CLEVELAND -- Cleveland's City Council has approved giving $5.8 million to the Browns to help fix the football team's 12-year-old, city-owned stadium.
The Plain Dealer reported that the council on Monday approved the payment using money from a tax on alcohol and tobacco sales.
The Browns lease the stadium, and the agreement requires the city to pay $850,000 annually for major improvements. But the team's general counsel says that's not enough to cover routine work. The Browns want to use the larger payment to refurbish seats and fix up concrete at the weather-battered facility.
Mayor Frank Jackson's chief of staff says the city confirmed that the repairs were needed and reviewed the planned fixes.
Some officials are worried about funding such maintenance after 2015, when the countywide tax runs out.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press
