Williams: Should Cincinnati Bengals follow Browns lead, look at stadium in suburbs?

Posted by Admin August 12, 2024 NFL

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Ask columnist Jason Williams anything − sports or non-sports – and he’ll pick some of your questions and respond on Cincinnati.com. Email: jwilliams@enquirer.com

Reply: With the Browns considering a move to the Cleveland suburbs, do you think the Bengals would ever look at going somewhere else in Greater Cincinnati? Seems like they’d want to consider (that) with their lease on Paycor Stadium ending in a few years and all the fighting over the years between the team owner and county.

Answer: Don’t be surprised if suburban county leaders at least discuss the possibility of luring the Bengals out of downtown Cincinnati. It’d seem to make sense if the Bengals were looking to build a new stadium, but financially it’s hard to see it working out.

You’re looking at a $2 billion price tag for a new stadium. The Bengals and NFL should be expected to pay at least half that. Can’t see the Bengals doing that. The Bengals certainly can and should’ve paid more for Paycor Stadium construction and upkeep. But fans must understand that owner Mike Brown doesn’t have a source of income outside the team like many other NFL owners do.

Most NFL owners built their wealth in non-football businesses. Some 22 of the 31 privately owned NFL teams have their owner – or a direct family member of the owner – named on Forbes’ 2024 list of billionaires. Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is on the list, reportedly worth $8 billion.

Perhaps that helps explain why Haslam is reportedly willing to cover $1.2 billion of the $2.4 billion cost to build a domed stadium in the Cleveland suburb of Brook Park. He made his fortune on truck stops and has an abundance of excess capital to spend on off-the-field projects.

It’d put too much onus on the taxpayers if the Bengals were to try to build a new stadium in Warren, Butler or Clermont counties. Those counties pride themselves on being fiscally responsible, so good luck raising the sales tax. Even then, sales tax wouldn’t generate enough money to build and maintain a modern NFL stadium. The state and NFL would have to chip in some money, but it still wouldn’t be anywhere near enough to get the project done.

There’s no sense in looking at the Buffalo Bills’ model, where the team is paying just $350 million toward a new $1.7 billion suburban stadium. Leaders there put together a financing package that calls for the public to pony up $850 million, with $600 million coming from state taxpayers.

The Bills are unique. They are New York state’s only team. They currently play in a 51-year-old venue, so they actually need a new stadium. (I’ve been there and can vouch for that.) And the Bills don’t have the reputation of being a drain on taxpayers like the Bengals do.

Nonetheless, the NFL is made for the suburbs. Half the NFL stadiums are either in the suburbs or outside of downtown but still in the city limits. It’s less congested. It allows for all or most of the parking to be directly adjacent to the stadium, perfect for tailgating. It allows for easier access to the freeway.

Go to a game at Arrowhead in Kansas City. It’s how all NFL stadiums should’ve been done. The stadium is still in the city limits, but eight miles outside of downtown in a suburban-like area. All the parking surrounds the stadium. There are no cluttered city streets to access the stadium to and from the interstate.

Some 10 NFL teams play in a different jurisdiction than the city it represents. Meanwhile, the Arizona Cardinals play in a suburb of Phoenix and the New England Patriots play in a suburb of Boston.

Do you ever hear about fans complaining about their team being in the suburbs? Few fans would complain if the Bengals made, say, “Ohio’s Largest Playground” larger.