Could the Browns be leaving the shores of Lake Erie?

The Browns aren't saying they will be leaving the lakefront. However, they're also not shooting down the prospects of eventually playing their games in a different Northeast Ohio locale besides the city of Cleveland.

"We’ve been clear on how complex future stadium planning can be," the Browns said Thursday in a statement. "One certainty is our commitment to greatly improving our fan experience while also creating a transformative and lasting impact to benefit all of Northeast Ohio. We understand the magnitude of opportunity with a stadium project intent on driving more large-scale events to our region and are methodically looking at every possibility. We appreciate the collaborative process with the City of Cleveland and the leadership of Mayor (Justin) Bibb in analyzing the land bridge and renovating the current stadium. At the same time, as part of our comprehensive planning efforts, we are also studying other potential stadium options in Northeast Ohio at various additional sites. There is still plenty of work to do and diligence to process before a long term stadium solution is determined and will share further updates at the appropriate time.”

The Browns statement came in response to a published report at the blog NEOtrans on Thursday. The blog, which is published by Ken Prendergast, reported that the Haslam Sports Group, which is owned by Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam, "has a contract to buy" a 176-acre parcel of land in Brook Park.

It is located less than a mile from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and roughly two miles from the Browns' Berea headquarters. That land, which was formerly the site of two Ford Motor plants, is situated in an area bordered on three sides by State Route 237 to the west, Snow Road to the south and I-71 to the east. The Norfolk Southern railroad tracks run between the property and Ohio 237.

The Browns' lease with the city of Cleveland expires at the end of 2028. The subject of either renovating the current Cleveland Browns Stadium — which was opened in 1999 — or building a new one, either in the city or in the suburbs, has been discussed for more than a year.

"Keeping the Browns at home on the downtown Cleveland lakefront is a priority for Mayor Bibb and city leadership," Bradford Davy, city of Cleveland chief of staff, said in a statement. "We understand and respect how complex this process is and appreciate the partnership we've had and will continue to have with the Browns and Haslam Sports Group.

"The administration has developed a strong, thoughtful and comprehensive package that we believe respects taxpayers and protects the city's general revenue fund while meeting the needs expressed by the team. This has been shared with the HSG team during our extensive negotiations over the last 8 months. We continue to meet with their team to refine our teams and come to a shared vision and acceptable deal for both parties that improves the experience for residents, sports fans and visitors. The success of our collaboration and yesterday's $20M earmark which advances our shared goal of improving lakefront access to the stadium for everyone.

"The experience of Cleveland residents and visitors to our city is top of mind for us and we are committed to developing our North Coast Lakefront into a world-class, well-programmed, people-focused space and we see the activation of Browns Stadium as a key part of that vision. The mayor's commitment to a vibrant shore-to-core-to-shoe plan for Cleveland is steadfast and gaining momentum. Downtown Cleveland is such an integral part of the game day experience and the transformational changes on the horizon promise to make that experience even better.

"Go Browns!"

The team and the city have been in regular discussions about the stadium lease. However, the clock is also ticking toward some kind of resolution to the question.

The Haslams have been vocal on the subject during the few times they've spoken to the media over the last year. The subject of the games being played somewhere other than within the city has not been a new topic.

"These things take time," Jimmy Haslam said in a July 24 press conference early in training camp in West Virginia. "The only thing Dee and I would say for sure is we're not leaving northeastern Ohio. OK, that's for sure. Our preference is to be on the lakefront, but we’ve got to see how things play out. It will be fluid and there will be bumps on the road and it may be different in three months than it is now."

That statement came four months after the Haslams, at the NFL Owners Meetings in Phoenix last March, both indicated a strong desire not to build a new stadium — as was the speculation — but to renovate the current facility as part of a greater lakefront development project. They have pitched a mixed-use development project that includes everything from residential, retail and office space along the shore of Lake Erie, along with a major renovation of the current stadium, with price tags reported at more than $1 billion.

A key to that project, however, was a land bridge connecting downtown Cleveland to the lakefront. State Route 2 current slices directly between the two, including the stadium, the Great Lake Science Center and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

"We’re really working hard with the city and the county and the state to work out a plan to continue to develop and remodel our stadium on the lakefront," Dee Haslam said in July. "So we’re working through it. I mean, it’s really complex, really hard, a lot of details and we look forward to continuing our conversations with the city on how we develop the lakefront. We think we’re an integral part of the lakefront, really important part and we want to be part of the process."

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns exploring stadium site options beyond current lakefront site