was born in Jamestown. “That’s what we’re going to continue to work to do, but that’s not our priority now in the next few days.”‘

‘”They’ll be there for seven years, and it’s really incumbent the Bills, the state and Erie County to work hard to keep that team there beyond seven years because that team means so much to western New York and New York state,” Duffy said.’

‘For now, rather than focusing on what could happen, people across the region should look back at what happened on Wilson’s watch. He was an example of a businessman with high integrity, a breed that’s disappearing. Wilson, an original owner in the American Football League who was later instrumental in its merger with the NFL, said what he meant and meant what he said. Whether that was about keeping the Bills in Buffalo, taking an unpopular stand on a league collective bargaining agreement or giving generously to local charities or institutions such as St. John Fisher College, Wilson’s word was his bond.’

‘Indeed, it occurred to me that loyalty, probably Ralph’s most admirable trait, often proved his undoing in the early years.’

‘Now, with Mr. Wilson gone, it’s time for all the stakeholders to pay a fitting tribute to his legacy. State and county leaders, the NFL, the Bills front office along with those who will be tasked with overseeing the estate owe it to the late owner to show the same loyalty he did.’

‘While the lease agreement settled last year keeps the Bills in Orchard Park for at least the next seven years, the prospect of a new owner has to be a scary proposition for fans.’

‘Yet, when the news hit me and as I devoured every bit of media coverage of his passing in the hours after the news broke, it was difficult not to get choked up about Wilson’s legacy as a person, regardless of where his team takes up residence in the future.’

‘”I think Mr. Wilson’s legacy will be even more impressive and more respected as time goes by. People beyond Buffalo don’t realize what he did for the region. It’s folks outside of western New York that don’t realize the impact of his loyalty.”‘

‘In the end, all things measured, Wilson did the one thing that really matters in an Upstate region that has lost so much. He stayed.’