[TwoFace]

I noticed today that "Paramount Theater" is now named "Scotia Bank" Theater.
Is corporate branding a good thing?. Works OK for GM Place. Doesn't work well for the Arena in Victoria ( Save-on-Foods), I understand that people keep going there thinking it's a grocery store.
Will it be OK to watch the Lions at Safeway?.

[Mike K.]

Doesn't work well for the Arena in Victoria ( Save-on-Foods), I understand that people keep going there thinking it's a grocery store.

Not to worry, it's evolution doing its thing and they'll eventually starve to death.

[TwoFace]

Not to worry, it's evolution doing its thing and they'll eventually starve to death.

Yes, I understand that the council people that pushed this through can be easily identified by the "drink coke" tattoos on their forehead.

[Mike K.]

The councillors had nothing to do with the naming of the arena. But hey, it could have been worse. Pizza Hut Park is adorned on Dallas' stadium and Gaylord Entertainment Center is the peculiar name of the Nashville Predator's stadium.

[Smooth]

I don't have a problem with corporate naming of public buildings to offset the costs of the operation, but I see the renaming of the Paramount theater as a money grab. Examples of other buildings that come to mind are the Vancity VFF Theater or the Scienceworld Telusphere.

I was in the Paramount the other day and it's already starting to be dated in there. They've turned off the waterfall and it looks like it's fallen into a state of disrepair. I'm sure that "techno-zen" style is going to be pretty dated pretty soon too.

Isn't there already a Scotiabank theatre for the performing arts on Granville?

[doolydooly]

They had to rename the Paramount as Famous Players was bought by Cineplex.

The Paramount name (and Famous Players) was owned by Viacom, so when Cineplex bought it they lost the rights to the name.

Scotiabank Theatre is a terrible name though, I'll just keep calling it Paramount.

I do wish they would turn the waterfall back on though.

Also, I was in Victoria recently and I thought the Save-on-Foods Centre was a grocery store until I remembered that it was an arena.

[SpongeG]

scotia bank has teamed up with cineplex for some kind of movie rewards card too

you can sign up in the lobby

[Overground]

I think everyone will still call it Paramount, I know I will, but why don't they just call it a Cineplex anyway? Or Scotiabank Cineplex.

[Phil McAvity]

Speaking of Scotiabank, one of the largest office buildings in downtown Victoria has lost it's Scotiabank logo and been renamed Staples Business Depot.

Victoria has once again made itself look smaller than it is.

Mike, it's a shame that Darwin wasn't right more often about morons like the kind you described so they would just disappear.

I seem to be one of the few that doesn't mind the name of our new arena. Is it really any worse than naming it after chewing gum a la Wrigley Field or an airline like Air Canada Centre? Corporate names have been around for a long time and getting a company onboard with the name helps get these things built. The thing i find ridiculous is the "memorial" part of the name. Firstly, i kind of figured the name Save-On-Foods Centre was plenty long enough, adding the "memorial" part just made it absurdly long. As well, this building has nothing to do with any memorial, unlike it's predecessor that was built just after WW2.

[Holden West]

I agree. The "memorial" was tagged on to appease a few citizens that grumbled about the loss of the old name. One of Isitt's dumbest moves:

Isitt misjudges veterans' view on arena name

Victoria News.
Victoria, B.C.
Nov 11, 2005

Ben Isitt may know a lot about history. But when it comes to gauging veterans' feelings, he's out in left field, says the man largely responsible for the memorial inside the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

The Victoria mayoral candidate on Tuesday accused Mayor Alan Lowe of "insulting war veterans" by supporting a deal that gave arena operator R.G. Properties the lion's share of the $1.3 million in naming rights cash over 10-year contract with Save-On-Foods.

Second World War veteran Jack Cockerell, 87, who was instrumental in getting the large marble memorial built and who pushed for the word "memorial" to be included in the building's name, totally disagrees with Isitt's contention.

"Does he think veterans are dummies or naive?" he asked, after hearing Isitt's campaign argument. "I detest people who knock someone when their total goal is to get votes. Mayor Lowe is the man we can thank for five years of support. If it wasn't for him I don't know where we would have been on this project."

In his election platform, Isitt calls for the city to renegotiate the 10-year operating agreement with R.G. Properties.

Second World War veteran Herb Peach, 85, of Victoria, said he can see some people getting upset about the amount of money received by the city under the terms of the deal.

While he admitted to not thinking much about the situation, Peach did make a comparison of the current and former arenas. "The new one's a different building. The old arena was built in a different time, a memorial time."

Victoria resident Ralph Woodcock served with the Queen's Own Rifles after the war. He said the idea of naming arenas is a sign of the times and that he was fine with the deal the city signed. He called the finished memorial "marvelous, fantastic" and said he appreciated the way "memorial" was included in the building's name.

"Jim Pattison (Save-On-Foods owner) changed the name voluntarily," Woodcock said, adding it was a nice gesture that keeps alive the spirit and the memory of veterans who died in the various wars.

Agreement on the split of naming rights revenue was established before Save-On-Foods signed a contract with R.G. for the name. The two sides agreed that the city would annually receive 10 per cent on the first $100,000 of revenue and 25 per cent of anything over that, which amounts to $17,500 per year.

The veterans' memorial steering committee was kept apprised of contract details relating to memorial aspects of the building throughout negotiations, Lowe said. He argued the naming rights deal can't be taken in isolation of the whole agreement with R.G. Properties.

"I didn't sign the contract for the name, I signed the contract for the entire agreement," Lowe said. "Looking at the overall facility, we have a great product. And this facility has the biggest, most amazing memorial of any arena in the country."

Among medium-sized B.C. cities with corporately named arenas, Victoria is unique in that its building is operated by another entity. By comparison, the City of Kamloops recently signed a 10- year, $1.2 million deal with Interior Savings Credit Union for naming rights on the former Sport Mart Coliseum. It is now called the Interior Savings Centre.

Not long ago in Prince George, the city inked a 15-year, $1.3 million deal with CN Rail for naming rights on its 6,000-seat arena. Both cities receive all the cash from the naming agreements.

dond@vinewsgroup.com