Real estate blogger Ken Prendergast broke the news last week that the Browns are eyeing a site in Brook Park, as the future of the current stadium and where the team will play beyond 2028 remains undetermined.
In response, the City of Cleveland and its NFL franchise issued wordy statements that were notable in what they didn’t say.
On the Browns’ side of the line of scrimmage, the team admits it is “studying other potential stadium options in Northeast Ohio” as part of its due diligence on a lease deal. City Hall isn’t opening up its playbook for the public, but says it has a competitive offer to keep the team on the lakefront.
“The administration has developed a strong, thoughtful and comprehensive package that we believe respects taxpayers and protects the city’s general revenue fund while meeting the needs expressed by the team,” Bradford Davy, Mayor Justin Bibb’s chief of staff, said in a statement.
Both statements leave major questions on the sidelines. How much do the Browns want out of taxpayers? And where will the money come from? Whatever numbers the mayor’s advisors and the team have shared behind closed doors, the public has been in the dark.
The future of the Cuyahoga County sin tax
One question is the sin tax. Cuyahoga County’s excise tax on alcohol and cigarettes expires in a decade. That means City Hall has only about $50 million left to spend on Browns Stadium repairs – a fraction of the hundreds of millions Cleveland will likely need for a major renovation.
Could Cuyahoga County ask voters to extend the sin tax for another decade or two? What about increasing or expanding the sin tax so it brings in more money each year? That would free up cash not just for the stadium, but also for Progressive Field and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Either option would require an act of the state legislature and a vote of the people.
Kelly Woodard, a spokesperson for County Executive Chris Ronayne, said the county is “always exploring funding opportunities for community assets,” but hasn’t made a decision on the sin tax. Nor has the county asked its lobbyist to start drumming up support in Columbus, she said.
Who gets the sin tax if the Browns move?
Here’s another question. If the Browns decamp to Brook Park, would they lose the sin tax? Under Cleveland’s contract with Cuyahoga County, which lasts until 2035, a third of sin tax dollars go specifically to the lakefront stadium – not to whatever facility the Browns happen to use.
(It’s worth noting that Cleveland’s estimated $350 million in stadium spending over the years came from more than just the sin tax. The city is also paying off the construction debt until 2028. It increased citywide admission taxes and passed a parking tax in the 1990s to cover that ongoing cost.)
One last taxpayer question to consider. Suppose the Browns leave downtown and build a new stadium in the suburbs. Who pays to implode what was once dubbed the “Factory of Sadness?”
Of course, everything is still speculation until the team and City Hall make their plans public.
Suggested Reading
The public cost of Cleveland Browns stadium: hundreds of millions and counting
Since 1998, the city has been on the hook for roughly $350 million to build and repair the NFL stadium on the Lake Erie shore, a Signal Cleveland analysis found.
Gateway, the nonprofit managing your tax dollars for sports facilities, explained
The nonprofit signs off on repairs to Progressive Field and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on behalf of those paying a ‘sin tax’ on alcohol and cigarettes. But its influence and financial liability extends well beyond.