CLEVELAND — Amid the uncertain future of the Browns playing along the shores of Lake Erie, there are also questions surrounding the long-awaited Cleveland North Coast Master Plan.
During Cleveland City Council's Finance, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee last week, the Bibb administration proposed legislation asking Council to extend its contract with James Corner Field Operations, the New York-based firm selected to lead the master planning process, for an additional year. Chief Financial Officer Ahmed Abdomah told councilmembers that the city was asking for an additional $400,000 on top of the original $500,000 contract with Field Operations that was agreed upon in 2022.
Abonamah explained that $260,000 would cover additional services requested by the administration that have already been performed, with another $140,000 needed for new work.
"The work was just a lot more complicated than we anticipated," he told the committee.
Councilmembers, not happy about being asked to cover a cost overrun for something it had not approved in the first place, voted unanimously to hold off on passing the proposed legislation. The ordinance was eventually approved a week later at this Monday's meeting, albeit with legislators publicly stating that the mayor's office "had acknowledged the contractor's work had exceeded $500,000 that had been approved by Council as a not-to-exceed amount."
"Somebody spent $260,000 unauthorized by Council," City Council President Blaine Griffin told Abdonamah prior to the new legislation's passage. "That doesn't sit well."
Why was there a cost overrun?
Abdomnamah said while Field Operations has upheld their end of the original contract, there is "more work to be done." As an example, he noted that the firm needed to be much more involved than originally planned in advising on the proposed land bridge that would connect the lakefront to the rest of downtown Cleveland.
"As invoices came in, they were coming in higher than we anticipated, because the level of effort required by Field Operations was much more," he told councilmembers. "There's no intentional effort to subvert Council's authority, but we ended up in a situation where the presumed budget of the project was not adequate and we only learned that after we started getting invoices."
Specifically, the city says the additional $400,000 from a contract extension with Field Operations will go towards:
- Transportation planning related to the Connector project
- 3D digital modeling and professional renderings
- Community engagement and meetings
- Conceptual drafts and scenario planning
- Shore-core-shore concept development
"The funds are certainly needed to ensure we have the most compelling set of master plan documents possible to ensure success of the project," Abdomnamah added.
In October, planners showed what they referred to as the "60% Draft" of the Cleveland North Coast Master Plan. This version of the plan incorporated feedback from more than 4,000 surveys, 1,700 comment cards, 300 visioning workshop attendees and numerous community conversations, events and other engagements. The final draft of the North Coast Master Plan was expected to be completed in December 2023.
What about the Browns?
Last month, Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam said the team is down to two options when it comes to their future stadium site: a $1 billion dollar renovation to their existing downtown stadium, or a domed stadium outside of the city at double the cost. The Haslams have an option on 176 acres of land in Brook Park near Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.
The current lease for Cleveland Browns Stadium will expire in 2028.
In previous versions of the Cleveland North Coast Master Plan, a renovated stadium has been featured as part of Field Operations' renderings. Abonamah told the committee that the final version of the plan will feature alternate scenarios, including with and without a stadium.
Previous Reporting:
- Cleveland City Councilman Brian Kazy tells Browns to follow 'Art Modell Law' amid ongoing stadium discussions
- Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam say stadium options are $1B renovation or new $2B dome outside city
- Proposed downtown Cleveland land bridge update: Ohio House passes bill which would allocate $20M to project
- Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb proposes new tax revenue plan to fund lakefront development
- '60% draft' of Cleveland's North Coast Master Plan revealed: See the renderings