After yesterday’s comments by the owners of the Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb responded (City of Cleveland). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
Bibb responds to Haslams’ allegations
ARTICLE UPDATED MARCH 19 WITH RONAYNE COMMENTS
Yesterday it was the owners of the Cleveland Browns, the Haslam Sports Group (HSG), accusing Cleveland city officials of “misguiding” its residents. Today it was Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb firing a return volley in kind.
“The Haslams yesterday made misleading statements about the diligent work the city has done over the past three years to revitalize the lakefront, protect taxpayer dollars, and keep football on the lakefront,” Bibb said in a written statement. “They want to squander taxpayer dollars to invest over a billion dollars into a domed stadium in Brook Park while openly violating state law.”
Bibb said the city of Cleveland offered nearly half a billion dollars to keep the Browns in the city, based on the Haslams’ original request for a transformed lakefront stadium – a plan they publicly committed to just two years ago. In the city’s press statement, a link to an official Browns blog post “Dee and Jimmy Haslam remain ‘committed to redoing’ FirstEnergy Stadium, upgrading City of Cleveland waterfront property.”
“It is disingenuous and insulting to say – as the Haslams do in their recent federal court filing – that the city doesn’t have a competitive plan for the lakefront,” Bibb continued. “In three years, we have raised an unprecedented $150 million for the lakefront, completed a lakefront master plan, created a waterfront development authority, and established new economic development tools to raise hundreds of millions more. The Haslam’s refusal to release their lakefront stadium transformation plan publicly is an affront to taxpayers.”
HSG appears to be winning support from state lawmakers for earmarking state tax revenues generated by the stadium to service $600 million in stadium construction bonds. The city of Brook Park also is showing support for serving as a conduit for capturing local taxes generated by the stadium amounting to about $480 million. Additional county taxes of roughly $120 million may not be forthcoming, however.
The Haslam Sports Group’s proposed Brook Park stadium and desired surrounding developments (HKS).
Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne expressed concerns today about projected tax revenues from admissions, income, parking, bed and car rentals plus bonding as well as concerns about the Haslam’s proposed business model.
“Assumed growth in local government revenues such as income tax, sales tax, and admissions tax as a result of the project does not contemplate losses absorbed by other communities,” Ronayne said.
HSG has pledged to match the public sector support with private investment. Total cost for the Brook Park enclosed stadium is estimated at $2.4 billion. That’s double The cost of refurbishing the existing lakefront stadium owned by the city of Cleveland. The Cleveland Browns’ lease there expires after the 2028 football season.
“The Haslam scheme pays for itself on the backs of fans,” Bibb said. “The Haslams need to raise your taxes, make it more expensive for you to attend games, and steal events away from downtown Cleveland to pay for their stadium. The Haslam stadium ploy raises more questions than it answers and makes wild assumptions that will crush taxpayers.”
He claimed the Haslam “scheme” relies on average ticket prices nearing $700, parking rates north of $100, increasing taxes for hotels, parking, and rental cars, and the assumption thousands of people will pay high rent to live in luxury apartments in the “shadow of the airport.”
“We have offered a viable proposal to keep the Browns playing on the lakefront in a reimagined stadium as the centerpiece of a huge lakefront development – for half the cost to the public of the dome in Brook Park,” Bibb said. “We have invested hundreds of millions in downtown Cleveland. The Haslam Brook Park scheme will burden taxpayers and damage downtown to benefit billionaires.”
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