HomeMy WebLinkAbout4.B. Donor Naming Policy
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CITY OF SHAKOPEE
Memorandum
To: Parks and Recreation Advisory Board
Prom: Andrea Weber, Parks and Recreation Landscape Design
Subject: Donor Naming Policy
Date: September 27,2004
INTRODUCTION
There is no specific Donor Naming Policy for the City of Shak6pee. Donor Naming
Rights is becoming a more and more common phenomenon as public funding sources
shrink, while the demand for public facilities continues to rise. Donor naming is one way
in which funding may be accepted in order to afford public facilities which may otherwise
be out of reach financially. Currently the City of Shakopee has several parks and facilities
which are proposed for development and several more which are identified as future
needs, i.e. community Center Expansion, which are at this point short of funding.
Shakopee also has local Volunteer Organizations who may be interested in the possibility
of contributing to the public realm. This is a good opportunity to be proactive about how
and if accepting naming rights for public facilities will be acceptable in these
circumstances.
Discussing these issues before a specific case presents itself allows for a more
unbiased exploration of the issue. and will allow the city to be able to respond to future
naming rights requests effectively and with less potential for controversy.
BACKGROUND
The City of Shakopee already has Donor Named Facilities. Lions Park as well as the
Lions Den in the Community Center are two examples; The city has also worked with
organizations on special projects which have received no donor recognition, permanent or
otherwise, such as the restoration of the clown swings in Hiawatha Park by Boy Scouts.
The issue of Donor Naming Rights is a complex one. People have different ideas
about when and whether it is even an acceptable. It can be seen as an encroachment of
commercialization into more aspects of daily life, especially in the case of corporate
sponsorships. Others may see it as a reality of the current marketplace: taxes are limited,
and demand for services and facilities continues to increase. In some cases it can
contribute to community involvement and a sense of place, as members of a sponsoring
organization would-i.e. Lions Members visiting Lions Park must certainly feel proud
about their contribution. Whereas, in other cases, it makes people feel unwelcome or
manipulated by sponsors. People who are unfamiliar with the Lions organization might
question who they are and what they represent, as well as why the City of Shakopee has
allowed them to be a sponsor to a site.
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This brings up another point; a named sponsorship implies an implicit approval of the
organization, which may extend to what the organization stands for and its policies as
well. Recent media stories about the Boy Scouts not allowing gay people to be Troop
Leaders is a discriminatory policy, which conflicts with the City's policy on Equal
Opportunity. Whether this would dis-allow Donor Naming by the Boy Scouts would be a
question to consider.
The City of Eagan has completed a Donor Naming Policy Survey in 2003 and drafted
a Naming Rights Policy, approved in2004, which provides a good local example, see
attachment 1, 2.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Park and Recreation Advisory Board propose a formal
Park Naming Policy to the City Council. The benefit of having a policy would be to have
a clearly defined, open process for making the important decision on what to name new
parks. The following are a series of four steps to develop: Purpose for a naming Policy, an
Application Form, Naming Guidelines, and Review Procedure.
DRAFT POLICY
1. The Purpose of the Donor Naming Policy is:
A. To allow the City of Shakopee to accept funds for a specific purpose and give
public recognition to the donor(s) involvement.
B. To define the financial contribution level for a Donor Naming Request to be
accepted.
C. To define the type of involvement in the facility of a Donor/Donor Group
D. To allow the city to make the decision to deny a request from a Donor Group
by using justifiable rules to determine the appropriateness of the Donor and the facility it
would be donating to.
E. Termination of Naming Rights, limits to Rights.
F. Other
2. Donor Naming Request Form
A. Location of Place or facility to be named
B. Person/organization/corporation requesting the name and their contact
information.
C. Proposed Donor Name.
D. Explanation of the reason for the Donor Naming Request (why). A description
ofthe applicant, their community involvement, their mission statement, and general role
in the community (who they are).
2. Donor Naming Process
1. A Donor Request Form shall be reviewed by the PRAB.
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2. The PRAB should have at least one month to consider the request before voting
to approve or deny the request.
