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LOCAL LEADERS ANNOUNCE DEAL HATCHED IN PRIVATE TO PUMP MILLIONS OF PUBLIC DOLLARS INTO PROGRESSIVE FIELD
CLEVELAND MAYOR FRANK
Jackson, County Executive Armond Budish, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Indians owner Paul Dolan and others gathered at Progressive Field in downtown Cleveland last week to announce a so-called “deal” that will continue to pump millions of public dollars into the facility where the baseball team plays. The team will officially become the Guardians next season.
Under the terms of this deal, which was negotiated entirely without public input, the Guardians will remain in Cleveland for 15 years, until 2036, with two possible five-year extensions that could ultimately keep pro baseball in Cleveland until 2046. (The extensions were reportedly demanded by Gov. Mike DeWine as a condition for state aid, but are meaningless at this point and will undoubtedly be contingent upon additional public subsidy.)
Though officials stressed repeatedly that there had been no explicit threats by team ownership of a potential move out of Cleveland, they also asserted that the “market” simply was what it was, and that cities have to pay their freight if they want pro clubs to stay put. Virtually everyone pointed out that Cleveland was the smallest market in the U.S. with three pro teams.
And so a combined $435 million will go towards various renovations, capital improvements and repairs at Progressive Field over the next 15 years. According to the proposed arrangement, the City of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County will pay the lion’s share at $17 million per year ($255 million total). The State of Ohio will chip in $2 million per year ($30 million total). And the team will pay $10 million per year ($150 million total), in what owner Paul Dolan said was a comparable investment to teams of the Guardians’ size.
Local public money will come from an array of sources that may or may not be already spoken for. Cleveland will have to come up with $8 million per year, for example, from parking tax revenue at Gateway garages, a portion of the Progressive Field admissions tax, and the facility reserve that was created as part of the Q Deal. The County’s roughly $9 million per year will come from the hotel bed tax, the sin tax on alcohol and cigarettes and the general fund.
Though Armond Budish declared that the financial estimates were conservative and said there was plenty of money available from all of these sources, that’s simply not the case. Teams have been spending recklessly from the Sin Tax pot, and the county is already paying down debt on bonds it took out as an advance on future Sin Tax revenue. Paul Dolan acknowledged that the Sin Tax was no longer a sufficient source of revenue to cover capital repairs at the ballpark, which is why the public contribution in the current deal will go, in part, to cover capital repairs over the life of the extension.
But unlike the Q Deal, in which renderings of the renovated basketball arena were unveiled at the public announcement, the scope of the Progressive Field improvements remain vague at best. Dolan mentioned a reimagining of the “left field experience,” a transformation of the “upper deck experience,” and a new “dugout social space,” but said that these were only a few of the changes being contemplated, that the renovation would be “a process” and that the money would be spent based on the “wants and needs of fans and players.” Early design renderings were released after the press conference. Dolan also said that public contributions toward the stadium meant that the owners could allocate a larger share of their personal resources toward on-field expenses, i.e. players.
The deal will now have to pass both Cuyahoga County and Cleveland City Councils. Cuyahoga County Council President Pernel Jones Jr. gave brief remarks Thursday, celebrating the spirit of publicprivate collaboration. Just like the Q Deal in 2017, the Guardians extension arrives during an election year, and just like the Q Deal, Cleveland residents won’t get a say. Unlike in 2017, the Cleveland mayoral candidates have lined up to voice their support for the subsidy with only minor, technical qualms. -Sam Allard
UPFRONT
Campaign Finance Reports Reveal Sources of Revenue for Cleveland Mayoral Candidates
Cleveland Councilman Basheer Jones raised nearly $400,000 in the first half of 2021 in his bid to become Mayor of Cleveland, while attorney Ross DiBello brought in only $5,600. City Council President Kevin Kelley spent more, and has more on hand, than any of his six opponents, and Dennis Kucinich, who’s considered by many to be the race’s frontrunner, has spent less than everyone but DiBello.
The seven Cleveland mayoral candidates submitted their semi-annual campaign finance reports to the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections July 31, and though they remain unaudited, they convey much information about the candidates and their campaigns: in particular, who’s backing them and for how much.
