Spectra Place, we hardly knew ye.
Just over two years after Estevan's new arena was christened as Spectra Place, it has been announced the name of the facility will be changing to Affinity Place.
The new name, which is to reflect the recent partnership between Spectra Credit Union and Affinity Credit Union that was finalized on July 1, will become official as of Jan. 1, 2014.
"People in the community have been asking us if the name would change after our partnership took place," said Tim Schroh, COO of Affinity Credit Union. "Prior to the decision to merge with Affinity Credit Union, one of the key decision factors in choosing a partner was continuing our commitments to our communities.
"Now that the partnership has been finalized for a few months, we feel that changing the name of the arena to Affinity Place shows that as a credit union, our core value of community support is still in place. It is a first-class facility, and we are very proud to have the name Affinity attached to it."
During the fund raising effort for the $22 million event centre Spectra stepped forward to purchase the naming rights for 10 years. Since the partnership was announced earlier this year there has been much speculation about what the new name would be.
In a press release it was noted that along with a new name, a new logo has been created that incorporates pieces of the Spectra Place logo, and is inspired in part by the architectural design of the complex. The release also noted the new logo will be incorporated into the facility over the next few months.
"The City of Estevan is pleased to announce a new facility name, Affinity Place," added Mayor Roy Ludwig, who was also chairman of the arena committee. "We feel the new name choice carries on the continuity of the former name and will continue with exciting events for Estevan and area to enjoy. We are looking forward to working with our partners at Affinity Credit Union; we appreciate their support of Affinity Place."
As part of the naming rights agreement, all associated costs with the changing of the name and signage are the responsibility of Affinity Credit Union.
