Haslams reach $100M settlement to advance Browns Brook Park stadium

Cleveland and Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam announced Monday that they have reached a $100 million settlement that clears the way for the team to build a $2.4 billion domed stadium in Brook Park, adjacent to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, and prepares the current lakefront site for redevelopment. The agreement ends competing lawsuits and lays out payments, demolition plans and joint infrastructure work designed to support the new facility and the nearby airport.

Under the deal, the Haslam Sports Group will pay the city $25 million by Dec. 1 and cover the cost to demolish Huntington Bank Field to a pad-ready state, a project estimated at about $30 million. The ownership group will also provide $5 million a year from 2029 through 2033 and $2 million a year from 2029 through 2038 for community benefit projects, bringing their total commitment to $100 million. City Council must still approve the agreement.

Mayor Justin M. Bibb said the settlement advances plans for lakefront redevelopment and the team’s new stadium. "This $100 million investment continues our lakefront momentum and economic resurgence," he said in a statement. Dee and Jimmy Haslam said the agreement...