Veterans Memorial Arena - Money left on the table

[KenFSU]

I beat this drum every six months or so, but particularly with so much action in the stadium district as of late, I'm going to continue to beat it.

As a city, especially a somewhat cash-strapped city, we need to sell naming rights for Veteran's Memorial Arena.

We are leaving hundreds of thousands of dollars on the table every single year that could be used to maintain and improve the sports complex.

It's not an affront to the veterans community to suggest as much, and I respectfully suggest that most reasonable veterans would feel the same way.

For kicks, I grabbed annual arena naming rights revenue for the top 50 U.S. cities by population (minus NYC and two or three cities where either no arena exists, of where the naming rights deals are unknown). See chart below for numbers for each city.



Though values are obviously going to be higher for arenas with an NBA or NHL tenet, median naming rights revenue for non-NBA/NHL Top 50 cities (noted in red) is still $850,000 per year.

Lest we still fall into the, "we're too small, no one would want naming rights," nonsense, let's take a look at some other deals in cities that don't fall in the Top 50:



Median naming rights for these deals is around $430,000.

Purely looking at the data, there's no universe where we shouldn't be able to pull in $600k a year for doing almost nothing.

Why are we letting over sensitivity stand in the way of an incredibly easy, exceedingly common revenue stream for our sports complex???

[copperfiend]

I completely agree. Same goes for the Baseball Grounds.

[johnnyliar]

People will freak out about disrespecting our veterans. Like they always do.

[fieldafm]

Why are we letting over sensitivity stand in the way

I'm not sentimental at all about the issue, but I don't think that's an accurate description. It would be more fair to characterize it as the City keeping a promise made when taxpayers voted to tax themselves in order to construct the Arena. Keeping one's word is still valued in today's world. The Arena/SMG has certainly been able to creatively sell exterior advertisement opportunities to local companies like Tom Bush, while still staying true to the City's commitment to honor veterans.

[KenFSU]

Why are we letting over sensitivity stand in the way

I'm not sentimental at all about the issue, but I don't think that's an accurate description. It would be more fair to characterize it as the City keeping a promise made when taxpayers voted to tax themselves in order to construct the Arena. Keeping one's word is still valued in today's world. The Arena/SMG has certainly been able to creatively sell exterior advertisement opportunities to local companies like Tom Bush, while still staying true to the City's commitment to honor veterans.

Mike, I didn't move here until 2006, so I defer to your knowledge on the above, but are you sure it was a campaign promise, not a promise made after-the-fact?

In February 2002, the city sounded like they were aggressively searching for a corporate naming sponsor for the arena:

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=862

And, several months later, it sounds like two city council members made it their cause to pass an ordinance preventing the arena from selling naming rights:

http://jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=1717

Again, wasn't here at the time, didn't hear what promises were and were not made, but based on these articles, it sounds like naming rights were originally on the table, but were derailed by a half political power play, half face-saving measure when a corporate sponsor wasn't immediately found.

Either way, surely there's a better way to honor veterans - such as our war memorial and veteran's day parade - than to simply plaster the word "Veterans" on a sports and concert venue at the expense of $600k a year.

[JaxNative68]

why can't you have the best of both worlds and incorporate the sponsor with the existing name. The [insert company Name here] Veterans Memorial Arena?

[lowlyplanner]

The Department of Military Affairs and Veterans has a budget for FY17 of $1,177,519.

We could increase that by almost 1/3 by signing a sponsorship deal for the Arena...

The Arena is the most successful of all the City's event facilities in terms of attendance, revenue, and covering its operating costs.

[Adam White]

The Department of Military Affairs and Veterans has a budget for FY17 of $1,177,519.

We could increase that by almost 1/3 by signing a sponsorship deal for the Arena...

The Arena is the most successful of all the City's event facilities in terms of attendance, revenue, and covering its operating costs.

Why does Jacksonville have a Department of Military Affairs and Veterans?

[lowlyplanner]

Here's what their website says:

The MAV team functions within the following three priorities:

First, we are an advocate for the expansion of military infrastructure, personnel, and jobs within the City of Jacksonville and throughout Northeast Florida. The department team works closely with military, business, community, and elected leaders at the local, state, and national levels to deliver a compelling message that Jacksonville is the most "Military and Veteran Friendly City in the United States" and that Jacksonville is strategically important to the security posture of the nation.

Second, the MAV department is committed to delivering timely and competent services to our large and growing Veteran community. MAV staff is ready to assist Veterans, their survivors and their caregivers who seek access to pensions, healthcare, disability ratings, GI Bill, and other earned benefits.

Third, the MAV department sponsors and promotes city-wide events to publically recognize the service and sacrifice of the military men and women serving at area installations, and the large and growing Veterans population in Jacksonville and across Northeast Florida.

It's partly economic development and partly constituent service.  Jacksonville does have a large veteran population, and they bring their skills (and often their pensions) with them.  At the same time, the City can help veterans deal with issues related to their service.  For example, the City has made a big commitment to ending homelessness among veterans (and there are resources available from the federal government to help with that).

[KenFSU]

why can't you have the best of both worlds and incorporate the sponsor with the existing name. The [insert company Name here] Veterans Memorial Arena?

