Center Board tries to settle funding issues for expansion plan

Naming rights and Riverside Park work dominate board discussion this week

 

Lingering questions about who will pay for parts of the $49 million La Crosse Center remodeling may be a bit clearer now, after two center board meetings held this week. 

On Thursday, the board agreed to include any Riverside Park changes in the project budget, and to look at naming rights as a way of avoiding a hike in property taxes.  

Brent Smith, the center board president, says the park department would not be asked to pay costs of improving Riverside, if an extension is built over the park. 

Smith thinks naming rights may continue to be a contentious issue, but he wants to be sure “La Crosse” remains in the building’s name. 

Also, the city is legally required to keep the “Mary E. Sawyer Auditorium” name on the main arena.