Browns' New Brook Park Stadium Could Cost Less For Taxpayers

It's been well-documented that Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam has been asking for roughly $600 million in public funding to help pay for a new stadium in Brook Park. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine's newly proposed budget bill could help lower that cost for taxpayers.

House Bill 96, a 4,063-page document that outlines an executive budget for the 2026-2027 fiscal years, plans to create a Sports Facilities Construction and Sports Education Fund. The fund will be created by doubling the state's tax on sports gambling from 20% to 40%, which DeWine said would make sports betting companies "pay their fair share." The proposal estimates the fund will generate between $130-$180 million annually.

Haslam's plan for the $2.4 billion domed stadium in Brook Park, announced in October, meets the threshold to use money from the new fund. The bill clarifies that a major sports facility project must be at least a $100 million renovation or $1 billion construction of a new stadium to qualify, with at least 60% of the funding coming from "sources other than state funds."

The new Huntington Bank Field would also be what the bill considers a mixed-use project, which includes the development of retail, office, hotel, residential, recreation and parking areas surrounding the stadium. Haslam's most recent announcement on January 2 used that exact language — mixed-use development — with specifics on what the Browns' new site would entail.

"The mixed-use entertainment district surrounding the stadium will be developed across multiple phases and will ultimately include 300,000 square feet of retail, two upscale hotels, 1,100 apartments, and 500,000 square feet of office," the team wrote in a press release. "Phase One, which is planned to deliver along with the stadium in 2029, will include 450 hotel rooms; 575 apartments; 96,000 square feet of traditional retail, suited for unique food & beverage and shopping destinations; and 137,000 square feet of experiential retail, which will include a team store, and other experience-based retail concepts that will drive year-round activation and community involvement."

The Sports Facilities Construction and Sports Education Fund would also be available to other Ohio franchises looking to build a new stadium, such as the Cincinnati Bengals. Language in the bill also lists a potential WNBA team as eligible to receive the funds if the league eventually returns to Cleveland.

House Bill 96 will now be reviewed by members of the Ohio House and Senate, who will look to make adjustments to the overall budget plan.

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