Kiel Center Gets New Name

Most ballparks, arenas and stadiums these days are named after the highest bidding corporation, making a mint for the owner of the building. The Kiel Center in St. Louis, home to the St. Louis Blues, and St. Louis University Billikens, was one of the final holdouts. But officially, the arena will no longer bear the name of contractor Henry Kiel, who built the original opera house on that site, and was mayor of St. Louis from 1913 to 1925. Bill and Nancy Laurie who own the building, have sold the naming rights to Savvis Communications. The company will pay 70-million dollars over the next 20 years.