The Buffalo Bills are responding to criticism over various issues at their new stadium — including partially obstructed sightline concerns — by addressing them case by case, the team announced Monday.
The criticism stems from fans getting their first full experience inside the $2.1 billion Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York, during the Bills’ annual Blue and Red practice on Saturday night. Though the Bills said a majority of the feedback was overwhelmingly positive, a few complaints arose, which team president Pete Guelli termed as coming from less than 1% of the personal seat licensing holders.
One of the larger concerns was seats with obstructed views, with several photos emerging on social media.
The team said at least one photo taken by The Associated Press was from seats that were not placed on sale for football games. The seats were in the last row of Section 417 of the northwest corner of the stadium, and the view of the far end zone was mostly blocked by the outcropping of the press box.
A team official said those seats could be used for other events taking place in the stadium, such as concerts, where the view would not be obstructed.
Other photos showed seats where views were partially obstructed by railings and staircases.
During the seat sales, prospective ticket buyers were given a virtual tour of the stadium that included visuals of what their view of the field would resemble.
The team said it will review each complaint and use “the next six weeks to refine any details,” in leading up to the Bills’ regular-season home-opener against Detroit on Sept. 17.
Next up for the Bills are two home preseason games, starting with the team hosting Carolina on Saturday.
The stadium’s design was influenced by the home of Tottenham Hotspur of soccer’s English Premier League, which also hosts NFL games in London.
Bills owner Terry Pegula was impressed, noting that there are very few bad seats in Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The same, the Bills said, would apply to Highmark Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 60,108.
