ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — When major league sports venues are built in New York, they almost always undergo a thorough environmental review before a shovel is put in the ground.
That was the case for Yankee Stadium, Citi Field, Barclays Center and USB Arena in New York City.
And it was the case for KeyBank Center and Sahlen Field in Buffalo, as well as other minor league baseball stadiums around the state,and a 14,000-seat soccer stadium in Rochester.
Yet Erie County officials are poised to give Pegula Sports and Entertainment and the Buffalo Bills a free pass — called a negative declaration — for the 60,000-seat stadium the team plans to build in Orchard Park, effectively skirting New York’s environmental review law.