How will the Browns pay for a new stadium in Brook Park? We know that.

CLEVELAND — As the Cleveland Browns and Haslam Sports Group focus on building a future at Brook Park, one big question continues to arise: How will they pay for it?

We don't have all the answers yet. But here's a look at some of the most common questions we hear. This involves everything from money to website control.

Q: What will the Brook Park project involve?

The Browns released preliminary renderings of the project in August.

Cleveland Browns release initial renderings and details of Brook Park Stadium proposal

They show a domed stadium sunk about 80 feet into the ground, flanked by a mixed-use development. This includes offices, a hotel, retail, apartments and around 14,000 parking spaces.

The property is a former automobile factory site that Ford Motor Co. sold to a group of industrial real estate developers in 2021. At that time, Ford placed deed restrictions on the land, limiting its use to industrial or commercial development.

However, a document filed with the Cuyahoga County Treasurer's Office shows that Ford recently lifted the use restrictions after the developers submitted the property to an investigation and remediation process with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

Q: How will the Haslams pay for all this?

The stadium is expected to cost $2.4 billion, a price that owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam want to share with taxpayers.

The surrounding development could cost more than $1 billion — and would be privately financed.

HKS; Cleveland Browns

The Browns have not released any details about their financing plan – also because it is still in the works.

But in a statement sent Thursday after Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb broke the news of the end of negotiations downtown, the Haslams said a new stadium “does not utilize existing taxpayer-funded streams will divert resources from other more pressing needs.”

Instead, they are talking about borrowing against future tax revenue generated by the project. These can include entrance taxes, income taxes, parking fees, hotel taxes and property taxes.

The idea is that a public entity – or multiple governments or agencies – would issue bonds to help finance construction. The Haslams would pay off their debts over time with a portion of this new tax revenue.

Earlier this year, the Haslams sought a 50-50 split of $1.2 billion in public revenue, with $600 million going to the state and $600 million to local governments.

The proposal was that Cuyahoga County would issue bonds to cover the local share, with $300 million tied to Brook Park tax revenue and $300 million tied to county tax revenue.

But in August, Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne said it was too much of a financial burden for the county to bear. He also expressed skepticism about mathematics.

“After analyzing the Cleveland Browns' proposal for Brook Park, we believe this dog does not hunt,” he said during a news conference as he called on the team to renovate the downtown space.

'This dog doesn't hunt.' Cuyahoga County leaders say they won't support a new Browns stadium in Brook Park

We don't know what the team's financial projections are – for the Browns, for Brook Park or for the region. In their statement, the Haslams called the project a boon for Cleveland, Northeast Ohio and the entire state, between events, tourism and new jobs.

Brook Park Mayor Edward Orcutt told News 5 this week that he sees great potential for a resurgence.

“I feel like if we can all sit down at the table and work together to create something in Brook Park that benefits the entire region in terms of revenue, we'll be fine in the end,” said he said.

HKS; Cleveland Browns

Q: When will we know more?

It's not clear, but the Browns have a tight schedule.

Their lease on the existing stadium, owned by the city of Cleveland, ends after the 2028 season. They hope to move to Brook Park in 2029.

Building a new stadium could take three years – but there is still a lot of work to do before construction begins.

Q: Do the Browns own the Brook Park property?

Not yet, according to public records. But they have laid the groundwork for a deal.

A notice of purchase agreement filed with Cuyahoga County shows Primacy Development LLC, an entity affiliated with Haslam Sports Group, has until Dec. 31, 2025, to purchase the 176-acre property. This document was signed in March by David Jenkins, chief operating officer of Haslam Sports Group and the Browns.

The property's current ownership is a joint venture between three developers: Weston Inc. and the DiGeronimo Companies, both based in Northeast Ohio, and Scannell Properties, based in Indiana.

A subsidiary of Haslam Sports Group loaned those developers more than $18 million in March to help them repay a bank loan, according to public records.

Keith Srakocic/AP

Q: What will happen to the existing stadium?

That's the city of Cleveland's decision if the Browns follow through with their plans.

The stadium will likely be demolished, but it's too early to say when that will happen or what will happen at the site. According to public records, the building sits on approximately 17 acres.

The city's new lakefront master plan calls for redesigning the adjacent parking lots to the north while connecting them to the downtown core with a land bridge over a redesigned Shoreway. The sketches show apartments, a hotel and a restaurant, but 60% of the area will be public space, with a playground, a fishing pier, sports fields and a beach.

FIRST LOOK: Cleveland's final lakefront master plan

Scott Skinner, executive director of the young nonprofit North Coast Waterfront Development Corporation, is responsible for working closely with the city to realize this lakefront vision.

“We expect to go public again in the near future and talk about other ideas,” he said of finding ways to fill the stadium’s space.

At a public forum on the lakefront in August, when it was already clear that the Browns would choose Brook Park, attendees had the opportunity to suggest what they would put on the site.

“People had a lot of common ideas and thoughts about the bigger picture, which is open public spaces where people can spend time with their families by the water … in a green space where they don't have to pay a ticket,” Skinner said. “There are also economic drivers. Downtown Cleveland is really important to the region.”

The city this week received $60 million in federal grants to spur the Shoreway's transformation into a slimmer, slower boulevard – and has raised $80 million of the roughly $450 million it will spend on all the infrastructure work to connect the lakeshore with the city center is needed.

Skinner said the loss of the Browns has no impact on funding or the $20 million the state Legislature has set aside for the land bridge. The city is asking for additional federal funding.