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Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne has submitted a request for $350 million in state bonds to fund the renovation of the existing, city-owned Huntington Bank Field on Downtown Cleveland’s lakefront. He says it is a fair, affordable request that’s on par with what Cincinnati is seeking to rebuild its own existing football stadium.
The move is offered as an alternative to the Haslam Sports Group’s request for $600 million in state bonds to help them build a $2.4 billion enclosed stadium in suburban Brook Park. Either stadium would host home football games of the Cleveland Browns, owned by HSG, and other events after the summer of 2029.
And if state officials say no to HSG’s request for $600 million, Ronayne’s request would serve as back-up plan, although Ronayne doesn’t see it that way. He considers the lakefront stadium renovation renovation the foremost option, according to a letter he sent to Ohio Senate President Robert McColley and Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio.
“As the Senate deliberates on the operating budget and considers the unprecedented request by Haslam Sports Group for $600 million in bonds for the new domed stadium proposal, you need to know there is a better, and less expensive option for the stadium,” Ronayne wrote.
Renovation of the existing stadium renovation isn’t as time-sensitive as the HSG’s plan for the Brook Park stadium. Construction on that stadium has to get underway next year for it to be open into for the 2029 football season. That means getting financing settled for the Brook Park by this summer.
The Browns' 30-year lease to play at the lakefront stadium expires after the 2028 NFL season. But that could be extended if the Brook Park stadium financing plan fizzles. The city will insist on extending that lease for the long-term, rather than just a few more years that could give HSG more time to come up with financing for Brook Park.
And, Ronayne said his state funding request is virtually identical to what Hamilton County leaders are seeking to renovate Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati, which is where the NFL Cincinnati Bengals play their home games. Both teams play in the NFL’s American Football Conference North Division.
“Fair is fair,” he wrote. “The two NFL teams in Ohio, both in the AFC North Division, should receive an equal sum for stadiums that are comparable in age, structure, and location on downtown waterfronts.”
Ronayne has long believed that HSG has inflated estimates of Brook Park stadium revenues and hospitality activities resulting from stadium events. Taxes from those revenues and activities would be captured by city- and state-enacted tax increment financing districts to service stadium construction bonds.
“In Cuyahoga County, we remain concerned about the risks associated with unrealistic event projections and inflated revenue estimates, the potential dissolution of state income tax as a funding stream for state bond repayment, aggressive assumptions for parking and admissions taxes, an increase in the bed tax directed to a single project and the creation of an unprecedented countywide car rental tax on our residents,” Ronayne added.
State budget officials in both the executive and legislative branch have expressed similar concerns. Those concerns came to light this week in two separate memos that were released to the public.
Gov. Mike DeWine’s Office of Budget and Management Director Kimberly Murnieks called the bond financing plan “risky” and said the state “doesn’t have the capacity” to fund the stadium and its other capital budget priorities. The Legislative Service Commission echoed similar concerns about the stadium-development revenue estimates as “overly optimistic.”
An HSG spokesperson told NEOtrans that both of those budget assessments “contained several inaccuracies and misinformation several inaccuracies and misinformation.” The spokesperson said HSG continues to move forward with its plans for the Brook Park stadium.
IHSG touted the new stadium as the centerpiece of a sports-entertainment district including restaurants, retail hotels and housing. It would also offer the “Furthest east dome in the United States” and host large events that could draw visitors from the East Coast. But earlier this week, the Washington Commanders NFL team and Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington DC announced they would build a new domed stadium in their city.
Ronayne said there are other potential internal and external costs resulting from a Brook Park stadium that either haven’t been taken into account or are still being determined. Thus he said it would be premature to make a decision about funding a new stadium when those impacts haven’t been addressed.
“We continue to have unanswered questions regarding ongoing capital repair funds, facility ownership, un-attributable infrastructure costs and impacts on municipal budgets, and public safety and healthcare response times in Brook Park and surrounding communities,” he wrote in the letter to Senate leaders.
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