Cleveland councilman enters Browns stadium discussion

Councilman Brian Kazy plans to introduce legislation that would require team owners to follow the state’s co-called “Modell Law” if they want a new home for the team.

The battle over the future home of the Cleveland Browns entered the next phase on Monday.

Less than a week after owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam shared that they are studying the idea of having a domed stadium built in the Cleveland suburb of Brook Park, Cleveland City Councilman Brian Kazy said “Not so fast, my friends.”

On Monday afternoon, Kazy, who represents the city’s Ward 16, announced that he plans to introduce legislation on Monday evening that would task the city’s law director with fully enforcing Ohio Revised Code Section 9.67.

For those not up to date on Ohio Revised Code Section 9.67, it was passed in 1996 after then-owner Art Modell announced that he was moving the Browns to Baltimore. The law was put into place to protect cities and taxpayers from going through a similar situation.

The code states that:

No owner of a professional sports team that uses a tax-supported facility for most of its home games and receives financial assistance from the state or a political subdivision thereof shall cease playing most of its home games at the facility and begin playing most of its home games elsewhere unless the owner either:

(A) Enters into an agreement with the political subdivision permitting the team to play most of its home games elsewhere;

(B) Gives the political subdivision in which the facility is located not less than six months advance notice of the owner’s intention to cease playing most of its home games at the facility and, during the six months after such notice, gives the political subdivision or any individual or group of individuals who reside in the area the opportunity to purchase the team.

Kazy’s legislation – Ordinance 391-2024 – seeks to guarantee that city officials will keep a close watch on the Haslams to ensure they follow the law and that the City Council remains involved in the process.

Once the legislation is introduced it will have to proceed to the council’s Finance Committee, which might take two to three weeks. If the Finance Committee approves the legislation it will head to Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb to either sign or take a pass.

The Haslams have previously said they were open to the idea of renovating Cleveland Browns Stadium, but also have their eyes on 176 acres of land in Brook Park that would accommodate a domed stadium.

They have floated some preliminary ideas that it would cost around $1 billion to bring the current stadium up to the standards of the modern NFL. While no costs have been tied to building a domed stadium, the Tennessee Titans are in the process of building a domed stadium in Nashville that is projected to cost $2.1 billion. The Buffalo Bills are in the process of building an open-air stadium that initially was going to cost $1.4 billion but had already seen $300 million in cost overruns, pushing it to $1.7 billion.

The team’s current lease with the city for Cleveland Browns Stadium does not expire until 2028, so buckle up Browns fans, it is going to be a long couple of years as the team and the city go back and forth over the future home of the Browns.

Cleveland City Council live streams its meetings on its YouTube page if you would like to watch tonight’s proceedings.