CLEVELAND, Ohio — During a meeting of the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority one year ago, Richard Knoth said he believed two fellow directors on the authority's governing board met illegally with the Cleveland Browns.
Today, authority board Chairman Robert Smith and authority President William Friedman deny anything was improper about the meeting, which included themselves, board secretary Anthony Moore, and others.
"It was a completely appropriate and legitimate meeting," Friedman said.
The legality of the meeting became an issue after The Plain Dealer reported Knoth's concern at the time as part of a May 10, 2012, article about the FBI issuing a subpoena to the port authority for records related to parking agreements with the Browns.
The newspaper's story referenced port authority meeting minutes, which stated that Knoth objected to the presence of two board members at a session in which Browns officials discussed their development proposals for the lakefront.
Knoth contended that the meeting was illegal because the two board members represented a majority of the authority's "executive committee," according to the minutes.
Friedman and Smith said after the article appeared that the authority does not have an executive committee and therefore no violation of the open meeting law could have occurred. The port has three formal committees that include all seven board members.
Knoth said Wednesday he still believes the meeting may have been inappropriate. While the authority's by-laws don't call for an executive committee, he said, every board has a de facto executive committee that includes the chairman, vice chairman and secretary. In this case, the chairman, Smith, and secretary, Moore, were present at the same meeting discussing port matters, he said.
Again, Friedman and Smith disagree with Knoth.
"I don't concur that there is such a thing as a de facto executive committee," Friedman said. "Our outside general counsel also doesn't buy that."
The meeting took place March 30, 2011, at Browns Stadium and included the port officials, several Browns' representatives and Chris Warren, chief of regional development for the City of Cleveland.
Friedman said authority Vice Chairman Marc Krantz was asked to participate but couldn't make it.
The purpose was to discuss the Browns' ideas for development around the stadium, Friedman and Smith said.
During the meeting, no decisions were made, Friedman and Smith said. The port officials simply shared information about the port and its operations to help the Browns prepare a vision of future development along the lakefront, Friedman and Smith said.
Friedman and Smith said they believe the Browns made similar overtures to other neighbors along the lakefront.
"I think in this case I wanted Bob [Smith] and Tony [Moore] to hear what the Browns were proposing and be a part of receiving this information," Friedman said of the meeting.
Browns general counsel Fred Nance said Knoth's claim that the port authority's participation in the meeting was somehow inappropriate is "ridiculous."
The Browns made a public announcement on April 19, 2011, outlining a mixed-used project that would include athletic fields and a possible sports-medicine or wellness facility on more than 20 acres north of the stadium. Its plans also included a possible 1,000-car parking garage to the south with an enclosed pedestrian walkway over the East Shoreway.
Knoth said the bigger issue in his mind is whether port directors should have independent discussions with their vendors or customers. Knoth said those interactions should be left to port authority staff.
If Browns officials wanted feedback from port authority directors about future development around the stadium, Knoth said, they should have come to a public meeting of the port authority board.
Friedman said board members attending meetings with customers or other parties is appropriate as long as there is not a violation of the open meetings law.
"I think board members on occasion certainly have the right to speak with port vendors and port customers," he said. " . . . I think it goes along with their oversight duties and responsibilities."
Whatever comes out of those meetings should be shared with the rest of the board, Friedman said.
"I think that was the intent and I think that's what occurred," Friedman said of the meeting with the Browns.
Smith, who is on the board of directors of the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation and is well-schooled in public meeting statutes, said if he had the meeting to do over again, he would.
"In my heart of hearts, that's not a public meeting," he said.
Cleveland currently has a stable of promising young pass-catchers
Playoffs?
Sounds good to Browns quarterback Brandon Weeden.
“Obviously, you’ve got to take it one step at a time,” the rookie first-round pick said after a practice, “and our goal is to get in the playoffs ... and once you get in the playoffs try to take it one step forward.”
Weeden is the favorite to start at quarterback this season. His team is not favored to win anything. The Browns haven’t been in the playoffs since 2002 and haven’t won a playoff games since 1994. They averaged 4.5 wins during the last four seasons, while Weeden was in college.
Weeden smiled when the fact was mentioned to him, and said, “You’ve got to start somewhere.”
