Final approval weeks away as $2.6n NFL stadium plan approaches key funding hurdle in city standoff

The Cleveland Browns are getting closer to clearing a huge hurdle in their ambitions to move to Ohio.

The state-of-the-art dome is to be built in the suburb of Brook Park, around 16 miles south of the NFL team’s current home, Huntington Bank Field.

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The targeted opening date for the venue is 2029, and Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is confident it is still on track, and will be able to host a Super Bowl in the future.

Ground breaking has commenced, but has been fraught with drama over state funding in the early days of construction.

Ohio city council have unanimously approved the first of two pieces of legislation needed to create a special public entity to own the new stadium, and then lease it back to the Browns.

Final approval for creating the Brook Park New Community Authority could come as early as July 15, the same night of a public hearing in the city.

However, with the cost of construction already ballooning to $2.6bn, residents of Brook Park are concerned that they will be in line for tax increases if further boosts are required.

Mayor Edward Orcutt, promised that details such as tax and stadium maintenance cost will be made public.

“We’re not going to negotiate in public but I have been working with City Council in executive session. We’ve set parameters,” Orcutt said, via Cleveland.com.

“I think I’m a good negotiator in taking care of the city’s tax dollars. Those are sacred tax dollars.

“We’re going to show you exactly a financial model that I think will be utilized across this country as a responsible one in the future for public/private partnerships when it comes to major sports.”

Key details may not be known until the lease is signed between the Haslam Sports Group and the Brook Park Authority, and the creation of the latter could only come in July.

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Councilman Thomas Dufour said he was comfortable approving the legislation Tuesday because it was a procedural step, not the final vote to create the authority.

If approved, and as it’s a public government entity, it will technically hold the deed to the property, meaning the stadium will be completely shielded from standard property taxes.

Under this public ownership framework, the Browns will be entirely exempt from paying state sales taxes on construction materials.

This strategic bypass is estimated to save the franchise a staggering $100 million in building costs on the $2.6bn project.

Over the projected lifespan of the 2029 dome, this property tax exemption is estimated to save the Haslam Sports Group a good chunk of money.

Combined with the promised state and municipal funding, the total public subsidy for the project will balloon to roughly $1.3bn meaning taxpayers will effectively be footing nearly 50% of the entire $2.6bn bill.

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The clock is ticking loudly for both the city and the franchise.

The Haslam Sports Group has already put its money where its mouth is, committing a massive $1.755 billion in private financing and physically breaking ground on the Brook Park site to keep the 2029 timeline alive.

If residents voice overwhelming opposition over the long-term effects at the July 15 hearing, or if council members stall the final binding vote to officially establish the authority, it could fall apart entirely, which leaving the $2.6bn project frozen at the starting gate.

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