By Logan Wells, News Director | Logan@kymnradio.net
As the Northfield School District searches for revenue streams to supplement the funding received through state and local taxpayers, district officials have made opportunities available for paid advertising and naming rights of some of their more high-profile sites and areas, particularly with Raider sports facilities.
Northfield Superintendent of Schools Dr. Matt Hillmann said the district has been working with a local advertising agency to recruit long-term sponsors for some of the facilities, advertise on scoreboards, and hang signage during indoor events.
For example, Hillmann said the district has a deal in place with NCC Builders to make improvements to the press box at Memorial Field. The press box has been in need of an upgrade for quite some time, so NCC Builders has agreed to donate materials and labor to make the needed repairs and will also pay a fee for the press box naming rights.
Other sites either being made available, or that have been optioned, include the new scorers table in the high school gymnasium, and the scoreboard in the middle school swimming pool area, which is sponsored by Community Resource Bank.
According to Dr. Hillman, district officials estimate the new program could provide $1 million in revenue over the next ten years, and he noted that could be a conservative estimate. However, while that kind of money could be very helpful, he said he does not expect naming rights to become a cornerstone of the district’s funding.
“The course of a, you know, $55 million budget or so, this is significant, you know, but it doesn’t solve, you know, all of the kinds of fiscal issues that organizations have, but we are working to find these other sources of revenue that allow us to do things that we’d like to do while maintaining the general fund for the most core purposes.” – Superintendent of Schools Dr. Matt Hillmann
Hillmann said after the revenue streams have been established, the school board will decide the best use of the money.
