What do NFL fans who use wheelchairs want in a new accessible stadium?
Electrifying 80-yard bombs from a flame-throwing quarterback to a fleet-footed receiver.
A 300-pound lineman lumbering 50 yards to take a fumble recovery into the end zone.
A shutdown corner’s acrobatic fourth-quarter interception to ice a division championship with three seconds on the clock.
A strong-legged kicker piercing the uprights for 40+ yards out to win the Super Bowl.
Give it an open-air roof to provide a home team advantage in the always windy, frigid late-season Buffalo climate.
Make sure that facility has myriad food and beverage amenities with easy-to-reach counters, an excellent team store with wide aisles, larger-than-life video screens and premium club amenities for that once-in-a-lifetime splurge.
That’s what fans with disabilities want, and that’s what they’ll get. Because the Buffalo Bills teamed up with United Spinal’s Accessibility Services.
Building an Accessible Stadium that Surpasses the ADA
As anyone in the disability community knows, wheelchair-using football fans are as rabid as their nondisabled counterparts. The goal is a seamless, inclusive experience that places all fans with all types of disabilities at the heart of the action.
The Buffalo Bills get this. The storied franchise, now in its seventh decade, is committed to making the New Highmark Stadium a universally-designed, ADA-compliant pro sports venue where all are fully included.
The NFL franchise selected Populous, a world-renowned global architecture firm specializing in stadium and arena design, to serve as lead designer and architect of record on its new “Built for Buffalo” stadium project. In turn, Populous joined forces with United Spinal Association’s Accessibility Services team in a commitment to surpass the minimum requirements of the ADA.
This project is a dream come true for Buffalo native, lifelong Bills fan Dominic Marinelli, our Vice President of Accessibility Services.
“The Bills used us as its accessibility consultant when they renovated the present stadium several years ago,” says Dom. United Spinal helped the 1973 stadium to become ADA-compliant. “The team trusted us for the retrofit and renovation, so they called us for the new stadium.”
Every Aspect is Geared Toward Inclusion
The team wants to guarantee every fan has a clear view of the field. “One of the biggest things is ensuring a wheelchair user can see over a person standing in front of them,” Dom says. Even some new sports and concert venues have run into trouble when designers fail to account for this. “Our Marsha Mazz created the requirements for that. We are very versed in these things, so we work with lead architects, other accessibility consultants and the entire design team.” Marsha was with the U.S. Access Board for decades before joining United Spinal.
Dom is impressed with the Bills organization’s sincere dedication to seeking input from people with disabilities. The franchise demonstrates a genuine commitment to the community. “Accessibility isn’t an afterthought for them. Every aspect of their business is geared toward inclusion — not only stadium design. They have staff trained in disability etiquette, dedicated to accommodating fans with disabilities on game day. They hire people with disabilities.”
Dom says the team applies standards well above New York State’s requirements. “Before a shovel went in the ground, they had an inclusive meeting with the disability community. Executives from the team and Populous were there taking notes. Vice presidents and staff from various departments within the organization paid close attention to the needs of people with all types of disabilities.”
People wanted to know the number of accessible seats and their scattered locations. They asked where the paratransit drop-off would be. Will accessible paths to mass transit be ensured? How about details like captioning on video boards and lower concession service counters? Could an app be created for people with hearing disabilities?
The Bills Back Barrier-Free Access
The 60,000-seat, $1.4 billion, state-of-the-art open-air stadium will open for the 2026 NFL season. The New Highmark Stadium will be the biggest project ever built in Western New York, covering 1.5 million square feet on a 242-acre site, plus a 19,000 -square-foot ancillary technology building.
Kelly Seward, the Bills’ Manager of New Stadium Relations, commends the United Spinal Accessibility team’s expertise. “The project team is creating a stadium that embraces and celebrates the entire Western New York community,” she says. “Accessibility Services has been great about coordinating input from a broad base of people in our local disability community.”
The New Highmark Stadium will feature numerous inclusive innovations from pedestrian entry points to seating to concessions. The main concourse and entries are located at grade to reduce vertical transitions and enhance accessibility. “This has been an inclusive and collaborative approach from the start, and the team takes great pride in that,” says Seward.
Among others in the organization, John Polka, the Bills’ Vice President of Stadium Development, and Andy Major, Vice President of Operations, continuously learn and identify improvement areas based on fan feedback. The project team is incorporating that valuable community input into constructing a new, highly inclusive facility.
Scott Radecic, a senior principal at Populous, was a linebacker for the Bills for three seasons in the late 1980s. “We are grateful to be able to collaborate with United Spinal’s accessibility team early in the stadium’s design process,” said Radecic. “This expertise allows us to keep accessibility as a core design principle of this project, an important goal of Populous and the Bills organization.”
“Scott would always donate his time to Eastern Paralyzed Veterans,” says Dom of the organization that today is United Spinal. “They had a poster of the Bills linebackers with the caption, “These backers don’t just back the line, they back barrier-free access. When I met with Scott, he had that poster on the wall. It shows that it wasn’t just lip service.”
