BillnutinHouston Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 (edited) Can someone explain how Batavia is in the mix as a potential new stadium site? I keep thinking this is a joke but it continues to be in the conversation, at least in media reports. I will grant that Batavia has land and good Thruway access, but what else? How does a Batavia site add to Buffalo's or Niagara Falls' critical mass for economic development purposes? How does it entice popular or corporate support from Southern Ontario and put a stake in the heart of Toronto's NFL ambitions (which in my opinion is critical to the long term survival if a Buffalo franchise)? Edited May 13, 2014 by Beerball Edited title for clarity
PearlHowardman Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Batavia would work perfectly for those of us here in the 'Cuse. As a matter of fact, if the stadium was in Batavia, all of the games would sell out. The populations of Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse would easily fill the stadium. But Niagara Falls is the best spot for this team.
MarkAF43 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Batavia would work perfectly for those of us here in the 'Cuse. As a matter of fact, if the stadium was in Batavia, all of the games would sell out. The populations of Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse would easily fill the stadium. But Niagara Falls is the best spot for this team. Niagara Falls has horrible infrastructure that cannot support the traffic flow on gameday. I don't see how any location in NF would be suitable for a new stadium.
taglientep Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 because It has the room to put a stadium with plenty of parking. has its own small airport that can ;and a big plane. I think it should go downtown near the hockey arena
May Day 10 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 this moving the team 10 minutes closer to Toronto idea to get people to go is hogwash. I used to drive 7 hours to go to games. NFL is a Sunday all-day event. The distance traveled is fairly secondary. Its not like an MLB or NHL team where there are many games and a lot take place on weeknights. Niagara Falls would allow me to ride a bike to a game... but no way I want a stadium there. I would rather drive 20 minutes to Orchard Park as opposed to getting stuck in Niagara Falls, USA and breathing the toxic medley. With that said, Batavia seems like a longshot as well. Unless maybe there is a lot of cheap and/or public land there that would allow for all they need. I dont think Erie County lets this team/facility out of their domain without a fight though.
papazoid Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Batavia will NEVER happen. can't blame them for trying.
drinkTHEkoolaid Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 If they are moving to Batavia they might as well just stay in orchard park
RJ (not THAT RJ) Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 The more I think about this, the less likely it appears to me that the stadium will be anywhere outside Erie county. All talk of regionalization aside, this is a basic economic reality. The county has put in too much money for too long to allow stadium revenues (such as they are) to slip away, and neither Niagara nor Orleans county has anywhere near the population/political juice to force Erie out. Something in northern Erie County (near UB) would solve many of the transportation issues, and have plenty of highway access, but I also think it likely that something in the Lancaster area, near the Thruway, will get attention. Ironically, probably close to where that mythical early dome was intended to be.
Homey D. Clown Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 But Niagara Falls is the best spot for this team. I couldn't disagree more, and there is absolutely nothing that could possibly support such a claim.
kasper13 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Buffalo to Batavia is 40 minutes on the Thruway BUT there is one small entrance/exit in/out of town. That would be a horrific scene on game day. So then you are talking adding thruway exits. There is also a toll. Adds a couple bucks and time to the drive. It's just a bad idea.
