After more than a year of unsuccessfully searching for a new naming rights partner for Mosaic Place, city council will use a contractor in hopes of having better luck.
During its June 13 regular meeting, council voted 5-2 to hire Performance Sponsorship Group (PSG) to locate and negotiate a naming rights agreement for the Moose Jaw Events Centre for $29,000 and provide a commission of 20 per cent every year of the new agreement. Council also agreed to increase the venue’s 2022 budget by $29,000 to cover this expense.
Councillors Kim Robinson and Dawn Luhning were opposed.
City administration also recommended that council spend $50,000 to temporarily rebrand the venue until a new partner is found. However, council declined that option because it would be expensive in the short term and a new partner could be found within months.
End of contract
The Mosaic Company’s naming rights partnership began in 2011 and was to end on Aug. 31, 2021. However, the company agreed to remain the naming partner until Aug. 31, 2022 — and no longer — while the municipality looked for someone new, city manager Jim Puffalt explained.
Staff at Mosaic Place have started removing small interior signs, the large Mosaic potash mural will be gone by early August, and inquiries are being made about removing other major signs on the building.
The Mosaic Company will cover all removal costs as part of the agreement.
These changes will affect the venue’s budget, including $50,000 in lost revenue for naming rights and advertising and $8,375 lost for the curling naming rights, a council report said.
In-house efforts
During the past year, an in-house committee comprised of the mayor, a city councillor, the city manager, three city hall directors, and the general manager of Mosaic Place searched for a partner within the community and region but was unsuccessful.
“We tried to work every angle we could. We came to the conclusion that we could not do this ourselves, so what we did is we put out a request for proposals to find a company to give us a hand,” said Puffalt.
City administration recommended PSG because it was the best option, had the lowest up-front search fee, has experience in Western Canada, and could find a partner in about four weeks, he added. So, there is optimism it can help find an appropriate naming rights partner for the next five to 10 years, a timeframe important for branding continuity.
Concerns about committee
Luhning had several concerns about the committee, including that this was the first she’d heard about it, that she should have been made aware sooner, that council has known about this issue for two years and that there are now two months left on the current agreement.
She noted that she has deep contacts within the community since she helped secure sponsorships for the Cultural Centre. She felt that city administration had “done a disservice to (her) and the other councillors around the table.”
“We seem to be operating in silos sometimes and we are not being told about what is going on with these major projects,” Luhning said. “… I will not vote in favour of paying for a professional committee to find us a name at the 11th hour.”
Meanwhile, Robinson refused to support the motion because he thought the 20-per-cent commission was too much. He noted that that adds up to about $330,000 on a 10-year contract worth $1.5 million.
“We could sponsor ourselves for two years. To me, we’re just tossing out money on a commission on a pig and a poke,” he added.
Community passion
“It’s a big ask to ask for naming rights on a building like our Mosaic Place,” said Mayor Clive Tolley, noting the venue has seen recent successes with the Brett Kissel concert, Jurassic Quest, and the in-house food and beverage services.
“We’re hoping that by hiring professionals that they will come back with a naming rights sponsor. We’ve exhausted our local sponsors … ,” he continued.
While there is “immense pride” in having Mosaic’s name on the building, the company is not withdrawing from the community, the mayor added. Instead, Mosaic is redistributing its money by focusing more on food security initiatives.
Moving on
Coun. Heather Eby recalled how exciting it was when the Mosaic Place name was first revealed to the public. Now after 11 years, when a new name arrives, she thought that people would still call it Mosaic Place out of habit.
“But the time has come to move on and I respect Mosaic’s decision to pull their name off the building,” she continued.
However, Eby was disappointed that the option to hire a contractor was only recently brought to council’s attention and members were now scrambling to find a new naming rights partner. She thought this option should have come in January so that council was ahead of things.
Even though the in-house committee contacted many community businesses, Coun. Jamey Logan hoped PSG also reached out to those places. He noted that some business owners have better contacts — especially nationally — than city hall, so those contacts might prove fruitful.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, June 27.
