Mar. 6—Documents submitted by the city to a federal agency in 2022 suggest Mayor Robert Restaino’s administration would be banking on $122 million in state funding to help build his proposed arena and “events campus” known as Centennial Park.

The documents, acquired by the newspaper through a Freedom of Information Law request filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, also list as part of the total project budget $28 million in “equity,” which would be the city’s estimated share in the total cost.

To round out the project’s total estimated budget of $165 million, the documents indicate the city would rely on $10 million in the form of a “developer loan” and another $5 million from various “private partners.”

In an interview with the Niagara Gazette, Restaino said the “developer loan” is actually the amount the city hoped to obtain at the time through a federal loan it investigated as a possible avenue for covering land acquisition costs for the project.

As the Gazette previously reported, the mayor said earlier this month that the administration no longer intends to apply for the loan and will instead seek to enter the bond market to borrow the funds needed to purchase 10 acres of land for the project from the private firm Niagara Falls Redevelopment.

Restaino described all of the numbers submitted to HUD as “hypotheticals.” Since publicly announcing plans for Centennial Park in 2021, he has repeatedly said it will take substantial buy-in from the state to get the project built.

While the mayor and other city officials have said in the past the project could cost at least $150 million, they have not identified a specific amount to be obtained from the state.

At this stage of the development process, Restaino said it’s still too early to give a precise dollar amount for what the state’s share might end up being. He said in his discussions about the project with members of the Western New York delegation to the state legislature, he was told state officials would be better able to engage in talks about possible financial support for Centennial Park if the city secured land for the project first.

“We will be primarily looking to the state to assist us with this construction,” he said. “That was my whole purpose for going before the state delegation.”

When asked if Gov. Kathy Hochul ever told Restaino to pursue land for the project in advance of state funding talks, a spokesperson referred the newspaper to comments she made when asked about the matter by a reporter from the newspaper during a Dec. 18 press conference where she celebrated the opening of the new Niagara Falls State Park Visitors Center.

At the time, Hochul said her office is “very interested in the mayor’s vision,” noting that the state has committed $75,000 toward a Centennial Park feasibility study.

“That study is not completed yet,” Hochul said. “So, there’s still a process to go forward before a decision on any state funding or, we’re obviously very supportive of economic development in Niagara Falls as well. These opportunities don’t come every day, so all I can say to you right now is that we’re analyzing it, but very interested to see what the feasibility study reveals and what his vision is and what the cost would be.”

Restaino and other Centennial Park supporters have also said they envision the project’s development as being more of a public-private partnership.

City officials have suggested the site could accommodate not only concerts and other events but also high school, college and perhaps minor-league professional hockey games.

Restaino described Niagara University as an “active partner” in ongoing discussions. The Seneca Nation of Indians has also been mentioned as a potential supporter and possible financial contributor.

The mayor argues that having activity inside the proposed arena, which he would like to build on NFR’s 10 acres located off John B. Daly Boulevard near the intersection of 10th and Falls streets, would spur higher visitation and spending among tourists and locals, creating a “spill-over effect” for downtown hotels, businesses and restaurants.

“If you’ve got that facility and there’s something going on down there, then a lot of these other entities are going to be active as well,” he said.