Idea #34 – Naming Rights

Report Status: Fully Reviewed

Researched by: Vicki Amalfitano

Original Idea as Submitted

Explore joint support for Town and School Department naming rights. Seek out corporate sponsorship in exchange for advertising/naming consideration to procure/maintain school labs & equipment, other town capital equipment, or public areas (adopt-a-park similar to adopt-a-highway).

Other ideas included in this report

  • None

Idea intent

New revenue sources through corporate sponsorships and donations for naming town facilities.

Weighted Final Score: 50 (Financial Impact: 3, Operational Impact: 2, Time Scale: 3, Ease of Implementation: 4)

Background Information

Businesses and individuals can be solicited for corporate sponsorship fees and individual donations in exchange for naming town buildings, meeting rooms, athletic facilities, including fields, or other assets after the business or donor.

The Belmont Select Board in 2018 adopted a Naming Policy for Town Assets in order “to establish a systematic, consistent and transparent approach for naming public assets in the Town”. The policy delineates the criteria that the Select Board will use in evaluating and approving naming proposals for town assets.

There is not a policy or mechanism for soliciting sponsorship or donor funds on the part of Town Departments, according to the Town Administrator, who also indicated soliciting corporate sponsorships might be categorized as a contract and under Massachusetts General Law must go out to bid, where it would be won by the lowest bidder, unless a trust or foundation (similar to the Belmont Library Foundation or Foundation for Belmont Education) was formed.

Belmont Public Library has developed its own naming policy and tangible gifts policy for use by the Friends of the Library and the Belmont Library Foundation. The former raises funds in general for library programs and services. The latter is charged by the Library Board with raising significant funds for the town’s replacement library. The Trustees have formed a “Table Group” with representatives of the Board of Trustees, the Friends, and the Foundation to align fundraising with Library needs.

The finance office for Belmont Schools indicated they do not solicit sponsorships or donor funds The Foundation for Belmont Education does work with residents and businesses in the Town of Belmont to raise private funds that are used to enrich the education provided by the Belmont Public Schools.

That said, examples of Belmont assets that have been named after private fundraising initiatives are Joey’s Park (The Joey Fund and other donations, both financial and in-kind) and the Brendan Grant Memorial Field at the Belmont High School, which was renovated with funds($250K) from the Brendon Grant Foundation in 2007.

School systems in eastern Massachusetts and their City or Town educational foundations have grappled with the issues of gifts/donations and going out to bid. Some examples are below.

Naming Rights in Other Massachusetts Communities

  • Brookline: Named an athletic facility with a private donation from the Kraft family ($400,000). That donation went through the Town's Park & Recreation Department, and was matched by the NFL ($200,000). The name is "The Kraft Family Athletic Facility at Harry Downes Field.” The $600,000 went to make improvements to the facility.

  • Gloucester: Naming right for the Stadium went out to bid and New Balance was the highest bidder at $500,000 over a 10‐year period. The name is "The New Balance Track & Field at Newell Stadium.” The $500,000 went to make improvements to the stadium.

  • Shrewsbury: In exchange for Susan J. Adams’s and family sponsorship donation of $250,000, the Shrewsbury High School Stadium Field was renamed the “David J. Adams Memorial Field”.

  • Newton: Back in 2012 a group of Aldermen raised the issue of selling naming rights for school assets by contracting with the Newton Schools Foundation, prompting the Mayor to “request authorization to establish a revolving account with an annual expenditure limit of $2,000,000 for the purpose of receiving funds collected by the Newton Schools Foundation in connection with the sale of naming rights for Newton Public School buildings and facilities and to be distributed for the sole purpose of public school education technology and curriculum purposes”. It does not seem to have gone anywhere.

Recommendations

  • This is a feasible idea for the Town and Belmont Schools and is well underway for the Library.

  • Other than the Library (with the Friends and Foundation), Town and Schools do not have the formal infrastructure for soliciting donations or securing corporate sponsorship and should work on a structure and process for this.

  • This structure and process can dovetail with Idea #23 on increasing revenue from grants, as the skill set is the same.

  • Currently in Belmont, funds need to be raised for two major projects: a replacement library and ice rink. There are likely identical corporations that are prospects for both projects (e.g., banks, car dealerships, supermarkets, etc.). Those bodies charged with fundraising should coordinate such requests for major donations and sponsorships.

Next Steps

  • The Select Board should direct the Town Administrator to work with the School Superintendent and School committee, and the Library Director and Library Board on an evaluation of estimated revenue from naming rights, as well as structure and process, including the staff needed to solicit and manage sponsorships.

  • The Select Board, the Library Board and the School Committee should develop a mechanism to coordinate how major donations or sponsorships are sourced and requested of prospects that cut across Town, School and Library.

  • Part of the evaluation should include integrating the naming rights assessment and next steps with those to increase revenues through increased grant writing, as the staff needed for these areas have a similar skill set.

Further Reading