CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Cleveland Browns' future stadium plans could start to come into focus thanks to proposed funding from the State of Ohio to help connect downtown Cleveland to the lakefront.
Attached to the state budget bill – House Bill 33 for July 1, 2023-June 30, 2025, is an omnibus amendment, which includes $62 million in funding for the 'Cleveland Municipal Land Bridge' project that would connect downtown Cleveland to the lakefront.
The bill and amendment will be introduced Tuesday in the Ohio House Finance Committee.
Should the state funding be approved for the land bridge with passage of the bill and amendment through the house and senate for Governor Mike DeWine to sign, it likely would end any conversation about a new stadium for the Browns.
In May 2021, the Haslam Sports Group, owners of the Browns, released artist renderings of a proposed lakefront transformation that included a land bridge to connect downtown Cleveland to North Coast Harbor, which includes Cleveland Browns Stadium, the Great Lakes Science Center and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
A portion of the lakefront transformation project would likely include the reconfiguration of State Route 2, which runs on the northern side of downtown just south of the stadium between I-90 and Lakewood. Funding had been previously approved by the state in conjunction with the city of Cleveland to study the feasibility of building the land bridge and reconfiguring Route 2 through downtown.
Browns ownership has been steadfast in lobbying at the state and local level to encourage lakefront development around the stadium as well as improving the connection to downtown but the land bridge project is being driven by the city and county with the support of the Haslam Sports Group.
While speculation about the Browns' desire for a new stadium has run rampant on the internet, the team has remained committed to extending the life of Cleveland Browns Stadium and their lakefront development proposal.
The team's lease at the stadium, which opened in 1999, expires following the 2028 season and the team has been in the process of developing plans for a significant overhaul of the city owned facility which replaced Cleveland Municipal Stadium after the original Browns franchise relocated to Baltimore and the NFL awarded Cleveland an expansion team in a settlement agreement with fans and the city.
Although the team remains mum on renovation plans for Cleveland Browns Stadium, the overhaul is expected to be comprehensive to not only modernize the facility and bring it up to current NFL stadium standards but also to correct original design flaws that were the result of a compressed design and construction timeline from 1996-1999 as well as cost overruns during construction that caused certain aspects of the stadium to be scaled back.
Included in the stadium overhaul is expected to be expanded concourses with improved views of the field and more protection from the elements for fans, modifications to the seating bowl to remove obstructions and improve sightlines as well as expansion of the service level and foundation work associated with that to accommodate additional fan hospitality spaces.
With the approval of a $62 million contribution from the State of Ohio for the land bridge within the new budget proposal, a major domino would fall in the stadium saga and it should create a chain reaction to move the stadium project forward.
