Cleveland City Council Backs Browns Settlement Deal

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With a 13-2 vote tonight, Cleveland City Council authorized a proposed settlement agreement between Mayor Justin Bibb’s administration and the Haslam Sports Group (HSG), owners of the Cleveland Browns football team. The deal involved some last-minute negotiations as it wasn’t even on council’s agenda earlier today.

Council’s vote allows the Bibb administration to sign the $100 million deal and carry it out, starting in the coming days with the first payment of $25 million to the city for lakefront redevelopment. In total, $75 million from the settlement will be invested in downtown’s lakefront.

It also allows the Browns to leave Cleveland legally unscathed sometime after the 2028 football season for a planned $2.4 billion enclosed stadium in suburban Brook Park. The deal allows the team to stay downtown for up two years beyond its 30-year lease in the event construction of the new stadium is delayed.

Another $30 million from HSG will go toward demolishing the 1999-built Huntington Bank Field to expand a lakefront development site to 50 acres. Plans and developers for downtown’s lakefront, including the current stadium site, will be announced by the city in a couple of weeks.

According to sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the lakefront development will involve mixed-use development that’s heavy on residential, public spaces and a limited amount of commercial spaces. The sources said the proposed development will represent an investment of at least $1 billion.

Funds from HSG will join $134 million in local matching dollars from the city’s Shore-to-Core-to-Shore tax-increment financing and $20 million in state grants to provide more than $200 million in nonfederal funds for lakefront development. Agreements are still be finalized but not yet signed for another $130 million in federal grants.

But another $25 million from HSG that was proposed for downtown’s lakefront in the coming years will have $5 million added to another $20 million that was originally intended to go to Cleveland neighborhood improvements. In other words, city neighborhoods will get $25 million from this deal.

Opposing the settlement were councilmembers Mike Polensek of Collinwood in Ward 8 and Brian Kazy of Old Brooklyn in Ward 16. They argued that Bibb let off the Browns and the Haslams too easy and should have gotten more money from them.

Bibb originally told Council it was a take-it-or-leave-it deal. But he was willing to negotiate on redirecting $5 million of downtown lakefront money to the neighborhoods to get the deal passed. Neighborhood projects will be identified at a later time.

“Tonight, Cleveland took a decisive step forward,” Bibb said in a written statement. “I applaud City Council for passing the Browns settlement agreement – a historic and transformational agreement my administration worked tirelessly to negotiate with discipline, transparency, and a firm commitment to protecting our residents and our taxpayers.”

Bibb said that the deal did what he wanted, which was to protect the city’s general revenue fund and deliver value for Cleveland. That includes getting HSG to pay for the demolition of the stadium, including any cost overruns.

“This agreement does exactly that,” he continued. “It resolves longstanding issues, safeguards the city’s financial interests, and positions us to move ahead with clarity and purpose.”

Dave Jenkins, president of Haslam Sports Group, said the agreement continues his company’s investment in Cleveland and will help further a vision for a new, reimagined lakefront while also positively impacting all of Cleveland.

“As we’ve stated previously, we are extremely excited about the combination of a new vibrant lakefront, the Bedrock riverfront project, our new world-class enclosed Huntington Bank Field, and adjacent mixed-use development that supports Mayor Bibb’s critical vision for a modernized Cleveland-Hopkins Airport,” he said.

“These projects all reinforce our belief that Northeast Ohioans should have it all,” Jenkins continued. “We are confident that with continued collaboration, our region is set up for incredible growth and prosperity for generations to come.”

“Cleveland’s lakefront is on the brink of generational transformation – with sustained momentum around bold, equitable and climate-resilient redevelopment,” said David Gilbert, president & CEO of Destination Cleveland, the region’s tourism bureau.

“The initial infusion of $25 million from Haslam Sports Group will bolster momentum and support the city’s economic resurgence – funding enhancements to the area that entice essential private investment along our city’s lakefront,” Gilbert explained.

Support for the deal was also offered by the Port of Cleveland as well as the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the region’s chamber of commerce. It had supported the Browns move to Brook Park while also urging lakefront redevelopment, including the closure and repurposing of Burke Lakefront Airport.

Downtown Cleveland Inc. (DCI), a community development organization that vehemently fought the Browns’ move, was still opposed to the move. But it announced that it was time to redirect energies on filling a void to be left by the Browns.

“Downtown Cleveland stands united with Mayor Bibb in support of the $100 Million settlement agreement with the Haslam Sports Group,” said DCI President and CEO Michael Deemer.

“We have forcefully opposed the Browns’ move from the beginning, but this is no longer a battle of the location of the Browns,” Deemer said. “That was decided when the state allocated $600 Million to support the move, and HSG moved forward without County support.”

Among the groups to be joining the city in a couple of in making the announcement of who and what will fill the lakefront void left by the Browns will be the nonprofit North Coast Waterfront Development Corp. (NCWDC).

“With this approval, we can accelerate plans to transform the North Coast into a vibrant, accessible, people-centered destination – one that enhances public spaces, strengthens transportation connections, and supports year-round economic activity,” said NCWDC Executive Director Scott Skinner.

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