Advertising, Sponsorship, and Donations

Want to advertise with Kingston Transit? You can book your ads here: 

• For bus ads, contact Lamar Transit at 1-877-233-2833.
• For bench ads, contact Creative Outdoor at 1-800-661-6088. 

There are opportunities to reach over one million people each year within our recreation facilities and arenas. This includes rink board ads, in-ice logos, window display ads, recycling container promotions and outdoor marina ads.  

Email mktg@cityofkingston.ca, we can always design a customized package to reach your target audience. 

• Locations: INVISTA Centre, Cataraqui Community Centre, Centre 70 and Kingston Memorial Centre.  

Located at the INVISTA Centre, YGK Airport and Kingston Grand Theatre, these digital screens reach over a million visitors to our facilities. Multi-location and non-profit organization discounts are available. 

Contact Creative Display at 613-389-0088 ext. 5334

• Ice pad 1: Sold to Mike Lee Insurance 
• Ice pad 2: Sold to Kinsmen Club of Kingston 

Ice pad 1: Sold to UFit

Available! The City presents numerous events annually using a movable concert stage. A naming rights sponsor for the stage will have its name featured at every event and can take advantage of year-round advertising on the exterior of the stage trailer located in its storage location at the INVISTA Centre.

Facility naming: Sold to Culligan Water

• Building naming: Sold to INVISTA  
• Ice pad 1: Sold to MNP 
• Ice pad 2: Sold to CUPE 109 
• Ice pad 3: Sold to Philip MacLean Desjardins Insurance 
• Ice pad 4: Sold to Selkirk Homes 
• Meeting room: Sold to CUPE 109 
• Outdoor Field: Sold to CaraCo

• Community Garden: Sold to Mike Lee Desjardins Insurance  
• Gymnasium: Sold to C.S. Physiotherapy and Wellness

Train Room available! The PumpHouse Museum is home to an exceptional collection of model trains in its iconic train room. An elaborate multi-level O-scale train can be set in motion by the push of a button, a small N-scale train set showcases impressive miniatures, and the HO-scale train set from the opening of the iconic CBC children’s show ‘The Friendly Giant’ is on display. Knowledgeable model train volunteers work with PumpHouse staff to provide important maintenance and care of the model trains in the Train Room, ensuring an engaging visitor experience. The ever-popular weekly Trains and Tots program takes advantage of the hands-on activities in the Train Room and consistently sells out.

Exhibition Hall available! The Exhibition Hall is a gallery located on the north end in the historic part of the museum. Flanked by the original steam boiler and heritage brick and stone walls, but featuring new flooring and museum-quality lighting, this hall features new experiences each year as part of a curated selection of exhibitions. Popular past exhibitions include Egypt: Gift of the Nile; Canada’s Waterscapes; Let’s Talk Science; and The Vikings: Master Mariners, Traders, Colonists and Artisans.

Splash Pad available! We are committed to presenting accessible spaces and places for residents of all ages to enjoy. Woodbine Park is one of the most active parks in Kingston and the naming of the splash pad is an excellent naming rights opportunity for brand awareness and targeted messaging towards active families.

Departure Lounge: Sold to Assante Wealth Management Fenlon Financial

We organize several featured events throughout the year, drawing thousands of residents and visitors to our public spaces. Corporate support helps keep these events accessible to all. These events can showcase your company and provide a unique way to reach your target audience(s). We look forward to helping you reach your target market through one of our events or festivals. 

Current 2024 feature event sponsorship opportunities: 

• Canada Day, July 1, 2024 
• Mayor’s Art Awards – Date to be determined in November 
• WinterLight – Nov. 16, 2024 
• All Aboard for the Holidays – Dec.10-14, 2024 
• K-Town Countdown – Dec. 31, 2024

Current sponsorship opportunities: 

• Accessible programs 
• Benches 
• Community gardens 
• Confederation Basin Promenade
• Free skates and swims 
• Grand OnStage 
• Grand OnStage School Performances
• Kingston Climate Expo
• Kingston Grand Theatre Executive Suite
• Kingston Community Climate Action Fund
• Municipal Fees Assistance Program
• Physician recruitment
• Pride crosswalk 
• Splash School. By sponsoring this program you'll help young swimmers in grades 4-6 from schools in the Limestone District School Board learn the fundamentals of swimming in a fun and safe environment
• WebCam streaming 

Projects that will benefit from your support: 

• Grand Theatre Fund 
• Kingston Community Climate Action Fund
• Rideaucrest Long-Term Care Home  
• City of Kingston Museums Fund 
• Memorial Tree and Bench Program
• Inclusive Play Project   
• Subsidy Program for Affordable Recreation in Kingston (SPARK)

If you would like to donate to a project not listed here, please email mktg@cityofkingston.ca.

