CINCINNATI — The Hamilton County Board of Commissioners is asking for the community's input on the Paycor Stadium lease agreement with the Cincinnati Bengals before it is finalized.
The county and the Bengals agreed in late June on the framework of a deal for the new lease, which will run 11 years, through 2036. The term sheet, approved by county commissioners, calls for the Bengals to pay 25% of a $470 million renovation, while the county will be left to cover 75% of the costs.
County officials said this is down from an 88% - 12% split on maintenance costs in the previous lease. The county also said this is less public contribution when compared to Baltimore and Charlotte's recent deals.
WATCH: We break down the most important details of the lease
The term sheet includes concessions from the Bengals, who previously offered to pay $1 million in annual rent for five years. Now, they're expected to pay $1 million for three years, then $2 million plus an inflation rate of at least 2.5% for the next eight years.
The Bengals would also have less control over the use of Paycor Stadium on non-game days and completely lose a contract term from its current lease, allowing it to demand stadium enhancements if 14 other NFL teams adopt innovations that Paycor Stadium lacks.
Both sides also agreed to jointly pursue state funding to meet more of the renovation costs. Ohio lawmakers finalized a deal last month to use $600 million in unclaimed funds for the Cleveland Browns' new stadium as the Cincinnati Bengals, FC Cincinnati and other Ohio teams compete for an additional $400 million.
Commissioners will receive the latest lease update during their regular meeting on Thursday, July 17 at 10 a.m. Residents are encouraged to attend either in person or virtually to provide public comments.
If you want to attend the meeting, go to the Todd B. Portune Center for County Government at 138 East Court Street. Or, you can click here for the Zoom link to attend virtually or submit to their electronic public comments page here. Public comments are limited to two minutes per person.
