Anyone in the know about the lack of finding a partnership for naming rights of the convo center? It’s been over 20 years since it’s opened and yet NIU can’t find a suitor. With a school so cash strapped it’s mind boggling how they aren’t aggressively trying to find a partner. There’s plenty of other smaller schools with naming rights. Here’s a few listed below……why can’t NIU find a company and just get anything they can from them?
New Mexico - Wes Pies Arena - 10 years- $5,000,000
Akron - Infocision stadium & Summa Field - 20 yrs - $15,000,000
Evansville - Ford Center- 10 years - $4,200,000
Western Kentucky - $5,000,000
Fairfield - Webster bank arena - 10 years - $3,500,000
You’re telling me NIU can’t even get half of this type of money?
Akron got a steal of a deal.
(02-26-2023 03:58 PM)JoeNovak Wrote: [ -> ]Anyone in the know about the lack of finding a partnership for naming rights of the convo center? It’s been over 20 years since it’s opened and yet NIU can’t find a suitor. With a school so cash strapped it’s mind boggling how they aren’t aggressively trying to find a partner. There’s plenty of other smaller schools with naming rights. Here’s a few listed below……why can’t NIU find a company and just get anything they can from them?
New Mexico - Wes Pies Arena - 10 years- $5,000,000
Akron - Infocision stadium & Summa Field - 20 yrs - $15,000,000
Evansville - Ford Center- 10 years - $4,200,000
Western Kentucky - $5,000,000
Fairfield - Webster bank arena - 10 years - $3,500,000
You’re telling me NIU can’t even get half of this type of money?
SIU has the Bantera Center
ISU has CEFCU Arena 1st year for that.
(02-26-2023 04:39 PM)niu16 Wrote: [ -> ] (02-26-2023 03:58 PM)JoeNovak Wrote: [ -> ]Anyone in the know about the lack of finding a partnership for naming rights of the convo center? It’s been over 20 years since it’s opened and yet NIU can’t find a suitor. With a school so cash strapped it’s mind boggling how they aren’t aggressively trying to find a partner. There’s plenty of other smaller schools with naming rights. Here’s a few listed below……why can’t NIU find a company and just get anything they can from them?
New Mexico - Wes Pies Arena - 10 years- $5,000,000
Akron - Infocision stadium & Summa Field - 20 yrs - $15,000,000
Evansville - Ford Center- 10 years - $4,200,000
Western Kentucky - $5,000,000
Fairfield - Webster bank arena - 10 years - $3,500,000
You’re telling me NIU can’t even get half of this type of money?
SIU has the Bantera Center
ISU has CEFCU Arena 1st year for that.
The UIC Pavilion is the Credit Union 1 Arena.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
I'm not sure how long or how hard these schools were looking for a sponsor, but the Bantera Center (SIU) was built in 1964 and got a naming deal in 2019 (55 years), CEFCU Arena (ISU) was built in 1989 and got a name in 2022 (33 years), and Credit Union 1 Arena (UIC) was built in 1982 and got its name in 2018 (36 years).
The NIU Convocation Center has been open for 21 years. We're still a baby when it comes to our neighbors.
Also...I don't know why its taken so long but a company willing to just give the athletic program money would be super nice.
I know people had their hearts set on Amazon or something but Monsanto makes the most logical sense but that company is evil so they probably don't want to give any money away.
My naming rights dream has vanished.
The Paperback Grotto Arena…..
“You’ll be glad you came!”
When I was traveling weekly and they would have airplanes approach ORD from the west, we'd be low enough to see the convocation center. Just another angle to attract sponsors.
(02-26-2023 05:26 PM)HUSKIEFOOTBALLFAN Wrote: [ -> ]When I was traveling weekly and they would have airplanes approach ORD from the west, we'd be low enough to see the convocation center. Just another angle to attract sponsors.
Haha. I would notice that too.
Reason #78 Sean T. Frazier needs to get the boot, like yesterday. He's crazy ineffective.
Perhaps with the arrow clearly up on our men's hoops team this opportunity will be more attractive to a company out there.
(02-26-2023 06:40 PM)ChicagoHuskie Wrote: [ -> ]Perhaps with the arrow clearly up on our men's hoops team this opportunity will be more attractive to a company out there.
