City set to sell naming rights for stage
Saskatoon city council will be asked Monday to approve a $100,000 agreement to name a stage at River Landing for a prominent local construction company.
City of Saskatoon officials have struck a deal with Wright Construction Western Inc., to name a riverfront stage just west of the Sen. Sid Buckwold Bridge for 10 years.
A report heading to council Monday explains musicians and other performers can book the stage for free and perform in front of an audience seated on the grassy hill just north of the stage facing the South Saskatchewan River.
Jill Cope, a project manager for the city’s environmental and corporate initiatives branch, said three other areas at River Landing are being considered for naming rights sponsorships: the pedestrian bridge promenade located near the stage, the riverfront outdoor fitness circuit and the market square next to the Farmers’ Market building.
“I think it’s great,” said Brooke Dobni, a professor of strategy at the University of Saskatchewan’s Edwards School of Business. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it, quite frankly.”
Dobni, who has been involved in awarding naming rights, including for the school of business where he serves as an associate dean, said people should get used to this form of marketing as municipal governments seek new revenue streams.
He said the difficulty with sponsoring naming rights for a stage like the one at River Landing is trying to determine a value for it.
“It’s delicate,” confirmed Cope, who said the $100,000 price tag resulted from negotiations. She would not reveal a target cost for the other naming rights, and said there’s no timeline to secure sponsors.
Dobni said there’s an unfortunate perception that the money paid for naming rights is really intended to gain influence with the organization selling the naming rights, but he’s never seen an instance when that was the case.
The Wright family dates back about a century in the province’s construction industry and has built several well-known landmarks, such as the Delta Bessborough hotel in downtown Saskatoon, some of the original U of S buildings and the Persephone Theatre building at River Landing.
The stage would be known as the Wright Construction Riverfront Stage and the $100,000 would be paid over four years. Several spaces at River Landing can be booked by calling the city at 306-975-3366.
If the naming agreement is approved, a news conference is expected in early summer to announce it, along with the final completion of the $82-million effort — split between the city, the province and the federal government — to clean up the prime riverfront site known as River Landing
The rehabilitation project began in 2004. The city is being asked to sell naming rights to a riverfront stage west of the Sen. Sid Buckwold Bridge to Wright Construction Western Inc. for $100,000.