Guidelines for Consideration:
. All naming rights shall be reviewed in the context of the organization as
contributing to the image of the City of Shakopee.
. Organizations which do not agree to accept/promote the standards of non-
discrimination and equal opportunity that the City of Shakopee follows,
may be denied their application.
3. A recommendation shall be made to the City Council regarding the Naming
Rights. The city Council may accept or deny the Naming Rights request. The city
council may offer to accept a donation toward a facility without naming rights, if
the. applicant is denied naming Rights.
4. Naming Rights shall be recorded in legally binding Agreement Documents
approved by the City Attorney. Granting of naming rights may imply, depending on the
feature, a continuing commitment to maintain and upgrade the feature as determined by
the City.
5. Naming Rights Agreements shall generally last as long as the facility exists,
and the organization exists. They shall be reviewed whenever a facility undergoes
substantial renovation, demolition, or receives other unforeseen damage.
6. The City of Shakopee shall retain the right to sever naming rights agreements at
their discretion, for just cause.
DISCUSSION
1. Decide whether and how to revise the draft Donor Naming Policy and move to adopt
it.
2. Discuss under what circumstances the City might decide to refuse a Naming Rights
Request.
3. Decide whether there should be a route of appeal or a public comment period.
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. ATTACHMENT 1
- city of eagan
parks and reL-J..""uLlvH
DONOR NAMING POLICY SURVEY
MAY 19, 2003
In the spring of 2003, the City Council charged the Advisory Parks Commission to
offer input into a possible donor naming policy for park amenities. To assist the Parks
Commission in this study, staff posed some fundamental questions about donor
naming to other Minnesota cities. 75 surveys were distributed to a vast array of cities,
from the small to the large, from urban to rural communities. The population base of
respondents is illustrated in Chart A: Respondent Population Base.
Of these 75,19 were returned, a 25% return rate. St. Paul and Minneapolis were
contacted, given their experience with such amenity naming issues, but neither city
was able to respond to the survey.
The questions are meant to assist the Advisory Parks Commission with their
discussion into donor naming of park amenities in the community,
Chart A: Respondent Population Base
65,000
60,000
55,000
50,000
45,000
40,000
35,000
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
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1. What is the process your
department has for handling N/A
donations for Parks? 11% Applied
All survey respondents indicate following Directly
31%
a specific process when donations are
received from private or corporate entities.
Six broad categories have been created in
an attempt to spot trends in donation Council
recipient processes. This does not mean 16%
that there is no overlap in these
categories; cities very likely use more Recognition
than one method to handle donations, Policyl
depending on external factors including 15%
Program
16%
. Amountgiven,
. Whether the donor has identified specific projects,
. Whether City Council has the sole determination of where donor funds are used.
Applied Directly- 31% of respondents apply donations directly to specific projects,
either at the suggestion of the donor, Council, or the Parks department.
"All donations are accepted by City Council. If the donations are for a specific
Andover park, it will be identified and kept track of by the finance (department) as such
for that ark for which it is intended."
Fridley "Donations are designated for specific projects or equipment for the park
s stem."
Maple Grove "We receive the donation and allocate the money to the intended program
account."
"If a group approaches us, we work out the details and place it on our CIP.
Some project in the past, like a batting cage for instance, bypass the CIP and
Prior Lake commence as soon as our crews are able to get to them. If there is a
significant case donation, we like the donating body to suggest possible
ro'ects for fundin ."
"For general donation, the City asks if there is a specific project or special
St. Michael purpose that it should be applied towards. If not, then the Park Board makes
the determination. We always provide the donor with a recipet and a letter of
a reciation from the Park Board and Council."
"Usually when we receive a donation, the donor has somewhat of an idea on
Stewartville what they want the money to be used for and have always been good about
taking ideals suggestions from our park board, who always asks the opinion of
the ublic works de artment."
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Other, Acceptance and Catalog- 11 % have "Other" methods of donation
acceptance, including general acceptance and development of a donation catalog
where donors can choose park amenities. In such catalogs, donation amounts are
delineated for specific items.
