Mayor Justin Bibb – Page 5

Bibb appoints interim director

Ken Prendergast / June 20, 2023

Less than a week after Tessa Jackson left her post as Cleveland’s economic development director, Mayor Justin Bibb has found a replacement — at least temporarily. This morning, Bibb named Terri Hamilton Brown as the city’s interim director of economic development. She was sworn in and began work today following the departure of Tessa Jackson on June 15. The city expects to open the application process for the permanent position later this week.

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North Coast Connector: ready for its close-up

Ken Prendergast / May 2, 2023

The North Coast Connector — a project that’s considered by many city and community development officials as the key to unlocking the potential of downtown Cleveland’s lakefront — is starting to come together. The state is moving forward on a big piece of funding for its construction. The city is moving forward on funding for detailed architectural designs. And public involvement meetings to help shape those designs will be held starting this week. To quote Gloria Swanson in the 1950 classic movie “Sunset Boulevard,” the proposed land bridge is “ready for its close-up.”

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Browns, city want you to rule out FES renovation

Ken Prendergast / March 30, 2023

“I stand by my sources.” I write that after this week’s statement from Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam which followed NEOtrans’ most recent article about the Browns’ desire for a new all-purpose stadium for Cleveland. At the National Football League’s (NFL) Annual Meeting, the Haslams said “They remain committed to upgrading the Browns’ stadium — with the primary goal of renovating FirstEnergy Stadium in accordance with the City of Cleveland’s plans to upgrade waterfront area between Lake Erie and downtown.”

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Sources: Browns want new stadium; Mayor wants community input

Ken Prendergast / February 27, 2023

Browns, city deny claims; say focus remains on FirstEnergy Stadium According to several sources, the Cleveland Browns and its majority owner, the Haslam Sports Group, want to move faster than City Hall on what happens before the team’s lease at FirstEnergy Stadium expires at the end of 2028. That reportedly includes a new football/multi-purpose stadium

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City staffing shortage threatens some Cleveland projects

Ken Prendergast / February 17, 2023

At the start of 2024, the city of Cleveland’s new tax abatement policy will go into effect. While the policy will remain basically unchanged for much of the city, it will become less supportive of developments in neighborhoods where construction has been most active — University Circle, Ohio City, Tremont and parts of downtown. So, in those areas, developers are trying to expedite the delivery of projects before the 15-year property tax abatement on new developments declines from 100 percent to 85 percent. But there’s something standing in the way of that acceleration: a lack of city staff to get projects approved in time.

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