AUBURN — The city is close to settling a deal for the naming rights to its new dual-rink ice arena for an estimated $500,000.
General Manager Josh MacDonald said he expects to be able to announce a new name for the arena in early October.
“We want to name it well before we open,” he said. “I’m ready for a formal name. I’ve been calling it the Auburn Ice Arena, keeping it as generic as possible, in terms of making the adjustment for the finalized name.”
The choice is down to two potential entities, he said. Both are negotiating with the city and the City Council.
“We are talking upwards of a half-million-dollar deal,” MacDonald said.
He said he briefed city councilors on the naming rights status at their Monday meeting.
MacDonald said the first rink and the arena’s locker rooms should open in November. The second surface should be finished in January with the second-floor mezzanine — offering warm areas for spectators, offices and concessions — opening in February. A grand opening is tentatively set for early February.
The arena is being built on Turner Street near the Auburn Mall and overlooking Shaw’s Supermarket and Center Street. The facility will be surrounded by a 380-space parking lot.
MacDonald told councilors Monday he expects the facility to bring in about $1.18 million in revenue, with an estimated $1.17 million in expenses for 2014.
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