The owner of the Osoyoos Coyotes hockey club is offering to spend $40,000 of his own money to install a new electronic scoreboard inside the Sun Bowl Arena.
Randy Bedard, who became the full-time owner of the junior A hockey franchise last year after being part of an ownership group for a couple of seasons, unveiled his plans before members of Town of Osoyoos council during a committee of the whole meeting Tuesday at town hall.
Bedard said he would be willing to invest the $40,000 needed to install the clock as it would provide a wonderful opportunity to increase advertising revenue for the hockey club.
If he fronted the money for the new scoreboard, he would expect to recoup his investment with the town by reduced ice rental fees that he estimates to be roughly $10,000 per year, said Bedard.
“I think it’s time to offer an exciting new look to a revered building in this community,” said Bedard. “Best of all is that the town would not have to spend any money at all.”
Installing a new scoreboard would offer unique advertising options for businesses in the community during Coyotes games, he said.
Because there were numerous ownership changes and various incarnations of the Coyotes for several years from the mid-1990s until now, there are many hockey fans in the community who have concerns about the longevity of this current franchise, but Bedard said his willingness to invest this kind of money shows he plans on being the owner for many years to come.
“There have been some concerns with longevity.
“I just want you to know this hockey club is going to be here for many years to come,” said Bedard. “I just want to assure you the Coyotes are here to stay.”
Bedard said he has already made inquiries to a company from Florida that installs state-of-the-art electronic scoreboards at a very reasonable price. He contacted several Canadian manufacturers and discovered they could not compete.
“The price would have been triple,” he said.
The Sun Bowl Arena will be celebrating its 40th year of operation in 2014 and being able to install a new scoreboard would be a wonderful enhancement to a facility he calls one of the best hockey rinks in any small town in British Columbia, said Bedard.
The current scoreboard is old, occasionally malfunctions and is in dire need of an update, said Bedard.
Bedard said his plan would allow all arena users to use the new scoreboard for recreational activities, but he would rent it out to any other community organization that might want to use advertising during an event.
The company he has approached to install a new scoreboard in Osoyoos recently installed a similar one at the community arena in Trail with outstanding results, he said.
Coun. C.J. Rhodes said this proposal sounds like a wonderful idea, but he would like Bedard to forward a more detailed business plan so council can make a more informed decision before approving his proposal.
Bedard said he and the Coyotes organization would be willing to front the money for the entire costs of this project because he would like a new scoreboard installed as quickly as possible,
Coun. Mike Plante said while all the details have yet to be ironed out, he thinks it sounds like a wonderful proposal on the surface and he believes having a brand new scoreboard inside the Sun Bowl Arena before next year would be a great enhancement as the building celebrates its 40 years of operation.
Bedard said he would provide town administrators with a more detailed business plan relating to the new scoreboard in the coming weeks.
