With a 30-year commitment secured for the Bills to remain in Buffalo, the Jaguars are now the only NFL team since the franchise’s inception in 1995 to not build a new stadium or undergo a major renovation.
Not just for the No. 1 draft pick April 28, but also being in the on-deck circle as the next NFL team primed for a stadium makeover of TIAA Bank Field. After the state of New York and Erie County announced a $1.4 billion private-public partnership Monday,, league eyes will soon turn their focus on the Jaguars.
In December, the Jaguars hired and engaged eight different sports architects to come up with designs for a renovated TIAA Bank Field. Team president Mark Lamping said the team outlined 19 mandatory items among a list of requests. That included shade on all seats, better vertical transportation to upstairs areas, wider concourses and enough seating capacity for the Florida-Georgia game without putting up temporary seats.
Buffalo’s agreement on the $1.4 billion venue will require New York taxpayers to shell out $850 million, which translates to 60.7 percent of the total cost. That’s a record amount for public subsidy of any NFL stadium, shattering the mark set last year of $750 million that Nevada taxpayers gave the Las Vegas Raiders toward building Allegiant Stadium.
“There are things the public [taxpayer] doesn’t have to do in a big market that, unfortunately, they have to do in a small market,” said Lamping. “How much should the [small-market] team put in [on a stadium], they already can’t compete with big-market teams in terms of revenue? Lee says the money is only for a new venue, not a renovated Nissan Stadium, because he wants Nashville to be able to host a Super Bowl, NCAA Final Four and World Cup matches.
From a timing standpoint, Buffalo had the benefit of chasing taxpayer dollars when the Bills were coming off back-to-back playoff appearances. Fans in western New York are feeling more optimistic about the team’s future than at any point in the last 25 years. “I’ve admired the Bills Mafia. When you have a passionate fan base like that, which is national, and you go to these other stadiums, you come back and want the same experience for your home team.”
On the other side, the Jaguars will point to the taxpayer subsidy for the Bills’ new stadium and argue, as Lamping did, that small-market teams need more public funding because they lack the revenue streams of big-market clubs. With New York governor Kathy Hochul — a Bills fan and native of that city — aiding the cause, Buffalo’s franchise received substantial taxpayer assistance. It’s no guarantee the Jaguars would get 60 percent from taxpayers, or if the team would ask for that much, of whatever the price tag turns out to be for a renovated TIAA Bank Field.
“That’s rooted in our belief that Jacksonville is the best place for the Jaguars and the Jaguars are very important to Jacksonville,” said Lamping. “If you start with that premise, then you have confidence you’ll be able to get to a solution.
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