Council approves land swap with Cleveland schools, funds shared-use stadium at new JFK site

The Finance Committee approved Ordinance 246-2025 authorizing a property exchange between the City of Cleveland and the Cleveland Municipal School District (CMSD) and authorizing city contribution to a new athletic stadium at the new JFK High School site.

The ordinance enables the director of parks and recreation and community development to swap several land bank parcels with CMSD (including parcels at 773 and 777 Parkwood Drive and 3172 West 404th Street), and for CMSD to convey the former JFK high school site at 17100 Harvard Avenue (about 14 acres) to the city for community and economic development use. The city will contribute $2,100,000 from bond proceeds toward construction of a new athletic stadium at the new JFK site at 15115–401 Miles Avenue, with a shared-use agreement between the city and CMSD.

Committee members raised multiple questions about access, maintenance, and term length for the shared-use agreement. Director DeRosa said the facility would be shared roughly “half and half” with CMSD responsible for maintenance; CMSD counsel David Riley described a default division that gives the city about 185 non-school days and the district about 180 school days, and said an operating committee made up of equal city and district members would administer day-to-day scheduling. Riley also said CMSD would need to take any material term changes back to its board but expected no objection to a longer term.

Councilman Kevin Bishop and others pushed to lengthen the shared-use term beyond the initially proposed 15 years. Administration staff explained the 15-year baseline was tied to bond underwriting requirements and the expected useful life of artificial turf (commonly 12–15 years), but agreed the agreement could be negotiated to a longer fixed term. The committee approved an amendment to Section 9 of the ordinance to read that the shared-use agreement shall be “for a term of a minimum of 15 years and renew automatically from year to year thereafter until terminated by either party.” That amendment passed by voice vote.

Separately, council fiscal staff flagged a typographical error in Section 8: the ordinance originally referenced sub fund “20-174,” which the city’s fiscal staff said did not exist. The administration confirmed the correct sub fund is S20SF714 and the committee approved an amendment correcting the funding code. The committee then approved Ordinance 246-2025 as amended.

Council members also pressed for written, enforceable scheduling and access provisions so neighborhood groups, youth leagues and Muny football and other community users would have predictable access. David Riley described an operating committee and a scheduling process that, he said, “works out” routine use between the parties. Multiple council members asked for the final shared-use agreement and related policy materials to be provided to council staff for committee review prior to or at the time the city executes the agreement. Director DeRosa and CMSD said they will return to council with any needed board approvals or amendments.

The administration noted the city is concurrently advancing redevelopment planning for the vacated 14-acre former JFK site via an RFQ process.

Votes at the committee were voice votes; the committee moved the ordinance forward as amended for full council consideration.