Iowa’s rest area sponsorship program could grow

The Iowa Department of Transportation hopes to expand its rest area sponsorship program as the program heads into its second year.

The department will open bidding in December for companies or other entities to don their name and logo on a simple sign approaching one of Iowa's rest areas, and a second sign inside the rest area.

'We'd like to see it take off,” said Steve McMenamin, Iowa DOT rest area administrator. 'It never hurts to have more money in the pot.”

Successful bidders agree to a three-year contract with a minimum value of $2,500 per year or $7,500 for three years. Iowa generated $265,515 from eight sponsorships signed in the first year of the program.

The money goes into the primary road fund, which pays for a variety of road needs.

'It's not a lot of money when it comes to highway money, but it's money we didn't have,” he said. 'So that's good.”

Allied Insurance has the only two sponsorships in Eastern Iowa, and those are along Interstate 380 south of Cedar Rapids. Iowa State Athletics has five sponsorships, and Newton Convention and Visitors Bureau has one.

There were 37 available sponsorships.

The first round of awards were made in late 2013. The DOT opened bidding for a single rest area outside Wilton in early 2014, but no bids came in, McMenamin said.

Recently, some have expressed interest in two new rest areas in Polk County, and calls have come in from people interested in rest areas in Eastern Iowa, which could be a sign of active bidding next month, he said.

Still, rest area sponsorships haven't been as successful as expected here in Iowa or elsewhere around the country, McMenamin said.

McMenamin said some feel it could be more successful, but federal and state rules governing highway and rest area signage are restrictive.

'The program is a little too restrictive to become the cash cow some thought it would,” he said.

Sponsors are only allowed to put their name and logo. Additional information such as phone numbers, websites or email addresses are forbidden, McMenamin said. In one case, the DOT couldn't accept a proposal for a sign that including information to help recruit drivers, he said.

Iowa based the rules in conjunction with federal and state guidelines.

The issue of rest area sponsorships and more broadly commercialization of rest areas is a sticky subject, and pushes to loosen the rules are met with resistance, he said.

If the rules were to change, it likely wouldn't be for another year or two and it would start with easing regulations for what's acceptable on federal highways, he said.