CLEVELAND — In his 42 year career, Len Komoroski had stayed in one place for about seven years before moving on.
But Cleveland is different, having stayed for nearly two decades, serving most of it as the CEO of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and Rock Entertainment Group.
“It’s not just about what we do within our four walls, but what we do within our community to help lift Cleveland, and that’s been something that’s been a passion personally,” he said.
Komoroski stepped down as CEO this year at the conclusion of the Cavs’ season. It’s something he’s been thinking about for a few years.
“Timing was just right,” he said. “And you know in a lot of respects, the All-Star Weekend was a perfect capstone.”
Looking back on the last 19 years, he reflected on the progress of the team, the city and the FieldHouse.
“Well, coming in, and that was part of it, there was really nowhere to go but up,” he said. “We were the fourth team in a three team town. We were last in attendance, last in revenue. We were the secondary event venue in the marketplace.”
All of that’s changed.
Len Komoroski (Taylor Bruck/Spectrum News 1)
He’s proud to say the renovated Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is the 11th-most active building in the world that just had a record-setting year for events.
But one year sticks out the most: 2016.
“2016 was just an epic year in the history of our city, and the FieldHouse was at the epicenter of it,” Komoroski said.
He said 2016 is hard to replicate. The Cleveland Monsters won the Calder Cup for the first time, and one week later the Cavs made history by becoming NBA Champions after a 52-year drought.
To celebrate, 1.3 million people took over downtown to celebrate with a parade. Later that summer, the city hosted the Republican National Convention, putting all eyes on Cleveland once again.
“I remember Stephen A. Smith saying the chances of the Cavs winning are zero and the Monsters’ victory, it just sort of sent a vibe into the community,” he said. “Just this positive vibe and it just reignited just the energy here in the FieldHouse, but also in Cleveland.”
While there have been many highs over the years, he said things haven’t always been easy. Since 2003, he said the city has started to realize its potential. He called the change stunning.
“Really, Cleveland was a punching bag, nationally, internationally, for people,” Komoroski said. “People loved to put down Cleveland, and what’s happened here, the renaissance that’s taken place in our community, we’re fortunate to be right at the epicenter of it in downtown Cleveland, has been absolutely remarkable.”
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is practically brand new. It was expanded by 45,000 square feet and become an all-digital venue.
Not long after the $185 million transformation was complete in 2019, everything shut down because of COVID-19.
“We were doing blood drives,” Komoroski said. “We were doing food bank distribution. We were really engaged in those activities because we couldn’t have. We weren’t allowed to have events with people.”
In his tenure, the city acquired the Cleveland Monsters, Cleveland Charge and Cavs Legion franchises.
He’s had a front-row seat to countless games, concerts, tournaments and other major events like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions and the NBA All-Star Game in the last year alone.
“The magic of an event, it’s almost like a player,” he said. “There’s something about the games, right? Those games, being able to be part of that. There’s all the things that go around that. That’s really the payoff for everybody.”
Komoroski is not retiring. He’s simply moving on to a new role within Rock Entertainment Group, and he’s confident the future is bright for Cleveland.
“You just know the next 20 years are going to be even better than what we’ve seen in the last 20,” he said.
Nic Barlage is Komoroski’s successor.
