2 weeks Ago
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Half a century ago, the Rockpile was the home of the Buffalo Bills , and Jefferson Avenue was their community.
But in the decades since, a lot has changed, and even more change is on the horizon with the construction of the new Highmark Stadium. Now, the Bills’ original community wants to make sure they’re a part of it. “We're still there.
We're still waiting,” one community member said Tuesday night. “We are still waiting for you to turn around and come back to our neighborhood and come and help us where you left us.” That’s what filled an auditorium Tuesday night for the first public hearing on the Bills’ Community Benefits Agreement hosted by the Community Benefits Oversight Committee.
The agreement vows to make sure no community is forgotten and that taxpayers will see more than just wins on Sundays for their $850 million chunk of the Bills’ new $2.1 billion stadium. Despite the new Highmark Stadium still looking more like a construction site than a field ready for game day, the agreement is already underway.
The Bills proved Tuesday that they’re making good on their promises, showing that they’re over their goals of contracting women- and minority-owned businesses and just slightly behind when it comes to service-disabled veteran-owned businesses. “We're very proud of the opportunities that we're working in collaboration with these businesses,” said Penny Semaia, Bills VP of Stadium Relations. But the Jefferson Avenue residents were still not fully satisfied.
"There's a point in time where you have to be able to stand up and say, we made a mistake, and we are sorry that we made a mistake, and we have to rectify that,” a resident said. They want to see the Bills make a special effort to remember the home that they once left behind and dedicate resources specifically to the community on Jefferson Avenue. “That’s a lot of money,” another resident said.
“If you just break off a piece of it, not only this year, but next year, and the year after, the quality of people's lives in this neighborhood would be drastically different.”.
