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The City of Cleveland is suing the Browns over their planned move to Brook Park

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CLEVELAND (Ideastream Public Media) — As promised, the City of Cleveland has sued the Browns’ owners over plans to move from the Downtown, city-owned stadium to a new, $2.4 billion domed stadium in Brook Park.

Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam looks on at the team during the Browns training camp practice
Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam looks on at the team during the Browns training camp practice, Thursday, July 28, 2022, in Berea, Ohio. [Nick Cammett | AP]
The city invoked the Modell Law, a state law that requires sports teams that play in taxpayer-funded stadiums to get permission to move from their home city or give six-month notice with a chance for the city or an investor “in the area” to offer to buy the team.

Mark Griffin, the city’s law director and chief legal counsel, argued that by accepting more than $350 million in taxpayer dollars, the Browns are violating state law and contracts with the city.

“The Modell Law is clear: if you take taxpayer money to fund your stadium, you have obligations to the community that made that investment possible,” Griffin said in a written statement. “The Haslam Group’s circumvention of these requirements not only undermines the trust of Cleveland’s residents but also violates a law designed to protect all Ohioans.”

In October, the Browns sued Cleveland in federal court, arguing the Modell Law, named for the team’s former owner who moved the Browns to Baltimore in 1996, was unconstitutional.

Legal experts have told Ideastream Public Media the law is ambiguous, particularly the interpretation of what “in the area” means. Unlike the team’s last out-of-state move, Brook Park is less than 20 miles from the current stadium.

This isn’t the first time the Haslams have dealt with the Modell Law — though last time, they were on the other end of things. In 2018, Jimmy Haslam and another investor purchased the Columbus Crew when the professional soccer team eyed a move to Austin, Texas.

“It is ironic that the Haslams, who are currently not complying with Ohio’s Modell Law, previously relied on the same law to acquire the Columbus Crew soccer team,” Griffin said. “Their use of the law to secure the Crew underscores the importance of these protections for communities and taxpayers, making their current sidestepping of the Modell Law even more glaring.”

But because the Columbus Crew did not move away, legal experts say the largely unused law’s constitutionality and effectiveness remain in question: It may only delay construction by six months.

The Browns’ lease on the lakefront, city-owned stadium is up in 2028. The Browns intend to open their Brook Park stadium in 2029.

The Browns did not immediately respond to requests for comment.