The Haslam Sports Group, owner of the Cleveland Browns football team, is expected by multiple sources to make an announcement by the end of this month that they’ve decided to go with building a new covered stadium in suburban Brook Park (HKS Architects). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
City offered Burke Airport but would take too long
It seems that the clock has run out on city of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County leaders on keeping the stadium downtown for the Cleveland Browns football team’s home games. NEOtrans has learned that the Browns’ owners, the Haslam Sports Group, are due to make an announcement soon, possibly by the end of this month, that they will put all their efforts into building a new covered stadium in suburban Brook Park.
NEOtrans has confirmed that Cleveland officials had offered the 245-acre Burke Lakefront Airport as the site to build a new stadium, supportive developments and Haslam-controlled parking. It was an alternative to reconstructing the existing, open-air Huntington Bank Field on downtown’s lakefront for up to $1.2 billion. The city offered the Haslams $461 million in public financing to rebuild the city-owned stadium.
Burke appeared to be the final attempt to keep the Browns downtown and from going to Brook Park, to a 176-acre site where an auto plant stood at 18300 Snow Rd. It is across State Route 237 from the city of Cleveland and Hopkins International Airport. There, the Haslams plan to build a new $2.4 billion covered stadium plus $1.2 billion in development on vacant land to which the Haslams have a purchase agreement. NEOtrans was first to report on the Haslams pursuing the Brook Park site.
The Haslam Sports Group wants to move forward on a stadium now and is willing to fund half of the stadium’s construction costs. Although it has yet to publicly issue a final decision to go forward with Brook Park, the Haslam Sports Group has been increasingly and publicly leaning that way.
“While significant work remains, the more we have explored the Brook Park option, the more attractive it has become,” said Dave Jenkins, chief operating officer of the Haslam Sports Group and Cleveland Browns, in a letter to the team’s fans published in early August.
The Haslam Sports Group’s vision for the Brook Park site includes much more than a new covered stadium. It also includes supportive development like hotels, housing, restaurants, shops and entertainment. This aerial view looks northward from the Snow Road site with Hopkins International Airport at left (HKS Architects).
Only the timing of an announcement may be at issue now. It appears that the Haslams are waiting for the right moment to make that announcement although that’s been complicated by the on-field performances by the football team. NEOtrans asked Peter John-Baptiste, chief communications officer for the Browns and the Haslams, for comment but has yet to hear from him.
Burke Lakefront Airport was rejected as a stadium/development site for multiple reasons. To close Burke would take up to 12 years and cost tens of millions of dollars, according to a study released by the city a month ago. The study was circulated privately among city officials for months but reportedly was released publicly last month as city and county officials sought to keep the Browns downtown.
Waiting for Burke to be ready for redevelopment would also likely require making interim repairs to Huntington Bank Field. An October 2023 stadium audit by Osborne Engineering said the stadium’s building systems will need $117 million in capital repairs over the next 10 years. The Browns’ lease at the stadium ends after the 2028 football season.
“They (Haslams) have a sense of urgency,” said Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin when asked about Burke versus Brook Park. “They want a decision fast. They do not want to wait and prolong a decision.”
Cleveland City Hall Press Secretary Marie Zickefoose opened but did not otherwise respond to an e-mail from NEOtrans seeking comment on the reports that the Browns may announce their decision on Brook Park imminently. Mayor Justin Bibb and his administration have said throughout their negotiations with the Haslams they are keeping their options open on keeping them downtown.
The Huntington Bank naming rights to the football stadium would follow the team to Brook Park as the term of the rights outlive the team’s lease to the existing, city-owned stadium Downtown Cleveland (Cleveland Browns).
Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne said that most of the supportive infrastructure — transportation, hotels, restaurants, parking — for the Browns stadium is already downtown. And the city is pursuing more with its downtown Lakefront project. Ronayne said it doesn’t make sense to walk away from that and create duplicative infrastructure in a low-growth metro area.
“We believe it is our responsibility and in the best interests of our community to prioritize reinvestment in public assets,” Ronayne said in an August letter to the Haslams.
County officials have said for the last two months that they consider the county’s investment in the Brook Park stadium to be “risky.” The county is already on the hook for a new $750 million jail complex it is building in Garfield Heights and is backing the construction bonds of MetroHealth System’s $1 billion campus transformation. It also has relocated the Board of Elections downtown in a nearly $100 million project.
Plus the county wants to build a new Consolidated Courthouse or rebuild the old Justice Center’s courthouse downtown, either way costing $400 million to $700 million. They had hoped to whittle the courthouse project applicants to two by now and make a decision by the end of the year.
But the increased financial demands on the county are delaying the courthouse’s progress and discouraging the county’s participation in the Browns’ Brook Park plans. Even if the county wanted to support the Brook Park project, it probably couldn’t. And Ronayne says he wants the Browns to stay downtown.
Burke Lakefront Airport next to Downtown Cleveland was considered a site for a new football stadium and supportive development but rejected because it would take up to 12 years to repurpose. That was too long for the Haslam Sports Group to wait. The existing stadium is at the upper-right of this view (KJP).
On the other hand, the Browns appear eager to tap a new source of capital. In August, the National Football League (NFL) owners approved the use of private equity investment as a component of the ownership structure of its teams. Private equity firms could purchase as little as 3 percent or as much as a 10 percent equity stake in a team.
“Among other ramifications, this decision could dramatically reshape the landscape of stadium development and fan experiences,” wrote David Almany, senior project manager at Washington DC-based Brailsford & Dunlavey’s Venues Practice Group. “The move opens the door to increased financial flexibility and capital flow, paving the way for a potential boom in stadium enhancements and new construction across the league.”
The Browns NFL franchise is valued at $6.02 billion, according to CNBC’s 2024 NFL team valuations. Based on that value, a firm could pay anywhere from $180 million to $600 million to take an equity stake in the Browns. That, perhaps as much as anything, is why the Browns are now focused on Brook Park.
“Beyond the stadium walls, teams are increasingly looking to develop mixed-use districts around their venues,” Almany said. “These areas may include retail, dining, housing and entertainment, transforming the stadium into a year-round destination.”
He said this trend has already been seen in projects like Patriot Place at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough and Titletown at Lambeau Field in Green Bay. Similar investments are planned for land next to the new Titans stadium in Nashville and, he noted, “potentially with a new stadium for the Cleveland Browns.”
“Private equity could accelerate these developments, turning stadiums into vibrant, multifaceted hubs for sports and entertainment,” he wrote.
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