Kelley remains the race’s richest combatant — he has more than $500,000 on hand — but raised less than both Basheer Jones and Justin Bibb during the reporting period, which is likely to represent the bulk of fundraising for most candidates before the September primaries. Jones raised $363,000 and Bibb raised $242,000 compared to Kelley’s $213,00.
The rest of the field was far behind these top three. Zack Reed, relying on old supporters, including Tony and Bobby George, Jason Lucarelli, and a number of representatives from the Perkins and Cifani families of Perk Construction, raised $137,000. Sandra Williams raised $96,000. Dennis Kucinich raised only $38,000.
Kelley remains the favored candidate among Cleveland’s ruling class. Albert and Audrey Ratner each donated $5,000 to Kelley, as did Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam. The Indians’ Paul Dolan chipped in $500 for good measure. Dan Gilbert, Len Komoroski and other executives affiliated with the Cavs have donated to Kelley in the past. Kelley’s median contribution appeared to be highest among all candidates, with 18 individual contributions of $5,000. The largest single donation, the maximum $7,500 for political action committees, came from the Cleveland Firefighters Association. Dan and Dona Brady, the former local political power couple who are indebted to Kelley for his orchestration of the recent Martin Sweeney county council maneuver, each gave Kelley $2,500 from their respective political action committees.
If Kelley secured high-dollar donations from local elites, Basheer Jones did the same from contributors out of state. Jones actually eclipsed Kelley in the number of maximum individual contributions, with 20 supporters donating $5,000. Tony, Kristine and Bobby George and Jason and Sam Lucarelli were joined by immigrant developers Lemma Getachew and Guernet Indale as Jones’ local max contributors. But the rest came from much further afield: Rana Malas of Laguna Beach, California; Ihsan Saleem and Tathiana Tanzey of Atlanta; Kofi Rashid of Decatur, Georgia; Omar Karim and Mohammad Khokhar of Washington D.C.; Muhammad Jami, Job Rushdan, Ibrahim Elrayah and Troy Carson of Maryland — all donated the max. Jones also received numerous donations between $2,000 and $5,000 from out-of-state contributors, which helps explain his massive haul.
Unlike Kelley and Jones, for whom contributions of $500 and $1,000 were the norm, Justin Bibb skewed lower, with a broader range of local supporters giving $25, $50 and $100. Many donated at that level on a monthly basis. Bibb received seven maximum individual contributions of $5,000: Fred Bidwell, the philanthropist and art collector who now calls Hingetown home; Jim and Susan Clifton of McLean, Virginia; Adelbert Marous of Marous Brothers Construction; Scott Mueller of Dealer Tire; Michael Cristal of Shaker Heights and Charles Cosgrove of Wadsworth. Bibb also netted contributions from multiple DiGeronimos of DiGeronimo Construction and from Bo Knez, the omnipresent housing developer on Cleveland’s near west side who also donated to Kevin Kelley.
Sandra Williams received a number of small dollar donations, but the lion’s share of her fundraising arrived courtesy of labor unions and Columbus-based political action committees. Williams enjoys widespread support from her colleagues at the Ohio Statehouse and her report reflected it. The Friends of Armond Budish and Medical Mutual PACs each donated $5,000, the highest contributions for Williams. Nina Turner gave Williams $1,000 in a personal contribution. FirstEnergy does not appear on Williams’ filing, but Duke Energy Corporation donated $500 via its PAC. -Sam Allard
PD/Cleveland.com Endorses Justin Bibb for Mayor, Warns Against Dennis Kucinich
The editorial board of cleveland. com and The Plain Dealer has endorsed 34-year-old nonprofit executive Justin Bibb for Mayor of Cleveland.
In an editorial printed on the front page of the Sunday paper — what it called a “rare step” — the board said that while Bibb was young and politically inexperienced, he had forged relationships with leaders across town and had worked harder than any other candidate to understand the city’s problems and think innovatively about solutions.
“We endorse Bibb because of his ideas for fighting crime, with more efficient deployment of safety forces and better training for them before and after they are hired,” the editorial read. “We endorse Bibb because of his collaborative approach to building the Cleveland economy. We endorse Bibb because no candidate has worked harder to understand the challenges of the city or study solutions across the country.”
