While talking to reporters after head coach Todd Monken's introductory press conference Tuesday, Browns co-owner Jimmy Haslam revealed new details about the construction timeline for the team's enclosed stadium in Brook Park.
"Four weeks from yesterday, we’re going to start the largest construction job in Cuyahoga County history," he said.
Four weeks from yesterday is March 2.
So what's Haslam talking about? Digging a deep hole where the stadium will sit.
In January, Brook Park's building department approved a mass excavation permit for the future stadium site. The permit, obtained by News 5 through a public records request, is for $65 million worth of work.
A Haslam Sports Group spokesman previously told News 5 that the construction team expects to start that major digging in March. A formal groundbreaking will happen later, possibly in April.
But Haslam Sports Group still doesn't have all the money in place for the $2.4 billion stadium and roughly $1 billion worth of mixed-use development around it.
There's a pause on a $600 million state grant for the project because of a lawsuit over the source of the money - unclaimed funds the state is holding for individuals, businesses and even public entities. The General Assembly decided last year to tap unclaimed funds to help pay for sports and cultural facilities, starting with the new Huntington Bank Field in Brook Park.
Ohioans with unclaimed funds sued, calling the state's approach an unconstitutional taking of private property without proper notice.
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In late December, a Franklin County Common Pleas Court judge issued a temporary restraining order, barring the state from taking ownership of $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion of unclaimed funds. Now the court is weighing whether to issue a preliminary injunction to keep the money in Ohio's unclaimed funds pool while the litigation plays out.
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Haslam Sports Group also needs to strike a deal with Brook Park, which could provide about $300 million for the stadium. The city would do that by promising future income-tax, parking-tax and admissions-tax revenues from the broader mixed-use stadium district to the project.
The city's slice of the stadium bill will be outlined in a development agreement, which is still being negotiated. Haslam Sports Group leaders have said they can cover the rest of the tab - about $1.5 billion - using private sources, if necessary.
Workers have been moving dirt on the former industrial site, off Snow and Engle roads just east of Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, for months. But Haslam Sports Group still needs to submit a preliminary development plan for the site to Brook Park's planning commission.
On Monday, the planning commission signed off on a lot consolidation and split for the property, which will divide the land into six development parcels. Now, that lot consolidation and split will go to city council for a vote.
The Browns are on a tight timeline to meet their goal of opening the new stadium - and the first wave of development around it - in 2029. The team's current stadium lease, with the city of Cleveland, ends in early 2029.
In December, Haslam Sports Group finalized a truce with Cleveland, ending a court fight over the team's moving plans. Cleveland City Council signed off on a roughly $100 million settlement deal that requires the Browns to tear down the current stadium and provide money for lakefront development and neighborhood investments.
Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and Jimmy and Dee Haslam announced that truce in mid-October, during a news conference at Cleveland City Hall.
The settlement agreement eliminated some headaches and potential slowdowns for the Browns. The deal also gives them some wiggle room – the option to add a year or two to their lease with Cleveland if the Brook Park project runs behind schedule.
