The Cleveland Browns appear to be closing in on their highly reported move to the suburbs, even though the City of Cleveland still wants to block them from doing so.
According to FOX 8 in Cleveland, Ohio lawmakers are prepared to vote on an amendment to the so-called Modell Law that bars teams from moving out of their home stadium/arena before their lease expires.
The Browns are seeking $600 million in unclaimed funds from the State of Ohio to help build the dome, but they are locked into a lawsuit with the city.
How Can The Browns Move Under the Modell Law?
Cleveland has been clinging to the Browns for the second time in the past three decades since Ohio created the Modell Law, named for the late former Browns owner who famously moved the team to Baltimore in 1995.
Under the proposed amendment, teams would be allowed to move freely as long as they remained in the same county, which is what the Browns are seeking to do.
The Browns, who have played at their current home of Huntington Bank Field since they were reborn in the NFL in 1999, are trying to relocate from their stadium in downtown Cleveland to the Cuyahoga County suburb of Brook Park — into a $2-plus billion dome.
The state of Ohio’s senate passed their biennial budget, which includes the requisite public funding — more than half-a-billion dollars — for the Browns to build a stadium roughly 16 miles southwest of their current home.
That budget was passed after midnight local time Wednesday, and the Ohio House of Reps are still mulling the decision.
Who Is Against The Browns’ Move?
The Browns’ move out of downtown Cleveland is a controversial one, especially among Cleveland business owners and even some lawmakers.
Although the Browns would remain in Cuyahoga County in the move, county executive Chris Ronayne was outraged by the proposed amendment — especially since Cleveland and the Browns are fighting in court.
“Instead of listening to their constituents, they listened to [Browns owners] Jimmy and Dee Haslam,” Ronayne said in a press conference Wednesday. “They line their pockets with your dollars, with your unclaimed funds, specifically.
“The Modell Law was changed in this budget, while an active court case is going on. It’s a curious thing when they change a law, essentially changed the rules … It’s a sad day.”
Ronayne isn’t the only outraged public official, especially given the fact state lawmakers brought up the proposed amendment after 1 a.m. ET, while the public and many of their peers were asleep.
“We are very troubled and angered by this late-night change, added without public scrutiny, regarding the Modell Law,” Cleveland city hall spokesperson Tyler Sinclair said in a statement obtained by FOX 8. “We strongly oppose this legislative maneuver because Clevelanders have invested hundreds of millions in the lakefront stadium and surrounding infrastructure. This proposed change fails to protect communities like us when a team decides to leave.
“Moving the Browns — whether 12 miles or across the country — is a betrayal of the city and residents who have stood by the franchise for generations.”
