Pegula Cancels Operating Contract At Rochester’s Blue Cross Arena

Just when you thought it would be a quiet week on the sports news front, there has been a bevy of news coming from the sports teams and their associated corporations lately.

Western New York is still coming to grips with the idea that Stefon Diggs, the star wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills, is no longer a member of the hometown team after being traded to Houston in exchange for considerations in the NFL Draft. This change at One Bills Drive will surely impact how things are operating for the Bills. We're hearing about some changes with the Pegula-controlled sports company in Rochester.

READ MORE: I Was Wrong About Stefon Diggs and the Buffalo Bills

According to the Rochester Business Journal, Pegula has exercised a clause to relinquish management and control of Blue Cross Arena in Downtown Rochester.

Pegula Sports and Entertainment, which, in addition to owning the Buffalo Bills, Buffalo Sabres, and Buffalo Bandits, owns the Rochester Americans and Rochester Knighthawks in Rochester, New York, and controls Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester. Under a subsidiary company, Rochester Arena, LLC, Pegula Sports and Entertainment has operated and managed the nearly 70-year-old arena since July 2018, when they took control from another company. The contract between the City of Rochester, the official owners of Blue Cross Arena, and Rochester Arena had an opt-out clause allowing Pegula to get out of their contract early.

READ MORE: James Cook Bringing Youth Football Camp To Rochester

While no one from PSE has given an official reason for canceling the contract, officials from the City of Rochester and Rochester Arena LLC have pledged that this change will have no bearing on the two Rochester sports teams playing in Rochester and that the teams are committed to the Flower City.

With this announcement on Tuesday, April 2, 2024, The City of Rochester is now seeking a qualified individual or company to come in and run the more than 255,000 square-foot arena. Originally built in 1955 as War Memorial Arena, the city owns the more than 10,000 seat arena and makes it available to the citizens of Rochester.

Companies looking to apply to operate Rochester's Blue Cross Arena can find a copy of the Request for Proposals here. Pegula will continue to operate through April 2025, plus an additional 6 months to help the new operator during the transition.