School board gives approval for high-tech video scoreboards

A consulting group may seek advertisers for a high-tech video scoreboard at Legends Stadium, the Kalispell school board decided Tuesday night.

Trustees unanimously approved a proposal from Virtu Consulting that will allow the company to pursue contracts with potential advertisers, school board chairwoman Anna Marie Bailey said.

A 16- by 24-foot LED screen at Legends Stadium and 9- by 12-foot screens in the Flathead and Glacier high school gymnasiums will feature the same scrolling advertisements seen at collegiate and professional stadiums.

Virtu Consulting, headed by Flathead alumnus Terry Pugh, will split ad revenues with Kalispell Public Schools. The district will receive 60 percent of sales; Virtu Consulting will take the remaining 40 percent.

Virtu Consulting hopes to set up a network of screens at Class AA schools across the state to increase the appeal to potential advertisers. Jordan Lister, Pugh’s colleague and fellow Flathead alumnus, said the company is offering a 50-50 advertising split with other schools, according to Bailey.

“Because our district is first, we get 60-40,” Bailey said. “That’s a little coup for Kalispell.”

In 15 years, the scoreboards and their revenue will belong to the Kalispell district.

The fundraising deal, which won’t cost the school district a dime, was proposed by Pugh and Lister. Pugh has a long history of involvement in the Flathead, including as a major financial contributor to Legends Stadium and paying for Little Guy football fields and parking lots at Kidsports.

Professionally, Pugh has done work at collegiate and professional stadiums across the United States, including installing video scoreboards at Washington Grizzly Stadium in Missoula.

In addition to bringing in advertising dollars, the scoreboards have been touted as a way to add value to the district’s multimedia program curriculum. Students could produce video for halftime shows and timeouts, gaining real-life multimedia experience.

The largest scoreboard is expected to debut Aug. 27 at Legends Stadium when Glacier plays football against Billings Skyview.

The screens in the gym will be debuted “at least later in the fall,” Superintendent Darlene Schottle said — whenever the district has raised enough advertising dollars to support them.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.