NY Sen. Ryan outlines priorities for Bills stadium community benefits agreement (Spectrum News)

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- All negotiating parties appear to agree at this point a new Buffalo Bills stadium will be in Orchard Park.

"We would like to have the Bills to have a little more presence in the city," state Sen. Sean Ryan, D-Buffalo, said. "We're not going to have the stadium in the city but maybe we can bring the Bills back to the city."

Ryan, whose current constituency includes Orchard Park and parts of Buffalo, has six priorities for a community benefits agreement he hopes will be included in a final stadium agreement. Among them, he's raising the general concept of a community fund to support residents of Erie County which he suggest could include team events at the old city stadium, the Rockpile and youth enrichment programs.

"We hope that this spurs a conversation prior to approval about what we can do combined with the Bills and the state and the county to make sure that we have something going on for the parts of the community that may never afford to be able to attend a Bills game," he said.

The lawmaker said the agreement should also ensure stadium employees receive a living wage and the right to unionize. He also addressed those workers who will build the facility.

"We want to make sure all the construction jobs are union jobs," Ryan said. "The more we can do with local hire the better off we're going to be. We want to keep that money in our economy."

Finally, he said the agreement should make sure fans and employees can reach the stadium by public transit, that any sewer upgrades required due to storm runoff don't fall on ratepayers, and Orchard Park police are compensated for any increased staffing needed to manage traffic on game days.

"We know we're getting closer to an end but we want to make sure these important items are added in that would definitely make approval a lot easier," Ryan said.

He has not been in the room during negotiations but says he's communicated to the governor and senate leadership these issues are important.