Saint Louis University has not yet formally announced a site for
its proposed arena, but the choice appears to be narrowing down
quickly.

The two sites being considered are near the former Waring School
and the Grand Forest Apartments at the corner of Laclede and
Compton avenues, and a site in Grand Center bordered by Theresa
Avenue, Leonard Avenue, Olive Street and Washington Avenue.

“We’re 99 percent sure it is not going to be in Grand Center
because of real estate prices,” said University President Lawrence
Biondi, S.J., in an interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on
Nov. 21.

Building the arena at the Waring site would mean the University
would receive less money from the Grand Center TIF, but according
to the article, the savings from buying the property should
compensate for the difference.

The incentive for the on-campus site is $5 million, as opposed
to the Grand Center site, which is $15 million. Biondi also said
that the University had agreed to buy the Waring property for $1.25
million.

The University has raised $10 million of the $40 million needed
to complete the project and is aiming to have the arena open for
the 2005 basketball season, according to Biondi, in the
Post-Dispatch article.

“It would be a real stretch” to have the arena ready by that
time, said Bob Woodruff, interim chief financial officer and arena
project manager.

“I think it’s going to have a positive impact on Midtown and
SLU,” Woodruff added. He explained that the original plans to build
the arena in Grand Center included a village concept that would
branch out to encourage the development of shops and
restaurants.

“The idea was that there would be a real synergy there,” he
said. Woodruff said that type of “synergy” would probably not occur
in the same way if the arena were built on the Waring site, but
that Grand Center will still benefit from the thousands of people
that the arena will draw to the area during events.