May Day 10 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 (edited) It seems like they are just leaving all possibilities open until proven unfeasible. It seems like this engineering firm will cut the list down to 4 realistic sites this month. From there, they will have a better picture of where a stadium will/can go and what type of facility. Then of course a new owner will be free to pursue other locations, however, they would likely be volunteering significant cost out of pocket (for example Pegula dead-set on a downtown stadium). I still say that common sense leads me to a significant rebuild of the current facility or building a new facility in an adjacent lot. Land and infrastructure is there. That's a huge head start in financing this thing. Of course, the biggest obstacle in a rebuild/renovation is there would be nowhere for the Bills to play for a season (Carrier Dome? is the only possibility) Unless they can complete construction between the AFC Championship Game and, say October 1st (preseason in Syracuse and 1st 4 weeks on the road). Edited May 13, 2014 by May Day 10
K D Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Buffalo to Batavia is 40 minutes on the Thruway BUT there is one small entrance/exit in/out of town. That would be a horrific scene on game day. So then you are talking adding thruway exits. There is also a toll. Adds a couple bucks and time to the drive. It's just a bad idea. just 1 of many ways to get there (33, rt 5, back roads, etc). i dont think it would ever happen but it would help unite Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse. and if you assume that Toronto will EVENTUALLY get a team (jacksonville or st louis perhaps) then it would make sense to make the stadium accessible to WNY instead of Canada
MarkAF43 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 just 1 of many ways to get there (33, rt 5, back roads, etc). i dont think it would ever happen but it would help unite Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse. and if you assume that Toronto will EVENTUALLY get a team (jacksonville or st louis perhaps) then it would make sense to make the stadium accessible to WNY instead of Canada I know I only have 2 measly season tickets, but if this ever happened, or a move to NF and I will be done with my season tickets. I will stay home and watch tv. I've driven to Batavia many times using the routes mentioned, and it's not a fun trip, now have 60-70K people leaving? no thanks.
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 I couldn't disagree more, and there is absolutely nothing that could possibly support such a claim. Absolutely Nothing? There is a lot of support for the claim. You may not agree but a new stadium at the falls has a number of supporting arguments from a lot of smart people. I have yet to see any good arguments against other than the Erie county thing.
MarkAF43 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Absolutely Nothing? There is a lot of support for the claim. You may not agree but a new stadium at the falls has a number of supporting arguments from a lot of smart people. I have yet to see any good arguments against other than the Erie county thing. Niagara Falls does not have the infrastructure to support the amount of gameday traffic in and out of a stadium in the falls. All it would take is one accident on the GI bridge and traffic would be backed up for hours.
KevinInThe781 Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Just think, every section would have a "Batavia Party Zone" sign
Tsaikotic Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 (edited) not that I want them in Batavia, but i could see a benefit to it...one of the biggest things about the Bills games is the tailgating...stadium in such a big un-used area would give them land to do things like camping area for RV's, tents and such for ppl that want to make a whole weekend event from it...park area's and pavilions...might sound lame but wherever they put the new stadium I hope they think about the tailgating and try to make that part of the game better... @ KAsper13...the toll paying and time is what most Bills fan from outside Buffalo (in the US at least) have to do to go to a game now, so no empathy from us out-of-towners...I wont add Canada in that cuz I don't know what they have to do to get to a game..well besides go thru a border crossing(YUK!) ...anyways, I'd rather they stay in or near Buffalo, add to the tailgating experience and maybe get closer to the thruway....I do feel bad for all the ppl that live near the stadium now and will lose all the tradition they have for game days...I know I see those ppl in a hot tub across the street from the stadium most times I go to game ( depends on wich side of stadium I drive in on)....ah and the loss of $ ppl get from yard parking Edited May 13, 2014 by Tsaikotic
bonechiller Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 Batavia seems to be fun to talk about but, it ain't happenin'. They would have to pay the hefty fee of ~400 million to get out of lease with Erie county. If that was paid, I think Batavia is the last place they would choose, may as well go to Toronto or LA.
Tsaikotic Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 (edited) Batavia seems to be fun to talk about but, it ain't happenin'. They would have to pay the hefty fee of ~400 million to get out of lease with Erie county. If that was paid, I think Batavia is the last place they would choose, may as well go to Toronto or LA. true..anywhere outside of Erie County probably wont happen...I don't live there so I have no idea what that county encompasses Edited May 13, 2014 by Tsaikotic
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted May 13, 2014 Posted May 13, 2014 (edited) Niagara Falls does not have the infrastructure to support the amount of gameday traffic in and out of a stadium in the falls. All it would take is one accident on the GI bridge and traffic would be backed up for hours. Funny how people can only see things in a vacuum. Infrastructure is not an infinitely fixed liability. Investment in a new stadium and supporting commercial/entertainment complexes gives the very reason to do something about it... Edited May 13, 2014 by over 20 years of fanhood
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