Cleveland, OH -- Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (formerly Quicken Loans Arena) will close its doors beginning Saturday, May 11th through September 2019 to complete the $185 million renovation that will transform the publicly-owned venue into an updated and modernized world-class sports and entertainment showplace for Cleveland and the entire Northeast Ohio region.  The Cavaliers Team Shop will remain open through Tuesday, May 14th at 5:00 p.m.

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Following an official ribbon cutting ceremony and a series of public open house events and activities to take place in September (more details coming this summer), Grammy Award winning artists and Akron natives The Black Keys will perform the grand opening concert on September 30th that will kick-off year-round event activity and the start of the 2019-20 Cavaliers and Monsters seasons.

With Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse closed for the summer, work will move inside and touch virtually every area of the interior of the building, which will include eight new fan hospitality destinations, wider and more spacious concourses, the latest cutting-edge technology, new specialty food and beverage experiences and much more. The completed transformation will increase the FieldHouse’s public space from 95,380 square feet to 152,970 square feet.

 

The exterior north-facing glass façade that has dramatically changed the appearance of the FieldHouse is close to completion.  The stunning exterior that reflects downtown Cleveland’s skyline is made up of 1,475 pieces of glass from floor to ceiling, reaches more than eight stories high and creates an enclosed atrium that adds 43,530 square feet of new public space to the venue.  

As work continues to complete the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Transformation, here are key points of information for fans and the general public:

 

• The Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Box Office is CLOSED for the summer beginning Saturday, May 11th, re-opening in the fall. During this time, tickets for announced events scheduled at the venue will be available for purchase at RocketMortgageFieldHouse.com or at any of the 58 Discount Drug Mart Northern Ohio locations.

• The Cavaliers Team Shop at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse WILL CLOSE for renovations beginning Wednesday, May 15th. Visit CavaliersTeamShop.com to shop anytime and anywhere for the latest Cavs, Monsters and Cavs Legion gear.

• The RTA covered walkway from Tower City to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse WILL REMAIN OPEN for Cleveland Indians games. Fans can enter and exit the walkway at Ontario St. outside of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

 

During the next several months, construction crews, technicians and designers will be hard at work to complete the nearly two-year renovation project on the 26-year old venue to transform it into a vibrant showplace and a hub of technology that will lead the charge in innovation and fan experience and usher in a new era of sports and entertainment for Cleveland and the region.

 

To date, over 1,600 union tradesmen and women that represent 24 local unions have clocked close to 250,000 hours on Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse job site. The Cavaliers are also proud to report that the minority, female and small business workforce inclusion efforts continue to exceed the project goals pursuant to the City of Cleveland’s Community Benefits Agreement (CBA), endorsed by the County, and adopted in resolution by Gateway Economic Development Corp.

 

Highlights as of April 2019:

 

• 52% of the workforce resided in Cuyahoga County, exceeding the project’s County workforce participation Community Benefits Agreement (C.B.A.) goal of 25%.
• 24% of the workforce resided in Cleveland, exceeding the project’s City C.B.A.’s goal of 20%.
• The Minority Business Enterprise workforce participation level of 24% exceeds the C.B.A.’s goal of 16%.
• The Female Business Enterprise workforce participation level of 6% also exceeds the C.B.A.’s goal of 5%.
• The percentage of total construction contract dollars awarded thus far with minority, female and small business enterprise diversity is 69%.  

 

From the onset of the transformation, the goal to provide opportunities for a local and diverse group of subcontractors, vendors, tradesmen and women to be a part of this major community project has been a top priority commitment of the Cavaliers in partnership with general contractor Whiting-Turner.

 

Visit RocketMortgageFieldHouse.com for the most updated news and event announcements, and RMFHTransformation.com for the latest updates on the renovation project.

 

About the Transformation of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse

The transformation of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is a major renovation project to update the 26-year old arena (formerly Quicken Loans Arena). Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is home to the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers, AHL Cleveland Monsters and over 200 ticketed events annually. The publicly-owned arena, located in the Gateway District in downtown Cleveland, is operated by the Cavaliers organization.  The project is a partnership between the City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County and the Cavaliers that will modernize the venue to maintain its elite status, enhance the fan experience, and continue to provide a positive impact for the city of Cleveland, the community and neighborhoods and the region over the long-term. The transformation will extend the Cavs lease for seven more years through 2034, committing to the arena for at least 40 years since the team’s original lease, which is among the longest facility tenures in pro sports. It will help the arena and community compete for major national events such as the recently announced NBA All-Star Game that will be hosted in Cleveland in 2022— in addition to large political conventions, NCAA events, and numerous other opportunities well into future. The transformation of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse will be completed for the start of the Cavaliers 2019-2020 NBA season. To learn more, go to RMFHTransformation.com.