Chevrolet Centre should get new name soon, mayor says

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Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams

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Bruce Zoldan

By David Skolnick

Three companies are negotiating for the center’s naming rights.

YOUNGSTOWN — The city is trying to finalize a contract this month with a company for the naming rights to the Chevrolet Centre.

There are three companies negotiating for the naming rights to the city-owned facility, Mayor Jay Williams said.

Bruce Zoldan, owner of Phantom Fireworks and the Mahoning Valley Phantoms hockey team that plays at the center, is the only one to publicly confirm his interest.

Williams would not name the other two.

The city’s goal is have a deal mutually beneficial to the center and the company paying for the naming rights, Williams said.

“If the right deal is there, we’d close it tomorrow,” he said. “I’d like to bring it to a close as soon as possible. There’s been movement on negotiations.”

But not enough to finalize a deal, Williams said.

Because of financial losses and a struggling economy, General Motors didn’t renew its contract for the center’s naming rights when the deal expired Sept. 30. GM paid $175,000 in cash annually for three years and provided four vehicles a year to the city for the naming rights.

The facility is still called the Chevrolet Centre even though GM’s contract expired five months ago.

Williams said he spoke to representatives from the three companies at the Feb. 21 Kelly Pavlik fight at the center. The event drew a sell-out crowd of 7,228 and was shown nationwide on pay-per-view.

The fight’s publicity could have been a boost to the company with the center’s naming rights, Williams said.

skolnick@vindy.com