Bank's departure could hurt UH coffers Bank of America spent $205,000 on Rainbow athletics last year
By Paul Arnett
Star-BulletinBank of America's likely departure from the island chain sent some shivers up and down the spine of the University of Hawaii athletic department. This past year, Bank of America spent $205,000 in sponsorship fees, television and radio advertising, schedule cards, and for the rolling advertising signs in the Special Events Arena and behind home plate at Rainbow Stadium.
About $75,000 of that went directly into UH's coffers, Rainbows associate athletic director Jim Donovan said. That's a small percentage of Hawaii's $12 million athletic budget, but the university needs every dollar it can get.
"They were the first sponsor we've ever had for the Rainbow Easter Baseball Tournament," Donovan said. "And we were looking forward to a continued partnership with them. If they do leave Hawaii, we would miss their generous contributions."
This June is the end of a rocky fiscal year for UH athletics. It's possible the athletic department will dip into the red for the first time in recent memory. That means any projected revenue loss could damage next year's balance.Donovan was all smiles during this year's Rainbow Easter Baseball Tournament after securing a three-year deal with Bank of America, which paid the university $80,000 this year to sponsor the event.
"It was my understanding they were going to look at cutting costs and that leaving Hawaii was a last resort," Donovan said. "But obviously, that may have changed."
Donovan said the university couldn't hold Bank of America to the three-year agreement should it pull out because it was only in memorandum form.
"We also couldn't expect that agreements reached with Bank of America would apply to a buyer of their area branches," Donovan said. "We can only wait to see what develops."
It's possible that Donovan could reach an agreement with whatever bank took over the Bank of America branches, but it's unlikely it would be for the same amount of money. If asked, Donovan also said he would do whatever he could to help Bank of America defray costs if it decides to stay in Hawaii by cutting expenses.
According to documents obtained last week by the Star-Bulletin, executives of American Savings Bank and Central Pacific Bank met last month with local Bank of America executives to investigate a potential buyout.
Bank of America officials declined comment on the future of their 39 branches statewide.
In addition to the $80,000 in Rainbow Easter Baseball Tournament sponsorship fees, Donovan said Bank of America also spent about $40,000 on schedule cards for sports events and radio advertising during UH games.
The bank also shelled out $85,000 to be in the KFVE (Channel 5) television package and for the rotating advertising signs.
"We've always appreciated the partnership we have with Bank of America," Donovan said. "These are very challenging economic times for everyone. Their contributions to our program would certainly be missed."
By comparison, First Hawaiian Bank committed about the same amount of money toward UH athletics as Bank of America. On the other hand, Bank of Hawaii contributed about 31/2 times as much.
