Port authority buys Rockin' on the River

LORAIN — Rockin' on the River will be under new management. The Lorain port and finance authority purchased the rights to the long-running outdoor concert series — at Black River Landing, 421 Black River Lane, Lorain — starting with the 2025 concert year, including its social media profiles and branding, for $225,000. Its board unanimously approved the purchase during a special meeting recently taking place. The contract includes another $25,000 per year consulting agreement with Bob and Sandy Earley, who have managed the annual summer concert series for decades under their company, Falls River Concerts. That consulting agreement is for up to three years. The couple announced plans to retire as promoters and organizers of the series earlier this year. Tom Brown, the authority's executive director, said Bob Earley made his intentions clear to retire and has been in negotiations to reach the agreement approved at the recent meeting. "This keeps Rockin' on the River where it should be," Brown said. Brad Mullins, the port authority's board chairman, said the agreement squelches rumors that swirled around the Friday night series after the Earleys announced their retirement. He said the agreement does not mean the port will not be looking to book other acts outside of the Friday, and sometimes Saturday, night series. Brown expects the port will be ready to fully take over booking and promoting the series after the consulting agreement runs its course. "I think the transition will be completed by then," Brown said. "I think this is a move to provide some reassurance to the public that their Fridays are going to remarkably not change. By year three we're going to be thought of as the providers of Rockin' on the River." Ahead of the transition, the port and Earleys already hosted a joint show this summer, Brown said. The Aug. 3 Twist on Taylor concert, with Sarah Jessica Rhodes' paying tribute to pop sensation Taylor Swift alongside Boy Band Review's tribute to NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, Jonas Brothers and One Direction, saw the port and the Earleys split the program's costs, responsibilities and revenue 50/50. That pilot show for the Port brought in a total revenue of $85,700 and cost $42,200. Taking on the concert series means not only a new revenue stream for the port authority, Brown said, but taking on the risk of the series as well. Those risks — unknown weather, unknown attendance — and costs like the sound system and lights as well as the performers themselves, will all be on the Port for the 2025 season, he said. But so too will the profits, which will go into its general fund. "I wouldn't take this to the board if this wasn't sustainable," Brown said. He said a portion of the profits will go toward the port's planned renovation of the stage at Black River Landing, which will start after this concert season. He proposed upgrades, costing about $8.6 million, to include repositioning and rebuilding the stage closer to the riverbank with an amphitheater on the lawn and a green room to the left of the stage. It previously received $1 million each from the city's American Rescue Plan Act funds and Lorain County's COVID-19-relief funds. The stage renovations will be done in time for the 2026 season. "It's going to be Rockin' on the River," Brown said. "Bob and Sandy, they're going to be here and next year is going to feel just like this year. We look forward to getting creative with the booking we do every year and making a big announcement in March." Read more at chroniclet.com.