Every Accessible Seat Will be a Good Seat
“Being a person with a disability, I am in the largest minority group – one in four people will experience some type of disability in their life,” says Natalie Barnhard. She received the 2021 Finn Bullers Advocate of the Year Award at our Roll on Capitol Hill event. “When you have a spinal cord injury, you do not want to stop doing what you love. So, you hope your city and team are accountable. I want to see inclusion as essential, not an afterthought, or something a facility was ordered to do.”
Natalie leads the Western New York Chapter of United Spinal and has used a wheelchair for 16 years. She started the Motion Project Foundation and founded the Buffalo-based Natalie Barnhard Center for Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation and Recovery – an inclusive gym for intense, activity-based exercise programs.
A Bills fan, Natalie is encouraged that the new stadium will have more accessible seating and be easier to navigate than the current facility. She is happy Accessibility Services has boots on the ground, ensuring access in every form.
“Many concert venues are problematic because the moment people stand up, you can’t see the performer. Older venues also tend only to have the accessible seating way in the back,” she says. “Because United Spinal is part of this, I know that sight lines will be addressed, and accessible seating will be dispersed through all sections. Having an accessible stadium where everyone can enjoy the game and amenities equally is the definition of inclusion. Hopefully, the finished product will be very inclusive.”
As a United Spinal chapter leader, Natalie will likely be among the first wheelchair users to visit the new venue. Whenever possible, United Spinal ensures all its local chapter leaders and members receive invites at properties it advises.
This Isn’t Our First Ballgame
“This isn’t our first football stadium or huge pro sports project,” says Kleo King, Senior Director of Accessibility Operations & Counsel at United Spinal. “We’ve done large-scale projects in all the major sports. We know the requirements of state and local codes and the Americans with Disabilities Act and are intimately familiar with how all people use a facility. We are enhancing the fan experience in every way, including wayfinding that helps people with disabilities to find entrances, elevators, accessible restrooms, concessions – everything.”
Accessibility Services constantly pushes for more inclusion. Kleo gives the example of New York City requirements for lowered bar seating. The existing regs lacked specificity, which resulted in the accessible spots being pushed off to the side. They were isolated from others and became de facto server pick-up stations.
“Dom and I worked on the New York City building code that came out last fall. Now the accessible seating must be in the middle third of the bar – so the wheelchair spaces are not isolated,” says Kleo. “The Yankees did this, and our stadium clients are doing this now.”
She noted that Universal Design helps everyone, as ramps and smooth surfaces benefit everyone, from parents pushing strollers to tourists pulling luggage. “Accessibility Services ensure things being constructed or renovated are accessible to people with disabilities, including our members.”
Accessibility Services’ expertise has ensured access to new and retrofitted classic venues. Some of these are Citi Field, Yankee Stadium and Madison Square Garden in New York City, Mercedes-Benz in Atlanta and Hard Rock in Miami.
Less Waiting and Crowding
The new Bills home strives to get wheelchair users to their seats and other parts of the stadium quickly.
“There not only will be wheelchair-accessible spaces in every range of price points, but also wheelchair access in club seating areas to the owner’s suite,” says Dom. “The transition from parking to the stadium will be safe and fully accessible. It’s not like there’s an access-only portion, and the rest is inaccessible.”
Details are still to come on the mix of options and check-out methods for concessions and retail markets in the new stadium. However, they will prioritize accessibility to ensure all fans can access and enjoy the amenities without barriers or limitations.
“We always try to sell clients on immersive inclusion,” says Dom. “With the Bills, there is no trying to convince. They bought in from the start.”
The stadium will feature wheelchair charging stations strategically placed in accessible seating areas. The modern facility will also incorporate extensive wayfinding, providing valuable assistance to individuals with low vision or other disabilities. A comprehensive publication outlining the diverse range of accessibility features will be published before the venue opens.
United Spinal’s Accessibility Services team has long lobbied for safe, accessible adult changing areas. Despite the absence of a national requirement for inclusion in the New York state code, the New Highmark Stadium will take a proactive approach by incorporating these facilities.
Anticipation Builds for the New Accessible Stadium
“Although the foundation work has just commenced, the Bills have already committed to conduct a walk-through of the stadium at approximately the midway point of construction,” Dom shares. “This walk-through will not only assess progress for wheelchair users but include testing of the assisted listening system. It will also ensure ticket windows are accessible, and verify the functionality of all technology well before the first kickoff. No aspect will be overlooked.”
As the construction progresses, the anticipation for the new Buffalo Bills stadium continues to grow. Fans with disabilities eagerly look forward to the day they can enter the remarkable facility. They will find that every detail has been meticulously designed to ensure an exceptional game-day experience for all.
We envision A world where people with SCI/D and all wheelchair users can realize their full potential and live life at its fullest. Join us and subscribe to our newsletters to become involved. The photo at the top of the page is by Bill Wippert/Buffalo Bills. and the photo of Gabriel Davis in front of the Touchdown screen is by Craig Melvin/Buffalo Bills. The rendering of Highmark Stadium at night is courtesy of Populous.
