The City of Penticton has now issued a Request for Proposal for the naming rights for the South Okanagan Events Centre (SOEC).
“The SOEC is more than just an arena, it’s a gathering place for the entire South Okanagan and draws visitors from across the entire region,” says Kelsey Johnson, the City’s director of community services. “We think this a great opportunity that will create a profitable partnership for the sponsor and the community as whole.”
Owned by the City of Penticton, the state-of-the-art, 5,000 seat arena opened in 2008 and is managed by Oak View Group. Spanning over nine acres, the South Okanagan Events Centre is part of a larger complex that contains over 95,000 square feet of meeting space, three ice sheets, a community centre and community theatre. The SOEC is home to the British Columbia Hockey Hall of Fame, the Penticton Vees Junior Hockey team of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) and the prestigious Okanagan Hockey School.
“Hockey, we got it with the Vees, the Canuck’s Young Stars Tourney and this year the Canucks training camp. Concerts, there’s a long list of artists who have made the SOEC a stop on their tours. Entertainment like Cirque de Soliel, Come from Away and the Harlem Globetrotters have all been on the SOEC floor,” says Johnson. “Then you add in all the events and meetings on the entire complex and the value of the visibility only increases.”
The suggested minimum bid requirement is $150,000 per year for a term of up to 10 years to be made in equal annual installments. The sponsor would see their company’s name on exterior double-sided digital marquee signage on Hwy 97, the main arterial road through Penticton, prominent placement on exterior of facility, near main entrance & fronting Hwy 97, and all advertising and promotional literature including, but not limited to, media correspondence, newspapers, outdoor billboards, radio and television advertisements, venue and City of Penticton websites, social media and event posters.
In 2023, the SOEC sold over 161,000 tickets and generated ticket revenue of more than $3.2 million.
The deadline for applying is December 9, 2024, at 2 p.m. The RFP can be found at penticton.bonfirehub.ca.
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