Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne wants to keep the Cleveland Browns Downtown.
In a letter to Browns owners Jimmy & Dee Haslam, Ronayne and County Council President Pernel Jones Jr. said moving the team to the suburb of Brook Park “does not make fiscal sense” for residents and taxpayers.
Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin followed with a statement supporting the letter.
"Maintaining the Browns' stadium at the core of our central business district is absolutely critical — not merely for sports, but for the economic vitality and communal spirit of our city," Griffin wrote.
Ronayne and Jones said they would hold a Monday press conference at 1 p.m. to discuss the team's future.
Later Sunday, the Haslams responded with a statement that called the entire process “incredibly complex.”
“We have been reminded many times that the issues with the current stadium resulted from a rushed process that was not thorough and don’t want that repeated,” they wrote. “We have received the county’s response and are still in the process of gathering information and doing diligence on both paths.”
The statement continued, “It would be short-sighted for Northeast Ohio to rule out any options at this point for a long-term decision of this magnitude.”
Opened in 1999, Cleveland Browns Stadium underwent some renovation work in 2014 and 2015. The Haslams say renovating the facility, on Lake Erie, would cost around $1 billion.
On Aug. 1, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb offered a $461 million package of public money to incentivize the team to stay put for another 30-year term when its lease expires in 2028. He requested a response from the team by Aug. 12. On Aug. 5, he released renderings of lakefront redevelopment, both with and without the stadium.
Two days later, the team released renderings of its alternate plan: A new $2.4 billion domed facility in Brook Park, built on the site of a former Ford plant near Cleveland Hopkins airport.
Dave Jenkins, COO of the Haslam Sports Group, which owns the team, wrote at the time that the team had considered all possibilities.
"We acknowledge that a move to Brook Park may have a near-term impact on downtown," he wrote. "We believe that the year-round activity of a domed stadium can still positively impact the downtown economy, particularly when coupled with the possibilities of a reimagined lakefront absent the stadium."
The team plans to fund half of the Brook Park price tag with public money. Yet Jenkins also wrote that the Browns were "not looking to tap into existing taxpayer-funded streams, which could divert resources from other pressing needs."
Instead, he said, the team would work on "innovative funding mechanisms with local, county, and state officials."
In the letter sent Sunday, Ronayne and Jones wrote that it was "in the best interests of our community to prioritize reinvestment in existing public assets." In his Sunday statement, Griffin called a Downtown stadium a "catalyst for job creation."
The Haslams did not respond to an Ideastream request for comment prior to their statement on Sunday, which read that they were awaiting a response to questions about Mayor Bibb’s proposal.
A spokesperson for Ronayne said he would not be available ahead of the Monday 1 p.m. press conference.
The full letter from Ronayne and Jones reads:
August 11, 2024
Dear Jimmy and Dee,
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to you and your team for engaging in a candid and constructive dialogue over the past year regarding the future of the Cleveland Browns in Northeast Ohio. Throughout our conversations, you have been clear about the two primary options under consideration - renovating the current stadium in Downtown Cleveland or constructing a new domed facility outside of the downtown core.
Today we are writing to affirm our united commitment to keep the Browns in Downtown Cleveland for generations to come.
The proposal to build a new stadium in Brook Park does not make fiscal sense for Cuyahoga County residents and taxpayers. Moreover, any proposal that would create an unacceptable risk to the County’s general fund cannot be considered. We believe it is our responsibility and in the best interests of our community to prioritize reinvestment in existing public assets.
Over the last decade, we have seen billions of dollars of investment into Downtown Cleveland and it is our belief that a strong, vibrant downtown core is critical to our region. Working together, we can expand on the many public investments that have already been made including Progressive Field, Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, the Hilton Hotel and the Huntington Convention Center, and private investments including the new Sherwin Williams headquarters, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame expansion and the Flats East Bank. A renovation of the downtown stadium will build on those investments and anchor future development on the lakefront.
We acknowledge this transformational investment is about more than just dollars and cents. The stadium is more than just a venue. The team represents the heart and soul of Northeast Ohio and reinforces our community's identity and pride. Browns fans have a deep-rooted emotional connection to the team's rich history in Downtown Cleveland.
We look forward to partnering together on the next era of Cleveland Browns football in Downtown Cleveland.
Go Browns!
The Haslams countered with this statement on Sunday afternoon:
A stadium project that could be a transformational opportunity for this region will take deep thought, objectivity, innovation, and patience. The process of renovating or building a new stadium is incredibly complex. We have been reminded many times that the issues with the current stadium resulted from a rushed process that was not thorough and don’t want that repeated. We have received the county’s response and are still in the process of gathering information and doing diligence on both paths. It would be short-sighted for Northeast Ohio to rule out any options at this point for a long-term decision of this magnitude. We look forward to the City of Cleveland’s responses to our detailed questions regarding their proposal from last week and we remain committed to collaborating and communicating with all parties involved. Working together and keeping an open mind while thoroughly vetting this project is critical to achieving the goal of finding and executing the best long-term, sustainable stadium solution for this region."
