UPDATE Tuesday, Sept. 13
At the city council’s on Monday, Sept. 12, council endorsed the naming rights sponsorship agreement for the downtown urban park. No debate or discussion was held as council accepted a staff report recommending the agreement with Pepsico Canada ULC.
Original story:
Peterborough’s new downtown urban park will be named the Quaker Foods Urban Park as part of a naming rights sponsorship agreement, if endorsed by city council next week.
A staff report going to city council on Sept. 12 recommends the city enter into a sponsorship agreement with Pepsico Canada ULC for the naming rights of the urban park under construction at the former Louis Street parking lot on Charlotte Street.
The agreement would be for a term of 15 years with a value of $240,000 plus inflationary increases on annual payments, the report notes.
The more than $7.4-million park is expected to open in October and will feature a refrigerated outdoor skating rink, a stage, space for the Wednesday Downtown Farmers’ Market, and green space.
“The Quaker Urban Park Naming Rights opportunity is a strong alignment between the sponsorship opportunity with the City and PepsiCo, a historic local food manufacturer and major employer,” says Sandra Clancy, the city’s chief administrative officer.
Quaker in 2022 is celebrating 120 years of food production in Peterborough with its facility on Hunter Street. Clancy notes the company was approached about sponsorship as it has been actively promoting the anniversary with its “Quakerborough” campaign, including advertising through the city’s sponsorship program with ads on Peterborough Transit buses.
“Discussions with Quaker expanded to other potential opportunities, including the possibility of the naming right to the urban park,” the report states. “There is a strong alignment in the suitability of the fit between the property (city – urban park), the sponsor (PepsiCo under its Quaker Oats brand), and the audience (the Peterborough community where Quaker has a meaningful and long-term presence in the city).”
Clancy notes sponsorship has been considered a potential revenue-generating opportunity since plans were underway for the urban park. Consultation, planning and design work on the project started in late 2016.
“Several businesses and organizations have engaged in exploratory conversations with the city related to the urban park naming rights opportunity,” she states. “PepsiCo Canada ULC., through its local Quaker brand presence, has been identified as a strong strategic fit for the sponsorship opportunity, for both the city and Quaker.”
Clancy notes that typically naming sponsorships are 10-year agreements but Quaker is interested in a “long-term” commitment of 15 years with a possibility of extending the agreement. She says the company is a “corporate pillar” in the community with a “historic presence” in the city.
“Quaker has expressed interest in making a larger up-front payment then annual payments for the remainder of the term,” Clancy notes.
Clancy says the city’s arenas, parks and recreation advisory committee was advised on Aug. 30 about the naming rights to the urban park and agreed that any naming rights to the park should “connect to the heritage of Peterborough.”
“They advised that the activation/implementation of the sponsorship in the space should not overly commercialize the space,” the report states.
The city has said the creation of an urban park and the renewal of Charlotte Street are key strategies in its Central Area Master Plan.
The project initially was set at $6.3 million but increased to more than $7.4 million due to additional costs for cleanup of contaminated soil discovered during the early stages of construction. Other additional costs included $400,000 for heated pavement and $700,000 in contingency funds in case of a budget overrun, both of which were approved in May 2021.
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