CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – Wednesday was cause for celebration for Cleveland, but not so much for Berea in relation to a pair of projects associated with the Browns.
State lawmakers approved $20 million for the downtown Cleveland lakefront connector project – or land bridge, which the Browns had been lobbying for in recent years, but no funding was approved for a new public recreation center and community field for the city of Berea in the State of Ohio’s $4.2 billion capital budget.
Berea Mayor Cyril Kleem requested $15 million from the state for the rec center and field on behalf of the city in April.
Despite the setback for Berea, the Browns are not deterred.
The Haslam Sports Group, which has yet to announce the development plans, is still finalizing the scope of the nearly $200 million project to be built on 16 acres of land adjacent to CrossCountry Mortgage Campus, the team’s training and administrative complex located on Lou Groza Blvd.
In the application submitted by Kleem to the state, the project cost was listed at $195 million with at least $180 million of it privately financed to build additional student housing for Baldwin Wallace University, a hotel, a sports medicine center for University Hospitals, a parking deck and some limited retail space in addition to the rec center and field.
Recently the final house located on the corner of Lou Groza Blvd. and Pearl St, was razed along with the old Serpentini Chevrolet dealership and body shop on Front St. paving the way for the Browns ownership group to put their plans for the land they spent recent years acquiring into motion.
The approved funding for the land bridge project, which was celebrated by Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and the city on social media, is not expected to drastically impact the Browns stadium planning process, although it is a piece of the puzzle.
The Browns continue to throw their support behind the land bridge project and lakefront development downtown whether they stay in the existing stadium or move out to Brook Park in 2029.
Representatives of the team have been lobbying lawmakers at the local and state level for support of a potential $1-1.2 billion overhaul of Cleveland Browns Stadium or a $3.8 billion dome and development project in Brook Park.
Earlier this year the Browns secured an option to purchase 176 acres of land bordering Snow and Engle roads in Brook Park for a potential dome and entertainment district. The current owner of that land has been doing site preparation work to clear it for future development.
The current proposal from the Haslam Sports Group includes a 50-50 public-private split for both stadium options, except in Brook Park the team would also pursue a $1.4 billion privately funded development to be built adjacent to the dome that would include hotels, housing and retail.
In 2021 the Browns offered a detailed proposal for lakefront development around the current stadium but the city of Cleveland decided to pursue their own plan, which is ongoing and differs significantly from the Browns vision.
Around the NFL the stadium building boom and arms race is on.
A new $1.7 billion open air stadium is going up outside Buffalo for the Bills with the public covering $850 million of the cost. The Tennessee Titans got $1.26 billion in public money for a new $2.1 billion dome under construction in Nashville.
The Ravens are getting $430 million in upgrades – all publicly funded – to their Baltimore stadium.
This past week Jacksonville approved $725 million for a $1.4 billion overhaul of the Jaguars stadium that includes adding a roof and Charlotte approved $650 million for an $800 million renovation of the Panthers’ stadium.
The Bears want to build a $3.2 billion dome as part of a $4.7 billion project south of Soldier Field. The Chiefs and Commanders are working on stadium projects too.
Between the Berea mixed use development and the proposed Brook Park dome projects, the Haslam Sports Group has offered to invest over $2.78 billion in the region with the state, county and local governments picking up $1.2 billion, plus infrastructure costs.
If the Browns stay on the lakefront, their total private investment in the existing stadium and Berea project would be around $780 million with the public investment ranging between $500-600 million for the stadium plus lakefront infrastructure improvement costs.
Bedrock, owned by Cavaliers owner and chairman Dan Gilbert, received $8 million in funding for their downtown riverfront development projects in the capital budget Wednesday.
The Cavaliers are currently preparing a site on the banks of the Cuyahoga River to build a new Cleveland Clinic Global Peak Performance Center.
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