Nassau tried this, and it limited both the number of applicants and the amount that said applicants were willing to pay. If Coca-Cola, or Winn Dixie, or CSX, is paying hundreds of thousands of dollars annually for naming rights, they want to have sole billing. If you call it the CSX Center, that's how people will refer to it. If you call it the CSX Veterans Memorial Arena, people are going to just continue to refer to it as Veterans Memorial Arena.

If Nassau's case, they ended up with an arena with a ridiculous ten-word name, "Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Presented By New York Community Bank."

Here's a little more background on the 2002 battle, from the Times-Union.

In 2002 a significant battle broke out over attempts to sell naming rights to the still-unfinished arena.

"When we found out the new arena was being named in honor of veterans, we were very happy," said Pete Dowling, a former Marine and member of the Jacksonville Semper Fidelis Society. "Then we found out certain people inside the Delaney administration wanted to sell the name and were courting some big people. Coca-Cola was one of them."

Dowling, Lt. Col. Bob Adelhelm and other veterans, including two now-deceased World War II veterans, fought against selling the naming rights and won a major victory when the City Council passed ordinance 2002-428-E.

"The Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena shall not bear the name of any individual or company or any other thing as any part of the title, but shall be designated only as 'Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena,' " the ordinance states.

This means that, in order to change the name, at least 10 council members would have to vote for it. The mayor could then sign the legislation; allow it to become law without his signature; or veto it.

It appears at least some City Council members are amenable to a name change — at least for now.

"If Bank of America wanted to pay the city a couple of million dollars a year to have the naming rights to the arena, I would not necessarily be opposed to the name Bank of America Veterans Memorial Arena," Councilman John Crescimbeni said in an email to a constituent.

But even the hint of a name change has evoked anger but little surprise from those who fought the battle over a decade ago.

"We're one of the few cities who still have 'Veterans' on a facility of this type and that always made me proud to be part of the Jacksonville community," Adelhelm said. "Now if they're going to sell that sacred honor for a few bucks, what does that tell me about the people running this city?

I'm not a Bank of America veteran, I'm a Jacksonville veteran."

Former Councilwoman Alberta Hipps sponsored the 2002 ordinance and said her view remains unchanged.

"It's no different than when I sponsored the bill, I'd welcome the fight," she said. "Some things are too precious to sell."

It's hard to criticize a veteran's opinion without appearing to be unappreciative of their service. That said, Dowling's personal opinion of what's proper and improper should not supercede what's clearly best for the city and its taxpayers. I'd argue that it borders on entitlement.

We owe our veterans gratitude, remembrance, respect, care, opportunity, shelter and proper memorials.

We don't owe any group naming rights to our sports and concert arena to the detriment of the city's financial health.

The two things are apples and bananas (respect for our veterans vs. the name of the concrete box that Justin Bieber "performs" at), and it does not make one anti-veteran to suggest otherwise.

[remc86007]

Maybe they could sell the rights to Wounded Warrior Project? Best of both worlds, right?

[vicupstate]

"Some things are too precious to sell."

yeah, things like a monet, an original of the declaration of independence or the rosetta stone.  gtfo.  sell the rights.

Apples and Oranges. The person that buys a copy of the Declaration of Independence doesn't get to change the name of the document.

[Adam White]

Here's what their website says:

The MAV team functions within the following three priorities:

First, we are an advocate for the expansion of military infrastructure, personnel, and jobs within the City of Jacksonville and throughout Northeast Florida. The department team works closely with military, business, community, and elected leaders at the local, state, and national levels to deliver a compelling message that Jacksonville is the most "Military and Veteran Friendly City in the United States" and that Jacksonville is strategically important to the security posture of the nation.

Second, the MAV department is committed to delivering timely and competent services to our large and growing Veteran community. MAV staff is ready to assist Veterans, their survivors and their caregivers who seek access to pensions, healthcare, disability ratings, GI Bill, and other earned benefits.

Third, the MAV department sponsors and promotes city-wide events to publically recognize the service and sacrifice of the military men and women serving at area installations, and the large and growing Veterans population in Jacksonville and across Northeast Florida.

It's partly economic development and partly constituent service.  Jacksonville does have a large veteran population, and they bring their skills (and often their pensions) with them.  At the same time, the City can help veterans deal with issues related to their service.  For example, the City has made a big commitment to ending homelessness among veterans (and there are resources available from the federal government to help with that).

Seems like that should be the responsibility of the Federal Government - or charities. I see this as a massive waste of money, but I'm sure there are many who disagree, of course.

[Adam White]

"Some things are too precious to sell."

yeah, things like a monet, an original of the declaration of independence or the rosetta stone.  gtfo.  sell the rights.

Apples and Oranges. The person that buys a copy of the Declaration of Independence doesn't get to change the name of the document.

They would if they bought the naming rights to it. No one is talking about selling the arena.

[exnewsman]

Either way, surely there's a better way to honor veterans - such as our war memorial and veteran's day parade - than to simply plaster the word "Veterans" on a sports and concert venue at the expense of $600k a year.
[/quote]

As a veteran, I couldn't agree more. This is simple economics. We are giving away money by not selling the rights. Of course, we also want to be smart about who we partner with. And no, local veterans groups should not have a say in the name. I'm sure that will come at some point.

We have a wonderful veterans memorial a couple hundred yards away from the arena that goes a great job of honoring our local vets. I can't imagine a vet feeling all warm and fuzzy by walking into a concert at the arena because it has "veterans" above the door. There is no connection at all between vets and that building.

Sell the rights and move our city forward a little bit further.