Bills fans share concerns over PSL prices; team says people responding ‘positively’
BUFFALO, (WIVB) — Some Bills fans are getting sticker shock over the proposed cost of personal seat licenses (PSLs) at the new stadium.
“For us to keep our seats that we’ve had for 60 years, it’s a 60-percent price increase,” said Bills fan Derek Cain.
Cain’s family has owned four season tickets since the 1960s. They’ve been passed down through generations, but that’s now coming to an end after he said they learned they would be paying a total of $40 thousand for PSLs.
“$40 thousand up front for anybody, we live differently now, but in Western New York – we’re not sitting on that,” Cain said.
Don Clark and his wife Beth have decided they will continue their season tickets in the new stadium. They’ll be paying $20 thousand for two PSLs in the club level.
“When you break it down, it’s $66 per game. That’s for two tickets,” Clark said. “That’s how much it’s costing me for basically 10 games a season for the next 30 years. When I looked at it like that, yeah it’s an annual investment, but it’s not that much money per game.”
For them, he said the overall cost made sense, but he understands other fans’ hesitation.
“It’s easy to see it’s just all about money at this point,” Clark said. “Unfortunately, a lot of people are not going to be able to get tickets in the new stadium that have been there for years, and that’s really sad.”
Longtime Western New York civic leader Kevin Gaughan is joining the calls that something must be done.
“The NFL, about two weeks ago, decided for the first time to allow teams to sell interest to what’s called hedge funds and private equity firms. That opens access to people like Terry [Pegula} to hundreds of millions of dollars,” Gaughan said.
“Against that backdrop, I think he should look there as opposed to Western New York fans who have already given $850 million, who are facing a fragile economy, who are closing schools, closing places of worship, looking at local property taxes skyrocketing; they shouldn’t also bear the pressure that PSLs are exerting.”
Gaughan penned a public letter to Terry Pegula, urging the Bills’ owner to drop PSLs for general admission season tickets, and rescind the 10-percent-plus interest charges on PSL purchase loans.
“By virtue of accepting $850 million – almost a billion dollars – by the toil and sweat and work of Western New York working families to build a new home for his business, in my judgement, renders Mr. Pegula a form of public servant and vested with moral obligation to not do any harm to an already fragile economy,” Gaughan said.
The Bills say many fans seem to be fine with the PSL process. A spokesperson said Wednesday marked the first day for general seating appointments at the Stadium Experience Center in the Walker Center in Amherst, and that on the first day of these appointments, 74-percent of those fans purchased PSLs.
“We’re thrilled that Bills fans are responding so positively and that the reserve seat process is pacing even better than the club seat waves, which sold remarkably well,” a Bills spokesperson said in a statement. “This is just phase one of our lower bowl sales process, and we are confident that there will be a variety of price points and experiences for all of our season ticket members.”
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