August 30, 2013 · Exit133

Name That Dome... Take 2...

Back in June the City of Tacoma introduced the possibility of selling Tacoma Dome and Convention Center naming rights, and advertised for a contractor to develop and administer the process for naming rights, advertising, and sponsorship sales.

The City was looking for an "aggressive sales plan." They may still be looking for aggressive, but they're also watching the purse strings. The News Tribune reports that the City is relaunching its search, after the first round of proposals came back at a richer price point than the City wanted. The pricing models of two proposals received - one from a Texas company, another from Cincinnati - were both rejected by the City as not workable.

The new RFP from the City will be released in September, and will be more modest in scope. According to the TNT, it will only ask for an evaluation of what resources the City has to sell, and what they might be worth. The City hopes to pick a company for the project in October. If the chosen company comes back with appealing ideas, another company could be hired to move forward. If the results aren't appealing, that might be the end of the discussion.

If naming rights to the Dome are going to be on the table, the City is hoping to turn it around quickly, with a signed contract by year end. Money from any deal would go towards the 2014 facilities budget.

Looking back at Tacoma's history with naming the Dome, it appears that we have some issues with commitment. For better, or for worse...

Filed under: Tacoma Landmarks, Tacoma Dome

6 comments

fred davie August 31, 2013

You can probably find a trained monkey to this job. This is like baby work. In fact the city already has 3000 employees. Pretty sure somebody is just sitting around waiting for someone to give him a job.
Published Author RR Anderson September 2, 2013

ebay? craigslist? that dumb electronic sign in front of the dumb dome?
thackerspeed September 3, 2013

What resources does Tacoma have to sell, and what is their value?--Tough question from the City for those who would aspire to negotiate naming rights for the Tacoma Dome, because "value" is not a statement of material fact.
Jesse September 4, 2013

Tacoma Screw Clear Channel... Dome.
NameJJ September 5, 2013

State Master Robert Hill Dome
thackerspeed September 16, 2013

YOUR CHANCE FOR MONUMENTAL STATUS. TIME LIMITED OFFER. Capitalist, Philanthropist, or Handyman Wanted. City of Tacoma may exchange for services: naming rights and/or advertising rights on prominent hillside structures. All contract offers subject to eligibility, profitability analysis, and approval of credentials. Contract performance must not violate public policy, nor conflict with municipal services marketing efforts (2003 rejected scenario for Tacoma Dome naming rights and/or advertising rights: Proposed multimillion dollar payment to Tacoma from Comcast vis-à-vis proposed interesting payment to Tacoma from Click!). See Customer Specialist for details.