The piece also noted an element of Bibb’s appeal that hasn’t been mentioned much: He is the most likely candidate, the board argued, to attract a “powerhouse cabinet” that will help extricate the city from the stagnancy of the Jackson years. It compared Bibb favorably to Mayor Michael R. White in that respect.
Though the piece’s headline was an endorsement of Bibb, it expended equal ink and passion urging voters not to vote for Dennis Kucinich.
“Whatever you do,” it pleaded directly, “don’t vote for Dennis Kucinich. As much as we believe Bibb offers a grand hope for the future, we believe Kucinich is not relevant to our future challenges.”
The editorial board criticized Kucinich’s fear-mongering and grandstanding on the campaign trail, but took special exception to his plan to use the city’s rainy day reserves to hire 400 new police officers. Given the existing cost of public safety, such a plan, the piece declared, was “ridiculous.”
Editorials are unsigned pieces that represent the institutional stance of the publication and are distinct from the work of reporters. It’s perhaps unsurprising, then, that this piece could not resist celebrating City Council President Kevin Kelley, who by any metric beyond fundraising has run an anemic campaign. The editorial board said it nevertheless would have endorsed him if not for Bibb. It unironically referred to him as a “true public servant,” unaware or unconcerned that Kelley’s contempt for the public is the attribute most highly valued by his donor base: the corporate sector. Even now, Kelley has stalled and manipulated efforts by a grassroots coalition to allow public comment at council meetings. He will likely oversee a council vote on a minor rule change to allow public comment next week, but without provisions favored by advocates, including a sign-up process for committee meetings and an allowance of comments not directly related to items on the meeting agenda.
The editorial board — just like Scene, for the record — said it was heartened by the quality of the candidates and the rigor of the public conversations in the leadup to the Sept. 14 primary. The piece found qualities to recommend in all candidates save Kucinich and Ross DiBello, who has declined all interviews with cleveland.com / The Plain Dealer.
Though cleveland.com has been largely absent from campaign reporting until now, it drops its endorsement as it launches a series of interviews with the candidates on its weekday podcast, This Week in the CLE, with editor Chris Quinn and political writer Seth Richardson. The first two were with Zack Reed and Kevin Kelley.
Mayoral forums, meanwhile, have dotted the calendar
through July and show no signs of slowing down in August. Tuesday evening, The City Club and Ideastream hosted the first of two official debates, with questions for the candidates sourced from Cleveland residents. The second will be next Tuesday. - Sam Allard
Shontel Brown Defeats Nina Turner in Race to Succeed Marcia Fudge
Shontel Brown, a Cuyahoga County Councilwoman and Chair of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party, won the special election to succeed Congresswoman Marcia Fudge last week. After the most expensive congressional primary of the year and an avalanche of direct mail and TV and radio advertising, Brown capitalized on nearly $2 million in PAC spending by the Democratic Majority for Israel and secured commanding victories in the east side suburbs to defeat her main opponent, Nina Turner.
Turner had been the early heavy favorite in the race. Her national profile and substantial fundraising far outpaced Brown’s. She amassed key local endorsements as well, including from Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson.
But last Tuesday, Turner’s modest wins in the City of Akron, the City of Cleveland and Cleveland Heights could not overcome Brown’s strong performance in her home suburb of Warrensville Heights; in Shaker Heights and University Heights; and in Beachwood, Orange and Pepper Pike, where she won more than 70% of the vote.
Turner, in her concession speech, thanked her family and staff members and all those who volunteered for her campaign. She emphasized that her campaign was and would continue to be about advocating on behalf of the poor, working class and “barely middle class.”
“Those of us fighting ... have been on a long justice journey through a desert of despair, indifference, inequality and racism,” she said. “Tonight, my friends, we have looked across at the promised land. But for this campaign, on this night, we will not cross the river. Tonight, our justice journey continues. And I am proud to continue that journey with each and every one of you. We will continue this journey until every working person earns a living wage, including passing a $15 minimum wage. We will continue this journey until every person has health care as a right and not a privilege. We will continue this journey until children’s destinies are not determined by their zip code or the color of their skin. We will continue this journey until we have torn down racism, sexism, homophobia, religious bigotry and every kind of hatred and discrimination. We will continue this journey until justice is equal for every person in this country. And this journey will continue until we have ensured that this planet will be habitable for our children and our grandchildren.”
