Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s administration faces a thicket of uncertainties this year, among them possible funding cuts from the Trump administration, the threatened departure of the Browns to Brook Park and the prospect of public school closures.
Bibb and City Council members acknowledged those unknowns during the opening of budget hearings Tuesday, even if the issues are outside of the control of the $2.1 billion budget proposal.
The mayor said City Hall was prepared to lobby and even to sue to protect Cleveland’s federal funding. He singled out the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which sent $28.3 million to Cleveland last year. Because of the federal uncertainty, Bibb said it was not the right time to consider a proposal to revamp how community development corporations are funded.
The administration also made a staffing change in anticipation of headwinds from Columbus and Washington, D.C. Bibb hired City Hall’s lobbyist, Michael Culp, as a full-time city employee in the mayor’s office.
Closer to home, the mayor faces the financial and political puzzle of closing schools. Although the Cleveland Metropolitan School District has its own budget separate from the city government’s, the issue still falls on Bibb’s desk in a city with mayoral control of the schools.
Ward 8 Council Member Michael Polensek warned the mayor that there would be “war” if CMSD tried to close high schools on the East Side.
“There is going to be a problem if they come in with the axe to decimate schools on the East Side of the CIty of Cleveland,” he said.
Bibb reiterated a point he has made before, that the school district must rethink its footprint and make “hard choices.” He did not say what schools might be on the chopping block, however. Last month, CMSD’s board voted to begin the planning process that could lead to closures.
“For decades, we’ve deflected hard choices inside CMSD,” the mayor told Polensek, “and we’ve seen a hollowing out, unfortunately, over the last two decades of our population on the East Side.”
The mayor’s budget proposal does not mention the possibility of the Browns leaving the city-owned lakefront stadium for a new home in Brook Park. That move would not affect the 2025 budget. Bibb’s administration expects to spend another $16 million on the stadium this year for insurance, property taxes, debt service and capital repairs.
The city receives a $250,000 lease payment from the Browns and $4 million in sin tax revenue to pay down those costs. The budget does not break out how much revenue the stadium generates in admission and income tax dollars, though a city study put the number at about $10 million.
Bibb said he expected the Browns to compensate the city for its losses if the team moves.
“If the Browns are able to secure county funding, Brook Park funding and state funding to go to Brook Park, the city of Cleveland cannot be left empty-handed,” he said.
That’s not the only stadium quandary facing Cleveland’s budget. Gateway Economic Development Corporation, the nonprofit that oversees the Progressive Field and Rocket Arena, may be coming back for a second round of money from City Hall, Council President Blaine Griffin said. Last year, the city agreed to pay Gateway $20 million for repairs at the ballpark and arena.
Finance Director Paul Barrett said the city is considering creating a “new community authority” to raise money for future repairs. The authority could collect money from area businesses to pay for stadium costs. Barrett would have more to share in the coming weeks, he said.
Bibb faces a mostly friendly City Council
The mayor’s presentation did not turn into an election-year showdown with City Council. Several council members thanked Bibb’s staff by name, especially Public Works Director Frank Williams.
Ward 1 Council Member Joe Jones even offered what sounded like an endorsement.
“I believe that you are the right person for the job, and I appreciate the work that you do in our neighborhoods, mayor,” he said.
Old Brooklyn’s Kris Harsh, who represents Ward 13, took a more adversarial approach. He pressed Bibb over his executive order last year on lead paint. The order effectively raised the bar for landlords seeking certifications from the city that their rentals are safe from lead.
The Bibb administration argued that the city wasn’t making enough of a dent to reduce childhood lead poisoning rates. The move came as a surprise to the nonprofit partners working with the city on the issue.
Harsh argued that the mayor’s order went beyond council’s 2019 lead paint legislation and would discourage landlords from applying for certifications. He asked if Bibb would consider nixing the order. The mayor said no.
Harsh wrapped up his questioning by offering a mixed assessment of the mayor.
“All in all, I will say to you, Mr. Mayor, what I say to my neighbors when they ask me how I feel about your job performance,” he said. “I say that I think the mayor is doing some things very well, some things okay and some things I disagree with.”
