Dayton is rich with unique organizations and companies willing to explore creative partnerships. The DBY would not be a reality without two of them: one early contributor and one unexpected opportunity.
A Leading Contribution
Bonbright Distributors is the DBY’s southern neighbor and a strong supporter of the region’s cycling community. A contribution by Bonbright supported the contract for the DBY’s construction plans and helped the city build the bicycle playground in 2021. Bonbright’s early donation launched the Dayton Bike Yard into reality and created the brand (and name) used today.
As the park’s neighbor, Bonbright agreed to let the City store several tons of dirt from a University of Dayton project for use in the construction of the central hill feature at the DBY. It took five years for the city to assemble the necessary funding to move forward, but holding the earth for this duration saved the project thousands of dollars.
An Unexpected Partnership
Ironically, one of the biggest hurdles the project faced was finding the funds and a contractor to move the massive pile of dirt from Bonbright’s property into its final location. Estimates ranged from $150,000 to $500,000 – both of which exceeded the City’s budget for construction. The project was at a standstill as the city worked to build a capital stack that would cover all of the construction expense, including relocating the dirt pile.
Enter the Miami Valley Mountain Bike Association – a strong advocate for the project and partner with the City in finalizing construction drawings and park designs – and their board member, Trent Walters – who was also an employee at Trimble, a local technology company. Trimble’s technology supports earth moving projects with multiple in-field solutions that help visualize projects and guide heavy machinery with precision. They saw an opportunity to highlight their technology capabilities at the DBY by filming a promotional video as their team moved the earth. Part of the marketing hook included bringing in known cyclists to ride the features they created. In addition to highlighting their company’s capabilities in a fun way, they shared their desire to use the project as a recruitment tool for new employees.
As part of this partnership with the city, Trimble moved the dirt for free and provided the final videos to the city to help highlight the park. Trimble’s marketing team will be back at the park during the grand opening to document the final project and celebrate the community partnerships that made it possible.