Golden "City staff can not solicit donations, but if a group offers a ,donation it can be
Valle acce ted b the Cit ."
"We are in the process of establishing a "Lasting Legacy" program. The
brochure is attached. This program will allow individuals or groups to donate
items to the park system. The city has not taken the step to figure out how
much money each individual item, such as a tree, park bench, or litter
Mahtomedi containers cost. We would like to have that information available so the
person making the donation would know how much an item would be and if
their donation would cover the cost. I assume that once a donation is made it
would have to be accepted by resolution by the City Council. The Parks
Commission may also playa role in recommending acceptance of the
donation. We have not had an donations under this ro ram et."
Not Applicable- 11 % did not responds to the question or the question was not
applicable to the municipality situation.
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Sometimes- 16% say that they may occasionally allow donor naming.
"For the most part, the answer would be no. I know of only 2 cases. One of
the cases was due to a traffic accident death of a Park Commission member.
Andover The other one was dueto a long time property owner/farmer that sold property
to the city for the development of a park at a reasonable price without having
to 0 throu h condemnation."
Little Falls "The Cit Council would consider."
Prior Lake "Some donations have s ecificall re uested donor namin ."
Not Applicable- The situation was not applicable to 5% of respondents.
3. If so, how do you determine when you will allow the naming to occur?
As seen in question 2, most respondents do not have specific stipulations for donor
naming. The table below describes when parks are named via request.
Alexandria
Burnsville
Cotta e Grove
Prior Lake
Roseville
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Five respondents attached their park naming policy with their completed survey. The
following chart details specific provisions in their policies:
Burnsville
Cottage
Grove
Prior Lake X
Roseville X X X
75% 50% 75% 75%
Burnsville- Aside from the typical criteria or donations, historic figures, land and
topographic features, and naming after subdivisions, nearby streets, etc., Burnsville
allows parks to be named if an informal site name develops as a colloquialism by
neighbors.
Cottage Grove- The Cottage Grove policy states that parks named after people must
meet certain criteria. Foremost, the person must be at least six months deceased.
They must have one or more of the following criteria; at least ten years of service to
the community, show outstanding assistance or support for the park system, or be a
historical figure or family,
Edina <not listed above)- Edina's donor policy is separate from their park naming
practices. The donor policy does not have a provision for naming of a park or park
facility.
Roseville- Careful consideration is given to naming parks after individuals (alive or
deceased), groups, associations, or businesses. These will only be considered if
there is a significant land or financial contribution.
St. Michael <not .listed above)- St. Michael's City ordinance allows for advertising in
parks. Advertising space is recommended to Council by the Park Board, who
regulates the type, location, visual impacts, etc. of advertising.
1 Land features may include topographic details, water bodies, proximity interest such as being adjacent to a
waterfall, etc.
2 Location! Neighborhood- Parks may be named after adjacent streets, subdivisions, schools, neighborhoods, etc.
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N/A-11 % of respondents said this question did not apply to their situation.
6. Did the donation covered the entire cost or a certain percentage of it?
Cities who have parks named after specific donors were asked what percentage of the
project the specific donation covered. Park names were allotted to individuals who
donated very little or nothing to land or funding up to 100% of the project. There was
little consistency in the frequency of project percentage covered by the donation.
Alexandria Most of the parks were donated land and development costs were not
included.
Andover . Strootman Park- no donation received
. Eveland ark- no donation received.
. Wolk Park- "some of the land"
Burnsville . Rudy Kraemer Nature Preserve- "Land and development costs, but also
require for wetland restoration."
. Sue Fischer Memorial Park- "Some of the land."
Cotta e Grove All costs for Peter Thom son ark were covered in the develo ment costs.
. Jaycee Park- 25%
Little Falls . Kiwanis.Park- 25%
. Le ion Park- 33%
"Donations covered only a percentage of park development, however they
Prior Lake are ongoing, and not just one lump sum when the park was developed.
Donations still occur from these or anizations to these s ecific facilities."
