The Cleveland Browns' decision to pursue a new domed stadium complex in Brook Park, and the ongoing negotiate-in-public battle that ensued, is one of the region's top stories in 2024. It was Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb who made the announcement in October that negotiations with the Browns had hit a wall and Jimmy and Dee Haslam said they intended to move to Brook Park into a new domed stadium and a development plan that includes hotels, apartments and retail.
It's not over yet. The county says the Browns won't get any money. The city of Cleveland, which says the move would be a blow to Downtown, says it hasn’t closed the door to negotiations. And it has raised anew questions about whether Cleveland should be committing any money toward a sports venue when there are so many other needs. The Browns made the call to move to land it has an option on my Cleveland Hopkins Airport rather than renovate the existing stadium.
The future of the Browns and the potential cost of building a new stadium top our yearend look back on 2024 stories on the Reporters Roundtable.
The Bibb administration spent much of 2024 selling Cleveland City Council on its vision to redevelop the lakefront and the riverfront. Many see the waterfront as having untapped economic potential. To achieve that potential after years of failure, the city created a development tool known as a Tax Increment Financing or TIF district to cover the Shore-to Core-to Shore project of infrastructure improvements to promote game changing development. A separate TIF was then created for Bedrock to develop the river.
This year was a tough one financially for institutions of higher education thanks to what's known as the enrollment cliff. Fewer students, less tuition and budget woes. Across Northeast Ohio, universities both large and small, public and private had to make difficult choices regarding staffing and in some cases -- such as Notre Dame College -- closing the doors for good.
Property bills will be sent out in January and many owners are bracing for increases. In mid-2024, a re-evaluation saw properties go up 32% on average in Cuyahoga County. The reappraisal happens every six years, and this one caught a lot of folks off guard.
Cleveland's iconic West Side Market changed hands this year. After years of complaint about the city's management of the West Side Market, in April, the city turned over the day-to-day operations to a nonprofit. The Cleveland Public Market Corporation now oversees the day-to-day operations and is working toward improvements.
One of the biggest events of the year unfolded in the skies over Cleveland, Akron and much of Northeast Ohio. On April 8, the region was in the "path of totality" for a solar eclipse.
Guests:
-Glenn Forbes Supervising Producer for Newscasts, Ideastream Public Media
-Conor Morris, Education Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Anna Huntsman, Akron-Canton Reporter, Ideatream Public Media
-Michelle Jarboe, Reporter, News 5 Cleveland
