In February 2017, the group announced its opposition to plans to use tax money to renovate Quicken Loans Arena (the Q), home of the Cleveland Cavaliers.[11][12] The proposed renovation—which included plans to add a new glass front, additional gathering places, and food areas[13]—was estimated to cost $282 million over 17 years, with taxes from Cleveland and Cuyahoga County paying for $160 million of that.[11] In announcing its opposition to the deal, the CCPC joined a coalition of community groups, including Service Employees International Union District 1199 (SEIU) and the Greater Cleveland Congregations (GCC), that also opposed the deal.[14] The CCPC opposed use of any tax dollars to renovate the Q,[15] while the GCC proposed that the city and county governments put an equal amount of tax dollars into neighborhood development as would be spent on the renovations.[11]
CCPC members helped collect more than 20,000 signatures on a petition seeking a referendum on the deal[16] and attempted to submit them to Cleveland City Council on May 22, 2017.[17] The council initially refused to accept the petitions, arguing that that would violate its contract with the Cavaliers, but in August 2017 the Ohio Supreme Court ordered the council to accept the petitions.[18]
On August 28, 2017, the Cavaliers announced that they were withdrawing from the deal, citing rising costs and delays caused by the prospective referendum. [19] However, on August 31, the GCC announced that Cuyahoga County had committed to building two mental health and substance abuse crisis centers and that its members were withdrawing their petitions seeking to get the referendum on the ballot.[20] The GCC did not consult the other member organizations of the coalition before making this decision.[21] In December 2017, the team stated it was moving forward with the renovations. The project will cost $193 million, after interest, with taxes paying for $100 million of it.[18]