The project contains too tall structures.
The planned move of the National Football League’s Browns franchise from Cleveland to suburban Brook Park, Ohio has hit an obstacle. The Ohio Department of Transportation’s Office of Aviation denied the Haslam family’s request for a construction permit to build the venue because the stadium development would be “an obstruction to air navigation.” The problem according to the aviation office? The stadium development is too tall. The Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is nearby. “This structure may also be permitted at your proposed height at another location further away from the airport,” ODOT’s aviation office wrote in the denial letter. It is expected that the Haslams will fight the order. The Federal Aviation Administration has given approval to the project but a local aviation authority could make a decision based on community needs.
The owners, Jimmy and Dee Haslam, are embarking on a journey that will lead them out of Cleveland and land them about 15 miles away in a small suburban community. That community is already preparing for the Haslams as the Brook Park Planning Commission approved rezoning a 176-acre tract of land that was previously designated for industrial use and is now designated a Planned Unit Development district. The land once housed a Ford Motor Company plant. The state of Ohio is pitching in $600 million to help the Haslams build their dream stadium project. But that $600 million is not going to be available anytime soon as there has been a legal challenge. Former Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann and former state Representative Jeffrey Crossman filed a lawsuit in a Franklin County court on behalf of three named Ohio residents, as well as all other individuals whose unclaimed funds were being held by the state as of June 30th, 2025. The saga of the Haslams move to Brook Park continues.
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