Marketing firm pitches $5.4M naming-rights plan for Decatur recreation campus; council to review proposed contract
March 09, 2026 | Decatur City, Morgan County, Alabama
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High Level Promotions co-founder and CEO Colton Steer told the Decatur City Council at a work session that his firm could market naming rights for the city's new recreation campus and potentially generate substantial revenue for the city. Hunter Allen introduced the firm, which Steer said has secured multi-hundred-thousand-dollar deals in other cities.
Steer described a model that used Placer AI and proprietary analyses to value assets and identify likely sponsor categories. He proposed taking the recreation center to market with 10- to 30-year naming-rights terms and said his team expects a year-one gross opportunity near $1 million (with a projected $650,000 net to the city in the example given) and a potential $5.4 million over three years across scenarios. He recommended 10-year minimum deals to capture long-term value and discussed commission-only compensation ("we aren't compensated anything unless you guys say, 'Yes, we'll take that naming rights.'").
Council members asked about signage costs, local-business participation, contract mechanics under Alabama law, and how revenue would flow to the city. Steer acknowledged Alabama law requires city receipt of funds and said his prior workarounds in other states are not possible in Alabama; he also said signage costs would typically be factored into the asking price and that his firm would reduce commissions for local, lower-dollar sponsorships.
Staff said a proposed contract was received about two weeks earlier; staff and the firm are working through details and will circulate materials to council members. Staff noted the rec center is about five to six months from completion and that signage schedules make timely contract decisions desirable, but they emphasized they will not rush council approval.
Next steps: staff will distribute the proposed contract and respond to council questions before placing any naming-rights authorization on a future agenda.
Steer described a model that used Placer AI and proprietary analyses to value assets and identify likely sponsor categories. He proposed taking the recreation center to market with 10- to 30-year naming-rights terms and said his team expects a year-one gross opportunity near $1 million (with a projected $650,000 net to the city in the example given) and a potential $5.4 million over three years across scenarios. He recommended 10-year minimum deals to capture long-term value and discussed commission-only compensation ("we aren't compensated anything unless you guys say, 'Yes, we'll take that naming rights.'").
Council members asked about signage costs, local-business participation, contract mechanics under Alabama law, and how revenue would flow to the city. Steer acknowledged Alabama law requires city receipt of funds and said his prior workarounds in other states are not possible in Alabama; he also said signage costs would typically be factored into the asking price and that his firm would reduce commissions for local, lower-dollar sponsorships.
Staff said a proposed contract was received about two weeks earlier; staff and the firm are working through details and will circulate materials to council members. Staff noted the rec center is about five to six months from completion and that signage schedules make timely contract decisions desirable, but they emphasized they will not rush council approval.
Next steps: staff will distribute the proposed contract and respond to council questions before placing any naming-rights authorization on a future agenda.
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