When strange things happen to good names

Whether you like the name or not, “ShoWare” is now part of the Kent landscape.

The Kent City Council on Tuesday inked an agreement with ShoWare by VisionOne, Inc., for the California-based company to put its name on our nearly built arena.

So the name that officially enters the local lexicon is: ShoWare Center at Kent.

It could have been worse – we could be trying to build a sign emblazoned with “ShoWare by VisionOne Center at Kent: Abandon All Hope of Ever Finding an Easy Way to Refer to This Place.”

Given the size it would need to be, that sign would have toppled the walls of the center, and we’d be stuck with an outdoor skating rink and a lot of extra seats.

I know that in the interest of good financial management, we needed a sponsor to come in, pay up, and get some mileage from having its name light up a marquee.

It’s just that, well … ShoWare?

Critics will probably point to the same reaction when KeyBank stepped in to help with the Seattle Coliseum.

Or when Qwest became the namesake of the Seahawks facilities, after the Kingdome bit the dust.

The truth is, public-private partnerships are the way of getting big facilities built. And while we may scratch our heads, these names do, over time, become a part of the landscape and the local vernacular.

Case in point: The Norm Maleng Justice Center here in Kent. People are slowly coming around to the new name, even if a lot of them aren’t sure who Norm actually was.

So, anything is possible, if the name is around long enough. I’m sure we can come up with some catchy new jingles for the new name, too.

And if you think of any, let me know.

But in the meantime let’s hope Tupperware doesn’t want to build anything in Tukwila.

Or that Dempster Dumpmaster doesn’t have something planned for Des Moines.