Harriet Alexander Nature Center- Fully funded bequest
Roseville Muriel Sahlin Arboretum- Largely funded bequest
John Rose Minnesota Oval- No rivate fundin
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expectancy and can be renamed each time a new replacement facility is
built, which also opens the door to alternative funding.
"The other issue that I feel strongly about is naming small park facilities and
Edina trees after lost loved ones. Parks are for the public to enjoy and recreate
(continued) themselves, not to feel like they are in a cemetery. We have one small 4-
acre park that has 12 memorial plaques on various park amenities and trees
with plaques naming lost loved ones and even poems that are arguably
religious in nature. These become problematic when the park bench or tree
reach their life expectancy and the donor demands that the plaque be kept
in the ark eternall ."
"Most examples have been positive because of the naming after the
subdivision the park is contained in to give it established identity to a certain
Prior Lake neighborhood. The negatives and controversy has occurred when a group
or neighborhood advocates having a park or facility re-named, for whatever
reason. To date our City Council has not re-named a park or facility and
there are criteria now in our olic to address that issue."
Roseville "Positive if olic is outlined full and there is communit involvement."
Respondents in 13 cities (68.4%) said this question was not applicable in their
community. In some cases, the city did not have a policy for donor naming, did not
have any facilities with donor names, or did not reply for reasons that were not
expressed. The following communities deemed the question "Not Applicable:"
. Andover . Mahtomedi
. Blaine . Maple Grove
. Bloomington . Robbinsdale
. Elk River . Rosemount
. Fridley . St. Michael
. Golden Valley . Stewartville
. Little Falls
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Split Decision- In Prior Lake, the decision to recognize the services ofa Vietnam
solider raised concern with the community; there was discussion both for against.
This matter formed the basis of Prior Lake's naming policy. Again, this was dealing
less with donor naming and more with recognition of a fallen soldier.
"Our newest athletic complex is named after the first Prior Lake soldier to
perish in Vietnam. In that particular naming issue, a contingency of the
soldier's family and friends contacted the mayor at the time and really
Prior Lake pressured the City Council to name the complex after him. That example is
why we formed our naming policy. Some in the community were in favor of
the name, some were not. It ultimately came down to a City Council
decision b vote."
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10. If your community does not currently N/A
have a donor naming policy, has there 6%
been any discussion about starting one?
For most respondents, the issue of donor
naming is one that is not foremost in their
community. This is seen in a variety of
population bases and "buildout" status. No
55%
No- 55% of respondents said their city is not
currently discussing a policy regarding donor
naming for donors, or there is no discussion
anticipated in the near future.
Alexandria No
Blaine "Not et."
Elk River No
Fridle No
Little Falls No
Mahtomedi "No, we have not had an discussion of develo
Ma Ie Grove "None to date."
Robbinsdale No
Rosemount No
Stewartville No.. Have not discussed it.
In Place- 22% of respondents said their naming policy is in place. In many cases, it is
included in their park naming process policy, which guides the process of naming
parks and park amenities, and often establishes guidelines as to what a park can be
named. Several of these include provisions for financial or land donors.
Burnsville
Cottage
Grove
Prior Lake lace"
Roseville
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. ATTACHMENT 2
SUBJECT TO RECOMMENDATION! APPRO V AL:
DONOR NAMING POLICY
Note: Draft has been reviewed by City Attorney.
Revised 12-09-2003.
Recommendedfor approval by APrC, January 15, 2004
Reviewed by Council at workshop on January 27, 2004.
Approved on February 3, 2004
DONOR NAMING
The City of Eagan seeks to recognize donors who wish to support the City's Parks and
Recreation department through distinguished effort or substantial financial endowment, by
naming facilities in their honor. This policy offers a guideline to determine when such cases are
appropriate and which may be better served by a formal recognition by the City Council.
For the purposes of this policy, "Substantial Gift" is defined as at least 50% of the estimated
cost:
(a) of new construction, remodeling, or renovation;
(b) of developing a new real property, i.e. park buildings, structures, real estate, etc; or
(c) the replacement of an existing, unnamed facility or landmark that requires substantial
renovation at the time of the gift.
