Bengals President Mike Brown said Monday that the NFL team will have no choice but to walk away from its stadium deal by the end of January if the city of Cincinnati and Hamilton County can't resolve disputes.
For the first time, the Bengals are pointing to a deadline in the controversy over the city's transferring critical riverfront land to the county.
Echoing language in the lease that the team signed with the county in May, Mr. Brown said the club would exercise its right to terminate the lease at the end of next month if the land isn't transferred.
''If it doesn't come to a conclusion by the end of the month, the Bengals have no choice but to cancel the deal,'' Mr. Brown said. ''We would only cancel if we think the project isn't going ahead, and it won't be if it's not settled by then. Our only other option is a series of lawsuits against the county over late payments, but that won't solve our need for a long-term solution.''
The lease states that if by Wednesday, the team has not approved what is known as a guaranteed maximum price for the stadium, the team has the right to terminate the lease 30 days later.
The Bengals said it was unlikely that a guaranteed maximum price, prepared by the county's construction manager, would be ready by Wednesday.
''It's impossible to secure a GMP without a firm commitment (of) when the land is available,'' said Troy Blackburn, Bengals director of stadium development. ''We're on time for construction, but in the near future, we're getting to the point we won't be able to get any of the time back.''
Mr. Brown, who courted Baltimore in 1995 before the county proposed to finance new stadiums with a sales-tax increase, stopped short of saying he would leave Cincinnati if the city doesn't relent. But he also said ''there is no economic successful NFL future in Cinergy Field beyond 2000.'' The new Paul Brown Stadium is to open in 2000.
City Manager John Shirey asked Monday, ''Where would the Bengals get a better a deal?''
Mr. Brown, whose father coached the Cleveland Browns to national fame in the 1950s, refused to speculate on moving into Cleveland's stadium for the 1999 season. The NFL has to let Cleveland know by Nov. 15, 1998, whether the league plans to provide an expansion team or an existing team.
''I'm not proposing anything like that,'' Mr. Brown said. ''I propose to get this thing done in Cincinnati. When we look at how far we've come, this squabble looks minor.''
But stadium opponents are looking at more than the land issue. Cincinnati City Council must approve the land transfer, but Monday, one of its majority coalition members ripped Mr. Brown's written plea to council. In a letter Friday, Mr. Brown disputed the city's claim that the Bengals' lease was the worst government deal ever.
Councilman Phil Heimlich criticized Mr. Brown's assertion that the Bengals' contribution of $44 million to $50 million to stadium construction was the second-most of the last seven NFL stadium deals.
''I'm not impressed with his deadlines,'' Mr. Heimlich said. ''(The lease) turned out to be a bonanza for the Bengals. If they choose to walk, so be it. People are sick of being pressured by professional sports teams, especially teams that don't have economic impact. The Bengals don't; the Reds do.
''Mr. Brown assumes any money that comes to the county as a result of the stadium is his contribution. He's not spending any of his money; he's just taking a little less.''
Mr. Blackburn, who pointed to the city's 1995 agreement to transfer land for the stadium, observed, ''I think Phil has forgotten there was a public vote on the issue.''
Hamilton County Administrator David Krings, the county negotiator, said Monday that he was analyzing the city's latest proposal. Mr. Shirey said a deal to transfer the land can be forged if the sides agree on the county's contribution to the Fort Washington Way renovation.
