Kerbside Immortality, At A Price
The Age
Friday September 4, 1992
In the early 17th Century, 10,000 might have bought you a baronetcy. By the 21st Century, $10,000 may put your name on a street sign in Hornsby.
Hornsby council in Sydney is considering the sale of naming rights to streets _ the biggest thing in self-promotion since personalised number plates.
Councillor Steven Pringle put the suggestion to the council this week. He said such an income-generating scheme would be acceptable if no suitable names could be found from community history.
``Many developers are looking around for street names so we could make cash out of it and reduce our dependence on rates," Cr Pringle said. ``That is part of the entrepreneurial theme of councils these days." Cr Pringle suggested the fee of $10,000.
Most councils have set policies for naming streets. In Warringah, for example, the council uses Aboriginal names.
If a ratepayer wanted a street to be given a particular name, he or she would apply to the council, with reasons, for approval.
The general manager of Hornsby council, Mr Robert Ball, will give the council a report on the subject.
Such a venture would appeal to business as a means of publicity, the council said.
It has been suggested that the council will consider naming rights for streets to pay for a sculpture in the Florence Street Mall at Hornsby.
The council commissioned Mr Victor Cusack to design and build a water sculpture for $500,000 in October 1990. It is due to be unveiled in December and the council has had trouble raising the funds to pay for the seven-metre bronze sculpture. By June it had raised only $12,500.
© 1992 The Age
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