The Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals are both looking to make significant changes to their respective home fields, but it appears as though the Browns have a much better chance of securing the funding they are looking for than their rival.
Unlike what the Browns are now trying to do, the Bengals have asked for a large amount of money upfront, and, as one prominent Ohio lawmaker alluded during a recent interview, that is simply a nonstarter for him and, he assumes, the people of Ohio.
“I did meet with the Bengals and [Hamilton] Commissioner [Denise] Driehaus a few months ago or weeks ago, and basically they’re talking about a $350 million cash upfront . . . which is similar to what the Browns were trying to do a couple of years ago,” House Speaker Matt Huffman said, per Taylor Welter of WCPO.com. “And I don’t support that. I don’t think the public supports it.”
This amount of money would put roughly 42% of the funding for the estimated renovation cost of $850 million on the state, and, as Huffman said, that sort of proposal is something that will not receive his support.
As all Browns fans know, the Haslam family is looking to build a new domed stadium of their own in Brook Park and have presented a proposal of their own to the state, and look to be much further down the road with their efforts than what their counterparts in Cincinnati are attempting with their renovation project.
Unless the Bengals ownership group can get creative with their strategy to secure funding for the stadium renovations they desire, it sounds like Huffman and his colleagues are prepared to dig their feet in and put up what would ultimately be a long, drawn-out, and very public fight by both sides.
"Everybody has to sort of say, here's what we're willing to do and piece it all over, and I think if they're willing to do that, I'm certainly willing to sit down and talk with them," said Huffman, via WCPO.com.
If the Browns' rival cannot manage to do that, this blunder could come back to bite them big time while Cleveland enjoys the perks that come with having a brand new stadium with a dome to protect fans during the season.