DELAND — The Volusia County Council is moving forward with a plan to sell naming rights to the beach approaches and has picked a consultant to launch the process.
At its Tuesday meeting, the council unanimously selected Ohio-based The Superlative Group.
The company made news last year when it negotiated a deal to rename the home of the Miami Heat after the Bahamian-based cryptocurrency exchange FTX. It was the first naming rights deal with a cryptocurrency company.
County Chair Jeff Brower, who proposed the undertaking last spring, said he understood why some were initially skeptical, but was glad the council had come around to the idea.
“When I look at monetizing as much as we can, I look at it as that’s money taxpayers don’t have to pay,” Brower said.
“It’s not adding billboards or giant signs to the area necessarily,” Councilwoman Heather Post said. “Everywhere you go, there is something that is named after someone. I think this is fantastic.”
“We’re talking about rebranding. We’re talking about taking our area to the next level and to me, this is a part of that,” Vice-Chair Barb Girtman said.
The asset study, which should be completed this summer, will identify what the county has that’s “sponsorable.”
“We’ll look at programs, we’ll look at physical assets. We’ll look at any and all opportunities that we see,” Chief Operating Officer Kyle Canter told the council. “We’ll come back in that report and say, ‘Here’s what everything you have is worth.'”
Then comes the sales, a process the council asked to remain involved in.
Superlative’s clients in Florida include Miami-Dade County, the cities of Doral and Miami Gardens, Florida International University and Brightline.
