The article is published as part of an exclusive content-sharing agreement with neo-trans.blog.
After the first image of a renovated Huntington Bank Field on Downtown Cleveland’s lakefront was publicly released today by Cleveland Scene, local officials are asking why it and other images weren’t released sooner by the owners of the Cleveland Browns so that the public could have a more informed opinion on which stadium plan to support.
Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne, who has been leading the charge for renovating the lakefront stadium for $1.2 billion, said he did not release the rendering. He has opposed the plans by the Browns owners, the Haslam Sports Group’s (HSG), to build a new stadium and supportive development for $3.6 billion in suburban Brook Park, which is also in Cuyahoga County.
“They should show their plans,” Ronayne told NEOtrans in a phone interview. “It’s only fair that you (HSG) should show your plans so the people can make a decision.”
A week ago, Ronayne sent a letter to state lawmakers asking them to provide $350 million for a renovation of Huntington Bank Field. He noted that it was the same amount that Hamilton County leaders and the Brown family, owners of the Cincinnati Bengals, were asking for from the state to renovate the 2000-built Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati.
HSG sources confirmed the image that was published today was legitimate but said it was “almost three years old.” The Browns 30-year lease at the city-owned lakefront stadium expires after the 2028 football season.
“As we have consistently communicated, we methodically explored the lakefront renovation for several years, and it became abundantly clear that putting any money into renovating the current open-air stadium is a short-sighted, short-term fix that will only create the same issues down the road and also will impede the City of Cleveland’s opportunity to finally re-imagine the lakefront,” said HSG Chief Operating Officer Dave Jenkins in a statement emailed to NEOtrans.
“We haven’t had substantive renovation discussions in months and have never been presented with a viable funding plan for a renovation from Cuyahoga County or the City of Cleveland to pair with our private investment,” Jenkins added.
Not everyone. Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin said he wants the lakefront stadium renovated, too, for the betterment of the city and the Greater Cleveland region.
“I’m glad that it (the rendering) is out there,” Griffin said, adding he didn’t release it. “People can actually see that it complements the existing lakefront and actually has more usage and connections to the existing lakefront than the Brook Park plan does to its surroundings. Ergonomically, this design is less affected by the elements than the current stadium.”
He said more time, money and effort should be spent on developing existing clusters of activity like Downtown Cleveland to keep the central business district strong rather than furthering urban and suburban sprawl.
HSG has said its lakefront stadium renovation plans, which it paid for, were proprietary works. So that’s why it hasn’t released them, even though the stadium is owned by the city.
Ronayne said that numerous public officials have been shown this and other renderings of the proposed renovation of the existing Huntington Bank Field but were asked by HSG to not share them.
In fact, NEOtrans has learned that in some meetings, especially with state officials who are being asked to approve $600 million in taxpayer-supported bonds for the Brook Park stadium, extra efforts were undertaken to ensure confidentiality.
Two state lawmakers told NEOtrans off the record that, prior to a meeting in April 2024, HSG representatives and their lobbyists asked them to leave their phones outside the meeting room so that no pictures could be taken of the plans they were being shown and shared with the public.
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