Brian Rudman: A Viaduct by any other name would smell

If I'd been pushed for a silver lining to the loss of the America's Cup then top of my list would have been the prospect of losing the American Express label from the Viaduct Harbour.

But expunging the money-changer's name might not be simple. Amex obviously enjoys its place on this prime harbourfront billboard so much that it is trying to renew its naming rights deal with Auckland City.

It was a tacky deal when first struck and it's still tacky. Whatever price they're offering to renew is not enough. If councillors agree to a price for this geographical jewel, then what price Rangitoto or Mission Bay?

Back in January 2001, when the rights were last renewed, public distaste was such that I stupidly thought the decision was a one-off aberration, brought on by America's Cup fever.

Never again, surely, would our city fathers and mothers consider selling naming rights of a key natural landmark to the highest bidder.

At that stage the city had little say. It had already surrendered its rights to the area to a commercial offshoot of Team New Zealand. It was a time when the defenders could do no wrong and the city was bending over backwards to accommodate the sailors' every wish.

The first the public knew of the name change was when the credit-card firm issued a statement declaring that the area "previously known as Viaduct Harbour" was "now officially called American Express Harbour".

By that stage, the area had already undergone more name changes than a Russian city, and all in the space of a few months. Known as Viaduct Basin for decades, it became Viaduct Harbour as the city council tried to improve the area's image.

Then on October 2000, following the city's temporary handover of management rights to Team New Zealand, the yachties declared it America's Cup Harbour.

The sailors then sold the naming rights, for an undisclosed sum, to Amex, who quickly rechristened it again.

Stung by criticism, the various parties hatched a compromise of sorts. It took five months and pleased no one.

In New Zealand, the place was to be called "American Express Viaduct Harbour - Home of the America's Cup", while overseas it would be "The American Express Harbor [note the American spelling] - Home of the America's Cup Regatta."

At this paper, we ignored such nonsense and stuck to its real name, Viaduct Harbour.

In recent years we've learned to live with the concept of impecunious organisations forced to incorporate sponsors' names into their own in return for a shilling or two. A school in South Auckland does it, as does the national opera company.

For a while, Auckland Hospital misled people into thinking it was the offshoot of an electronics multinational by placing a giant neon advertising sign on its roof.

But renaming a publicly owned geographical landmark appears to be a first - and hopefully a last.

American Express' offer is to run shows at the Viaduct in return for naming rights. It's even offering to continue this activity from June, when its present contract runs out, until October to give the council enough time to consider the offer.

I can't see the need for such delay.

Council marketing officials are preparing a report for the June 6 meeting of the recreation and events committee. The report is to consider first, whether the council agrees in principle to selling naming rights, and second, if it does, what the value of these rights are.

It shouldn't take them until October to come up with the right answer, which is to wish Amex well and send it on its way with a reminder to remove their signage pronto.

I know committee chairman Scott Milne favours the proposal, seeing it as "an opportunity to get more activity down there".

He may be right but that's not the issue - though I can imagine many residents in nearby apartments won't be happy about the thought of more organised activity.

It's the principle we should be addressing: whether city-owned open spaces, historic buildings and the like should be hocked off as virtual billboards.

The answer is no.

You don't see the Sydney Opera House sporting a sponsor's name. You don't see Amex's name weaving through the tourism sites of Asia and Europe.

This is one thing we don't want to be leading the world on.