This policy determines procedures, for a fixed period or indefinitely, for naming of amenities
found within Eagan parks. Items under this policy include, but are not limited to, items of
personal property such as park structures (pavilions, warming houses, sun shelters, nature center,
etc), real estate to be used for parks or open space, sports fields or courts, pools, nature centers,
or other large-scale projects as discussed with the Director of Parks and Recreation.
RECOGNITION
The City of Eagan will consider naming opportunities for outstanding financial contributions
toward facilities, specifically those which enable the amenity to be initially built (Le., without
the donation the amenity would not be constructed).
The City of Eagan will give special recognition to commemorate long term service to the
community or to a distinguished citizen and such recognition is contingent upon Council
review and approval.
Donors and Donation
"Donors" and "Donation" as defined by this policy, means a substantial financial
contribution toward the cost of an amenity or project. This is defmed above as at least
50% of the total estimated cost.
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Before Donation: To be considered for naming, donation commitments must come
during the schematic design phase of the project. Schematic design will be overseen
by the appropriate departments of the City of Eagan according to established
procedure.
(a) New construction, substantial renovation, or replacement projects will be
considered for naming opportunities.
(b) All negotiations for naming rights will be conducted in the first instance by the
City Administrator and the Director of Parks and Recreation, under the
authorization of City Council.
These steps should be followed:
Step One: Contact the City of Eagan Parks and Recreation Department to discuss the
procedure for donation. This will include a formal proposal submitted to the City
Administrator and Director of Parks and Recreation.
Step Two: The individual, group, or corporation will present their request to the
Advisory Parks Commission. The APrC will then make a recommendation to City
Council. Perpetual naming will be at the discretion of the City Council.
Step Three: Upon approval by City Council, the Donor Agreement contract will be
signed and kept on record with the City of Eagan.
REQUIREMENTS
(a) All donations to be considered for naming rights must be approved by City
Council.
(b) Each donation must be memorialized in a donation agreement approved by the
City Council and the donor or their representatives. The agreements shall be
executed following final approval of the gift as specified by the City of Eagan.
No naming commitments shall be made to donors or other parties before fmal
approval is granted by the City Council. Records of donation agreement will be
kept by the City of Eagan.
(c) The Director of Parks and Recreation or an appointed staff person is responsible
for overseeing compliance with Policy requirements, including completion of
consultations and approvals, securing signatures on donation agreements by
donor, donor representative, and City of Eagan.
(d) The City of Eagan will be responsible for groundbreaking, dedication, or other
ceremonies relating to named gifts, when appropriate.
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METHOD OF PAYMENT
(a) Donation associated with naming proposals can be made by the donor in cash or
appreciated property, through legally binding pledges fulfilled within no more
than five (5) years, or by the creation of an endowment.
(b) Individual donors may gift a portion of their contribution though an irrevocable
trust or a contractual bequest mechanism.
(c) The City Council reserves the right to remove a naming opportunity when pledges
remain unpaid beyond the agreed upon period. Should this occur, the City
Council may consider and/or approve another naming opportunity, or seek
another donation of the magnitude that is deemed substantial. revocable
(d) Should the donor renege on any payment once the project has commenced and the
donor agreement has been signed, the City shall be allowed to keep any portion of
the donation already paid, and naming rights shall not apply. Should the City fail
to use the funds for the stated purpose in the Donor Agreement, the funds shall be
returned to the donor.
STEWARDSHIP
Stewardship requires that the City of Eagan honor the expectations of donors and abide
by gift agreements, including naming provisions. Naming is generally expected to last
the lifetime ofthe building, facility, unit, program, or other endeavor. There may
nonetheless be extraordinary circumstances that justify cessation of the use of a name, or
"re-naming," such as change in use, substantial renovation, or demolition of an existing
building, facility, or part thereof, major programmatic changes, failure of a donor to meet
the financial commitment of the donor agreement, or other situations unforeseeable at the
time of the original naming. When appropriate and feasible, when a name is retired,
some form of continuing recognition should be established. In all cases, the City Council
must approve re-naming.
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