“When I was at Oklahoma State,” he said, “we won six, then seven, then we won 11 and 12.”
Actually, Oklahoma State went and 4-7 in 2005, 7-6 in 2006 and 7-6 in 2007, the period before Weeden arrived after a pro baseball run. The Cowboys went 9-4 in both 2008 and 2009, when Weeden was a backup behind starting quarterback Zac Robinson.
With Weeden as a record-setting starter in 2010 and 2011, the Cowboys went 11-2 and 12-1.
He has joined a team that has been 6-10 or worse eight times in the last 10 seasons. How does that play on his mind?
“Each year is a different year,” Weeden said. “You’ve got new guys. You’ve got different stuff going on. Our goal is just to learn from what we did last year and move forward and try to win more than we did last year.”
But ... playoffs?
“I tell you what,” Weeden said, “our football team is really, really good. We’ve got a lot of great athletes. I’m excited to get going.”
.i will be taking a sweatshirt for later tonight as the temps will be in the high forties so they say . good sleeping weather later for sure .
Irish thanks . always a good time racing . i dont own one or drive one anymore so i get to watch other people tear there stuff up . i do miss that part of it . i help out a friend of mine with his UMP Dirt Modified .
Mother nature wins for tonight . racing cancelled 
Please don’t take my word for it. When you get 8 minutes and 41 seconds you can click here and watch it for yourself. When you do you will see quite a different temperment from the 3<sup>rd</sup> year player than you did during his first two years here in Cleveland.
Gone is the confident young QB who spoke with a certain spark and passion and now I can’t help but use the term ‘broken’ when referring to his behavior. Honestly at one point it seems like his voice is so shaky that is going to start weeping. Colt is obviously devastated the organization has given up on him after his first full season of starting but I want to take this opportunity to tell McCoy to shake himself and shake it off.
Get over the devastation and turn that pain into anger. Be angry that the organization gave up on you after one year that consisted of no off season training while you were learning a new offense.
Be angry that the organization gave you two starting WRs that had given no indication they were ready to be legitimate threats to the defense. They were wrong in having confidence in Robiske and Massaquoi and, hell, they even ended up cutting Robiske during the season. That is how wrong they were. And when he was replaced in the lineup it was by a rookie who hadn’t played football in a year and was only in his second year at the position.
Be angry that you had an offensive line that featured two first time starting guards and a RT who was playing on one foot. I saw it just like everyone else. You spent more time running around obstacles than any QB should have to and when I watched the season again a few more times I quickly confirmed that was true.
Go ahead Colt, get ticked off that you played in an offense that was supposed to rely on a big bruising punisher of a RB coming off of a year that earned him the cover of the most popular video game on the planet, and you ended up handing off to the likes of Chris Ogbonnaya.
Be angry that you were being led by a first time head coach who was also serving as your offensive coordinator and was clearly overwhelmed and not thoroughly focused on that offense. I don’t think anyone can argue with you about the fact coach Shurmur wasn’t doing his part to help you after he screwed up the St. Louis game by mismanaging the clock and calling FB dives to TEs inside the ten yard line. On a drive that was needed in order take the lead with less than 2 minutes to go in the contest, no less.
If they did argue coach Shurmur’s merit after that game you should immediately direct them to the Steelers game in which James Harrison practically exploded your helmet off your skull and the coach seemed to not even see it or have a clue that you had no clue.
Be angry that you had a group of players catching balls that led the league in dropped passes and it wasn’t just Greg Little….the Browns had 4 of the top in 11 in the AFC in dropped passes.
Be angry that the after the organization took a 28 year old (29 in October) in the first round and then looked you in the eye and tell you to go out and compete for the starting job. In all honesty this may be the biggest joke/slap in the face of all. No one inside the building or outside the building believes anyone other than Brandon Weeden is going to be the QB of the Cleveland Browns in 2012.
You will hear the coach say things like “we won’t hand him the spot” but in reality everyone understands that this situation is unique because the Browns spent a first round pick on a QB who is much older than the conventional draft pick so he has to play sooner rather than later.
