Special Tax Fund Under Review To Support Cleveland Sports Venues

The administration of Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Executive Armond Budish is "asking the County Council to create a 'Sports Facility Reserve Fund' that would handle bed taxes set aside for improvements to the region's major league sports venues," according to Peter Krouse of the Cleveland PLAIN DEALER. The fund also "would be available for 'such other purposes as deemed by Council as necessary and appropriate.'" A 1% increase to the excise tax on lodgings in the city went into effect Jan. 1, 2020, with an agreement that 60% of the proceeds "would go into a special reserve fund for the benefit of the sports venues." County Councilman Dale Miller said that he "expects the proceeds to be used during lease negotiations" with the Indians. He noted that the team's lease at Progressive Field expires in '23, while the leases for the Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and the Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium "extend out further" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 10/14).