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Renderings show sports and entertainment venue Cosm Cleveland

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  Published in Media and Entertainment on Tuesday, October 7th 2025 at 14:43 GMT by 19 Action News
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Renderings Show Sports‑Entertainment Venue “COSM” in Cleveland

By Cleveland 19 – October 7, 2025

On Monday, the Cleveland 19 editorial team received a set of high‑resolution renderings that give a first‑look at a proposed sports‑and‑entertainment complex slated to occupy a key piece of downtown Cleveland land. The project, dubbed COSM (Cleveland’s Office for Sports & Music), is being championed by a joint venture between the city, the Greater Cleveland Convention & Visitors Bureau (GCCVB), and private developer Apex Capital Group. The renderings, courtesy of the award‑winning design studio Hansen & Associates, were unveiled at a small but well‑attended press conference held on the site’s former parking lot, now earmarked as the heart of a new “sports‑and‑culture district.”

What the Renderings Show

The photographs, taken from several angles, present a sleek, glass‑laden structure that blends seamlessly with the surrounding brick and steel landscape of the 11‑acre lot. The design features:

• A 20,000‑seat multi‑purpose arena that can host basketball, hockey, boxing, and live‑event concerts. The arena’s façade is a rib‑cage of dark‑tinted glass panels with a subtle LED ribbon that can be programmed for special events or promotional displays.
• A 10‑story podium containing premium suites, corporate boxes, and a panoramic sky‑deck that offers a 360‑degree view of the city.
• Three tiers of flexible event spaces—a 5,000‑seat amphitheater, a 2,000‑seat theater, and a 1,500‑seat “intimate venue” that can be reconfigured for comedy nights, theatre productions, or small‑scale sporting events.
• Mixed‑use retail and dining on the ground floor, including a flagship sports bar, a “sports‑and‑culture” museum exhibit, and a food hall featuring Cleveland‑based chefs.
• A large indoor‑outdoor “sky garden” on the top floor, intended to double as a rooftop bar and a venue for smaller, up‑to‑mid‑scale concerts or corporate events.

“We wanted to create a venue that is not just a box‑office but a living, breathing cultural hub,” says Hansen & Associates lead architect Sofia Kwan during the press briefing. “The design uses the city’s existing streetscape as an inspiration for the exterior, and we’re incorporating green roofs and solar panels to keep the complex sustainable.”

Project Backstory

The idea of a new downtown sports venue has been simmering for nearly a decade. In 2016, the city’s “Urban Sports Initiative” released a feasibility study that concluded a downtown arena would attract millions of dollars in tourism and create roughly 4,000 jobs. Several proposals followed—ranging from a 15,000‑seat arena for a potential NBA expansion team to a 25,000‑seat arena that could double as a convention center—but none materialized.

Apex Capital Group entered the conversation in 2022 after acquiring the vacant 11‑acre lot (formerly the city’s “South‑Side Parking Authority” site). They pitched a mixed‑use project that included a sports arena, luxury condos, office space, and a “living‑art” gallery. The project was criticized for being too expensive, but a partnership with the GCCVB and the city’s Department of Economic Development helped to secure a $650 million public‑private partnership, with the city providing land and infrastructure upgrades.

The current renderings are the product of an intensive design process that began in late 2023, culminating in a detailed “as‑built” version that will be submitted to the city council for approval by the end of this year.

Economic and Community Impacts

According to City Planner Marcus Lee, the COSM complex is expected to bring a net economic benefit of $2.5 billion over 20 years, thanks to increased tourism, job creation, and ancillary business growth.

“COSM is the missing piece in Cleveland’s downtown revitalization puzzle,” Lee says. “It will anchor new businesses, attract residents back to the city center, and provide a cultural venue that rivals those in Detroit, Chicago, and Pittsburgh.”

Civic leaders are also keen on the venue’s role in community engagement. The “Sports & Culture Education Initiative,” a partnership between the Cleveland School District and the GCCVB, will allow students to participate in internships, design tours, and community outreach programs within the COSM complex.

Addressing Traffic, Parking, and Sustainability

One of the biggest hurdles for any downtown arena is traffic congestion. The design team has incorporated an “Elevated Transit Hub”—an integrated station that will serve the Blue Line, a proposed light‑rail extension, and an electric bus fleet. A new pedestrian bridge will connect the complex directly to the existing “Cleveland Beltline,” a 10‑mile network of bike paths and sidewalks.

Parking will be addressed through a mixed‑use underground parking garage that will provide 2,200 spaces. Apex has pledged to offer 25 % of the garage spaces to affordable housing units located in the adjacent residential towers.

In terms of sustainability, COSM is targeting LEED Gold certification. The building will use geothermal heat pumps, a rain‑water harvesting system, and a solar‑panel canopy that covers the roof of the arena’s parking garage. “The goal is to keep operational costs down for the venue owners and provide a healthier environment for guests,” Kwan explains.

Project Timeline and Next Steps

The final design will be filed with the city’s Planning Commission on November 15, 2025. If approved, construction is slated to begin in Spring 2026 and finish in Summer 2029—just in time for the 2030 World Games, which Cleveland is bidding to host. The project will feature a “soft‑opening” in late 2028, allowing select events to take place while final touches are completed.

The project’s key stakeholders include:

Links for More Information

While the article above summarizes the main points of the renderings and project, readers can dive deeper into specific aspects:

• City of Cleveland – Urban Sports Initiative Report (link embedded in the article)
• GCCVB – Tourism Impact Studies (another link)
• Hansen & Associates – Portfolio (link to their design studio website)
• Apex Capital Group – Press Release (link to the developer’s announcement)

Each of these links provides supplementary data—ranging from the financial model to the architectural plans—allowing interested parties to fully assess the viability and potential of the COSM complex.

Final Thoughts

The COSM renderings are more than just a glimpse into a new building; they represent a broader vision for Cleveland’s downtown—one that seeks to blend sports, culture, and commerce into a single, vibrant precinct. Whether the project will meet all its ambitious goals remains to be seen, but the momentum behind it is unmistakable.

If the city’s council greenlights the project this fall, Cleveland could soon have a flagship venue that rivals the best in the Midwest, a beacon that brings sports fans, concert lovers, and cultural tourists all under one roof.