What Huntington Bank Field could look like after a renovation Cleveland Scene" class="uk-display-block uk-position-relative uk-visible-toggle"> click to enlarge What Huntington Bank Field could look like after a renovation - Cleveland Scene
Cleveland Scene
What Huntington Bank Field could look like after a renovation
On one side of the battle over the Browns are the Haslams, who desperately want to abscond to Brook Park and a $2.4 billion dome and entertainment/parking complex, and the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the region's powerful chamber of commerce, which earlier this week endorsed the plan citing unpublished studies showing that a dome would bring double or triple the amount of visitors to events.
On the other side is, well, just about everyone else.
Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne on Wednesday released a joint letter the two sent to GCP decrying the group's endorsement as an abdication of its relationship with the city and county and announcing that each will immediately sever ties with GCP on several working committees.
"It has become apparent that GCP does not value its relationship with local leaders," the two wrote. "The City and County are eager to continue engaging with the business community, but engagement with the Greater Cleveland Partnership is no longer a proper proxy for those business relationships."
The public, it seems, is also strongly against the plan (despite the wave of support you may see from sports fans on Twitter with their favorite teams listed in their bios) as leaked results from a poll reported yesterday found that, "Cuyahoga County voters would likely reject extending a tax on alcohol and cigarettes if a portion of the money is dedicated to building a dome stadium outside Cleveland."
Cleveland City Council also joined the vocal opposition yesterday with perhaps the strongest statements made to date yet, saying that while the announcement is "disappointing, but not surprising," it "comes at a time when the organization has seemingly forgotten the 'C' in its name."
It continued: "The organization’s disregard for the negative impact on local small businesses, the city core, existing public investment, and the taxpayer dollars of all Ohioans is disturbing. We are at a moment in history with unprecedented investment in world-class public green space and waterfront development in our city core, unparalleled collaboration amongst sectors to push for economic and population growth, and many community stakeholders working hard to ensure the well-being of our City. GCP has largely been absent from that work."
Majority Leader Kerry McCormack added a stinging criticism of the chamber of commerice, noting, "It is the worst-kept secret in town that GCP’s leadership is disinterested in the work of revitalizing our region’s core. There should be a change of leadership at this increasingly irrelevant organization or an acknowledgment that they are here to represent the interests of only the ultra-wealthy. Clevelanders deserve a chamber of commerce with a backbone that champions the urban core.”
Downtown Cleveland, Inc., meanwhile, joined the chorus, saying in a statement that it was "disappointed with the Greater Cleveland Partnership Executive Committee’s decision to support the Browns’ relocation. We strongly disagree with their position. DCI is uniquely qualified to speak on this issue, as our sole mission is to strengthen the heart of the city and region."
DCI pointed toward three core issues: A dome isn't additive, but instead a shift that redirects spending away from the urban core; the funding mechanisms and public taxpayer support proposed represent a high-resk, low-reward model; and that using funds to invest downtown would accentuate all the other development already ongoing around the lakefront.
GCP has not responded to the public criticisms to date.
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