I don’t want to get off on a tangent because this piece isn’t about Brandon Weeded or his age but the Browns know full well that injury is the only way Colt McCoy is the starting QB for them and Colt should be fired up about it.
Regardless of the limitation Colt McCoy has as a QB in the NFL he should be upset that the organization clearly thinks he was a bigger problem than the people they put around him in the offense, as well as the poor situations the coaching staff put him in.
This article isn’t condoning McCoy to be a bad teammate or anything like that. It isn’t about how poorly his father may have handled the situation in the press. It is simply me relaying my opinion to Colt and my opinion is that I think his internal flame should be burning white hot and I don’t want to see him look broken at a press conference……. I want him to be just the opposite.
I want McCoy to keep showing us the grit that won us over because at some point Colt will be needed and I don’t want him to have to flip a switch when that time comes.
This is not a Seneca Wallace situation at all. McCoy isn’t a career backup being thrown to the side for a talented, young signal caller. McCoy is facing a unique situation in which he is being thrown to the wolves for a talented QB who is older than him by 3 years and has yet to take a snap in the NFL, so I think it is O.K. for him to have a bit of an edge to him as he carries a chip on his shoulder.
This talented rookie QB is coming in with a RB most consider to be the most talented to come out of college in many years, a young stud RT, as opposed to a walking injury, an extremely experienced 2<sup>nd</sup> year WR who led his team in receptions last year, and Weeden will actually have a full time offensive coordinator.
Regardless what you think about Colt McCoy or Brandon Weeden you have to admit that the situation Weeden is inheriting is a huge upgrade to the one Colt McCoy had last year.
I understand there is probably a fine line between getting angry and using that anger as fuel compared to being bitter and letting that consume you like a disease, and I am not claiming to know where that line is, but being ‘broken’ like I saw McCoy in that press conference is far from either.
I am a fan first and foremost so this isn’t an attack on the organization and I am not trying to talk negatively about the draft or Brandon Weeden, but I want to make sure that Colt McCoy stays motivated and engaged because at some point I think he will be needed and that fire which used to burn hot will be needed if he is going to get past his physical limitations and win some games for us.
Those of you that have taken this article as me attacking the team or Cleveland’s new QB should read it again. I am hoping the backup QB has his mind so when he is called upon Cleveland won’t have to throw in the towel, and if he finds that motivation through his anger then I am all for it.
And Colt, if memory serves me right, that press conference wais the first time I have seen you up at a podium since you got your bell rung, so hopefully the hit had nothing to do with what I perceived as a broken spirit. But understand weI will be watching future interviews in an attempt to gauge where your mind and spirit are. With that in mind, the last message to Colt McCoy is a saying that used to be on the Romeo Crennel off season training shirts……”Get Your Mind Right”. For your own sake and ours.
The greatest Cleveland Browns running back of them all has been critical of the team’s new top running back. But Hall of Famer Jim Brown says he’s open to changing his mind about Trent Richardson.
Brown said on NFL Network’s Total Access that he thinks if you’re going to take a running back with the third overall pick in the draft, you’d better be certain he’s a truly elite runner. And Brown still hasn’t seen anything from Richardson that puts him into elite company.
“When I think of greatness, I think of guys like Earl Campbell and Gale Sayers and Walter Payton, and these individuals who, it’s unanimous they’re going to make a difference — when they’re coming out of college, there’s no doubt,” Brown said. “So at least we have to discuss Richardson from the standpoint of giving him an ordinary label and letting him prove to us that he’s not. And if he does that then I will apologize. But I’m going to look at things, I’m going to stand by things I see, and I think he is an ordinary individual. He has great work ethic and all-around ability. But that special ability that I look for, when I see a Gale Sayers? I don’t see that.”
It’s a little odd how often Brown feels the need to voice his negative opinions about Richardson, and it’s clear that there’s nothing Richardson can do other than wait until the season starts and prove Brown wrong on the field. If he does, he can expect Brown’s apology.
It’s a little odd how often Brown feels the need to voice his negative opinions about Richardson, and it’s clear that there’s nothing Richardson can do other than wait until the season starts and prove Brown wrong on the field. If he does, he can expect Brown’s apology.
Perhaps the great one is trying use a little pyscology here ? just a thought