That would be nice. We need some fun news right now.
Side note: 2 years ago I was on a flight from LA to Chicago to visit family, and I could tell we were near Dekalb as I looked out the window. Eventually we flew right over campus, and the convo was crazy visible. A corporate logo on the roof I think would be invisible from the ground, but great air exposure for some day flights.
(02-26-2023 06:42 PM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote: [ -> ] (02-26-2023 06:40 PM)ChicagoHuskie Wrote: [ -> ]Perhaps with the arrow clearly up on our men's hoops team this opportunity will be more attractive to a company out there.
That would be nice. We need some fun news right now.
Side note: 2 years ago I was on a flight from LA to Chicago to visit family, and I could tell we were near Dekalb as I looked out the window. Eventually we flew right over campus, and the convo was crazy visible. A corporate logo on the roof I think would be invisible from the ground, but great air exposure for some day flights.
Why not light it up for night flights like the United Center. Maybe the United Center DeKalb.
I guess no one wants to ante up for a glorified hs/juco arena that’s 80…90% empty for sporting events.
Have they ever fixed the upper tier bleachers that are broke or no need to since they don’t get used that often?
(02-26-2023 05:11 PM)Big Red Wrote: [ -> ]I'm not sure how long or how hard these schools were looking for a sponsor, but the Bantera Center (SIU) was built in 1964 and got a naming deal in 2019 (55 years), CEFCU Arena (ISU) was built in 1989 and got a name in 2022 (33 years), and Credit Union 1 Arena (UIC) was built in 1982 and got its name in 2018 (36 years).
The NIU Convocation Center has been open for 21 years. We're still a baby when it comes to our neighbors.
Also...I don't know why its taken so long but a company willing to just give the athletic program money would be super nice.
I know people had their hearts set on Amazon or something but Monsanto makes the most logical sense but that company is evil so they probably don't want to give any money away.
To be honest this should be more the reason to get a naming deal. Notice how all those schools got naming deals all within a 4 year time span? Naming deals were not a thing for college stadiums back in the day. They are now. And literally everyone is taking advantage except for NIU. Shocking.
(02-26-2023 07:49 PM)randyfensfanclub1 Wrote: [ -> ]I guess no one wants to ante up for a glorified hs/juco arena that’s 80…90% empty for sporting events.
Have they ever fixed the upper tier bleachers that are broke or no need to since they don’t get used that often?
Doesn’t help that the basketball team is historically bad and enrollment is way down.
Speaking of enrollment……what a great idea it was to dumb down the university and get rid of admission requirements like standardized tests! Now NIU can be Eastern Illinois (that’s where all the high school kids who couldn’t get in anywhere else would go) now it’s gonna be NIU. Forget trying to continue academic excellence especially in the business school and keep some sort of prestige…….let’s dumb it all down and be the doormat of Illinois colleges! That will attract the students we want!!!!
****sarcasm
You'd think Facebook would want a big presence on campus (if they'll need NIU IT grads).
Can anyone update us on the status of the FB campus, hiring, etc.?
I could have sworn STF said they had offers but didn’t think they were where it “should” be.
(02-26-2023 09:16 PM)HuskiePride12 Wrote: [ -> ]I could have sworn STF said they had offers but didn’t think they were where it “should” be.
Of course. Just wait another 10 years for the “right” offer. In that 10 year span waiting you could have made hundreds of thousands of dollars if not into the millions by “settling.” Better to get something than nothing
I wonder if STF has contacted Ideal Industries in Sycamore. They have extensive signage at Cubs games so they have money to spend on advertising. Ideal Arena has a nice ring.
FYI ... UIC/Credit Union 1 Arena deal was $9.5 million over 15 years, including $750,000 to UIC's general scholarship fund. So such a deal does not have to be all about facility funding.
NIU naming rights request for proposals went out in January 2018 ... BEFORE UIC got its deal in November 2018:
https://apnews.com/article/illinois-deka...2a6eb84616
Per HuskiePride12, I recall the same thing but can't find any notes I might have saved. STF may have made a passing remark I read in BofT minutes sometime.
Per JoeNovak, UIC's bball team hasn't exactly been a world-beater either. The difference is location.
Also, after 5+ calender years, is the offer for bids even still open?