The sky's the limit at Landers Center
Charles Tackett, Chairman of DeSoto County Convention and Visitors Bureau, said at a press conference Wednesday the Landers Center name “gives us a new identity and a way to go forward.”
It was just a matter of moments after Kent Ritchey took the podium Wednesday morning at the newly named Landers Center in Southaven that the Landers Auto Group president showed his comical side.
“Contrary to what you’ve been told, we are not going to give a car away,” he quipped.
Then Ritchey, addressing a crowd near the Zamboni entrance of the 11-year-old former DeSoto Civic Center, quickly exhibited his patriotic side. He declared that the largest and tallest American flag in Mississippi would be installed on the center’s campus at Church Road and Interstate 55.
“I am an unabashed, unapologetic American,” Ritchey said. “I love the flag and what it stands for. Whatever the state will let us put up next to that interstate is what we’re going to do.”
It’s not too far-fetched, then to say the sky’s the limit for officials of the DeSoto County Convention and Visitors Bureau, which operates the $40 million Civic Center that opened in September 2000.
Under terms of a 10-year deal reported last week, and effective Jan. 1, the Landers group will pay $1 million for naming rights. Wednesday’s press conference was the official announcement of the agreement.
The arrangement, Civic Center operators said, will allow the venue to continue to grow and become more visible. Its primary tenant is the Mississippi River-Kings of the Southern Professional Hockey League.
“Cash flow, we’re OK,” said Charles Tackett, CVB board chairman. “It wasn’t, certainly, a make-or-break situation, but this will help even spruce up the building and make it the quality building that we would like to see — one of the nicest-looking facilities in the area.
“The more I am involved with the Landers group, I feel much better about this partnership,” Tackett added. “I believe they’re real people and they’re going to do above and beyond what is included in the contract. It gives us a new identity and a way to go forward — beyond the additional revenue, which will obviously help.”
Architect Doug Thornton, who was involved in the center’s design, was among those in attendance at the press conference.
“This is a huge accomplishment for this board,” he said of the naming rights deal. “It was something they’ve been trying to do since we were designing the building in 1996-97. It’s been on the radar screen for a long time.”
Also at Wednesday’s event, the new Landers Center artwork for the facility signage was unveiled. Officials are looking to “sign” the facility so it is unmistakable to those passing by on I-55.
“I had a man come up to me and say, ‘Hey, that looks like the Staples Center in Los Angeles,’” said CVB board member Chuck Roberts, “so you can already see the impact that it’s having on the people of our community.”
Added Landers Center Executive Director Todd Mastry: “This helps us be a better partner and a crown jewel for DeSoto County and the Mid-South.”
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