• Donate securely online through CanadaHelps
• In person at City Hall, 216 Ontario St.

If you make a donation through CanadaHelps, you'll promptly receive your tax receipt by email or in your CanadaHelps account. 

If you donate in person at City Hall, you will be given an official tax receipt, which you can use when you file your personal income taxes. 

To be eligible for a receipt, your donations must meet the following criteria: 

• Have a value of $20 or more. 
• Be received by the last business day of December or have a postmark dated before Dec. 31. 

If you request it, an official tax receipt will be mailed to you by Feb. 28 of the following calendar year. For instance, if you make a donation on or before Dec. 31, 2023, you'll receive a tax receipt no later than Feb. 28, 2024.

Municipalities can give official donation receipts for gifts and receive money from registered charities according to tax laws, but we do not have a charitable number. 

Our policy ensures that City staff follow the Income Tax Act when taking donations and giving tax receipts. We cannot transfer money to individuals or groups that do not meet legal requirements.

Monetary donations 

We will provide an Official Tax Receipt for income tax purposes for monetary donations made during the current year to the person or group who donated, under these conditions: 

• The donation is $20 or more
• The donation is received by the last business day of December or has an envelope postmark dated before Dec. 31

Please keep in mind that receipts can only be issued in the name of the actual donor and not on behalf of someone else. 

Non-monetary donations 

These are considered non-cash donations or gifts-in-kind, which include: 

• Property, such as real estate or valuable assets
• Items subject to depreciation 
• Personal-use items, including valuable personal possessions 
• Leasehold interests 
• Residual interests 
• Any kind of rights
• Licenses
• Shares in a company 
• Business inventory

All gifts-in-kind are subject to a formal offer and review process. The donor is required to: 

• Prove ownership of the gifted item (provide evidence of how they acquired it). 
• If federal law demands, arrange and cover the costs of an appraisal to determine the fair market value of the donated item. This valuation is necessary to receive a tax receipt from the municipality for that amount. The City reserves the right to assess if the appraisal value is reasonable. 
• Provide the name and address to which the tax receipt should be issued by the municipality. 

Non-qualifying gifts 

According to the Canada Revenue Agency, official tax receipts for income tax purposes cannot be issued for the following donations: 

• Donations made due to legal obligations 
• Basic admission fees
• Membership fees
• Payments for a chance to win
• Purchases of goods or services 
• Gifts-in-kind without a determined fair market value
• Gifts-in-kind where the benefit exceeds 80 per cent of the gift's value
• Donations in exchange for advertising/sponsorship
• Donations of services, except when payment and donation are separate
• Gifts of inventory that promote a business
• Gift certificates donated by issuers
• Pledges, except when honoured with property transfer
• Loans of property 
• Timeshare use
• Lease of premises 

We can choose to accept or decline any donation, with reasons provided for rejections. 

Permission is granted for the following uses:  

• Departments, boards, task forces, committees or working groups of the Corporation of the City of Kingston.  
• An organization, program or event that is recognizing support (financial or in-kind) or sponsorship by the City of Kingston. 
• An organization that is sponsoring a program or event run by the City of Kingston.   

Our logo should not be used without permission or reproduced for commercial purposes, such as selling items that have the logo on it.  

Unauthorized use of the City of Kingston logo will result in legal action. The City can, at any time, withdraw consent for logo usage if usage has been deemed inappropriate.  

If you have been granted logo permissions, follow all usage requirements. If you have been provided with language to accompany the logo, use this unaltered.

For any questions or if you are unable to fulfill requirements or use provided assets or copy without alterations reach out to the City representative with whom you have been working or email communications@cityofkingston.ca.

Download the complete City logo guidelines.

Summarized guidelines:  

• Do not alter the logo in any way
• Only use colours specified
• Blue is the preferred logo colour but use specified colours that ensure appropriate contrast
• Place on solid backgrounds
• Minimum size: 0.75 inches in print. 100 PX in digital
• Minimum resolutions: 300 DPI in print. 150 DPI in large scale print. 72 DPI in digital 
• Ensure a minimum “N” sized clear space around the logo 

Select your preferred image type: 

• EPS 
• JPG 
• PNG