DIGIT WIDGET
$261 million
The Cleveland Clinic’s “fair share deficit.” The Clinic, in other words, makes $261 million more in tax breaks every year than it spends on the community.
1
The Cleveland Clinic’s “fair share deficit” ranking. Among all U.S. hospitals, it contributed the least toward charity care and community investments relative to its tax exemptions.
15
Criminal counts related to theft in public office for which Cleveland City Councilman Ken Johnson was convicted recently. He faces up to 10 years in prison and will be sentenced in October.
1979
Year in which Ken Johnson was first elected to Cleveland City Council. His federal felony conviction precludes him from holding the seat any longer.
clevescene.com
UPFRONT
Turner urged those gathered not to “leave sad.” She said that the movement was bigger than one person, one race, and vowed to continue fighting “with every fiber of her being.”
“This ain’t over,” she said. Later in the week, she released a video teasing a forthcoming announcement.
Brown, who secured highprofile political endorsements from Hillary Clinton and South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn, thanked her supporters at an election night event in Bedford. She stressed her campaign’s central message: working with the Joe Biden administration in order to deliver resources to Northeast Ohio.
“I do this work for the people,” she said in her victory speech. “That has always been my foundation. That has always been my moral compass. That has always been my guiding force in this work that I intentionally describe as public service because I know I work for you.” -Sam Allard
Cincy Mayor John Cranley Enters Ohio Governor Race with Legal Weed on the Platform
After months of teasing that he’d make a gubernatorial run, Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley is finally doing it. Cranley, 47, made the announcement early Tuesday in a video shared to his social media accounts, reminiscing about when the state led robust manufacturing and innovation operations.
“For most of the last 30 years, state government in Ohio has been a rigged system led by one party,” Cranley says in a video voiceover. “In that system, Republicans get to stay in power as long as they push an agenda that favors the wealthy few. Welfare for big corporations, paid for by tax and energy hikes on you and me. And under that system, Ohio’s gotten worse.”
Cranley’s campaign largely is framed around Cincinnati’s population and civic “comeback,” as he calls it, compared to Ohio’s downswing as a whole in recent decades. According to the video and his campaign website, Cranley is running on a moderate platform around middle-class job creation, smallbusiness growth, human rights, and education and infrastructure improvements, among other issues.
Key among his issues is criminal justice reform, which includes addressing wrongful convictions and finding solutions to poverty and mental illness rather than incarcerating individuals. A graduate of Harvard Law School, Cranley co-founded the Ohio Innocence Project in 2002 at the University of Cincinnati, which uses DNA to prove the innocence of wrongfully convicted individuals.
The platform also includes legalizing recreational marijuana to fill Ohio’s tax coffers. Cranley long has been an advocate for weed and recently tweeted that he supported state and national Democrats’ focus on making cannabis a priority.
“If we legalized marijuana, we could invest that tax revenue right back into our communities,” Cranley said on July 15. “We could rebuild our roads and fund public education. We could expand healthcare for our communities.”
Cranley is running against a growing list of opponents both Democratic and Republican. Mike DeWine, Ohio’s incumbent Republican governor, has announced his plans to run for a second term, but he’s been attracting attention lately due to a former aide’s role in the FirstEnergy bribery scandal. A Republican, DeWine has been praised for pushing science-based protective health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, but many of his fellow Republicans disavow his actions and are in favor of more personal freedoms.
Cranley also is running against Democrat Nan Whaley, who is currently the mayor of Dayton. Whaley announced her candidacy in April and shares many of Cranley’s platform issues, which makes some Democrats nervous about an expensive primary battle. Whaley was in Cincinnati on Monday as part of her own campaign stop. Both Cranley and Whaley say they are friends.
-Allison Babka
scene@clevescene.com @clevelandscene
