Ballpark From Bailout

NBC 4: The new home of the Columbus Clippers remains under construction and under controversy. A new ballpark headed to the Arena District will open this spring, but the naming rights have been sold to a local bank that has received a $1 billion bank bailout. With taxpayer on the line, does the deal still make sense?

Huntington Bank signed on to have naming rights to the Clippers’ new stadium that’s set to open downtown on April 13. But the bank’s $12 million commitment will be fulfilled during a time when they are also getting taxpayer money from the federal government, Several banks nationwide are under scrutiny for park-naming contracts in the midst of the federal bailout, including Citibank, which has a $400 million 20-year agreement on the New York Mets’ new ballpark.

The company received more than $1 billion in bailout money and officials told NBC 4 recently that it would be earmarked for consumer and commercial loans. In the meantime, they said, employees will receive no bonuses or incentives. They also recently cut 500 jobs. Nevertheless, the Huntington name remains on Huntington Park.

The company has a $12 million contract with Franklin County, but has only paid $5 million of that so far. The company will pay installments every year for the next 20 years. Huntington said the TARP money cannot be used for sports marketing and representatives said they needed to honor their commitment to the park that started well before the recession with other assets.