For only the second time in its 50-year history, downtown Hartford’s sports and entertainment complex has a new name.
It’s PeoplesBank Arena.
The former Hartford Civic Center will shed its XL Center name — the identity of the 16,000-seat arena since 2007 — effective immediately, as part of a 10-year naming rights agreement with the Holyoke, Mass.-based community bank which has been expanding in Connecticut.
The agreement calls from an initial annual investment from PeoplesBank of $850,000, rising to $2.4 million over the next decade. That’s a significant increase from the value of naming rights with the XL Group, which ranged from $450,000 to $500,000 a year. XL’s rights contract expired about a year ago but its name has remained on the venue.
The agreement was announced on the arena’s floor Monday, surrounded by ample evidence of a $145 million renovation shifting into high gear. One half of the seats in the lower part of the arena have already been ripped out. The Jumbotron was lowered to the floor to flash the new name of the arena as it was announced.
Peter Luukko, co-chairman of Denver-based Oak View Group, the global sports and entertainment group, said private investment was critical to bringing together the financing for the renovation of the arena. OVG, which runs the day-to-day operations at the arena, is investing $20 million in the project. The naming rights agreement was another instance of bringing corporate investment into the venue, Luukko said.
PeoplesBank is “committed to really investing in Hartford, in the state and be a partner,” Luukko said. “So again, they’ll have skin in the game. They obviously believe in what’s going on in Hartford and the area.”
The name change comes at a critical time in the history of the Hartford arena.
The venue opened in 1975 and was rebuilt after a devastating roof collapse three years later, expanding its seating capacity. The arena is now in the midst of a long-debated renovation — largely financed by state taxpayers. The project is aimed at reshaping the arena with amenities offered by newer competitors and reversing a money-losing track record at the state-run venue, typically $2 million a year.
This summer, the arena is closed so the majority of the renovations — focused primarily on the lower half of the venue — will kick into high gear. It is hoped that the majority of the work will be completed by the fall, in time for the start of the college basketball season.
The renovations will include new seating options — including the addition of five bunker suites and loge boxes — that are seen as boosting ticket sales and could help nearly triple the number of concerts booked each year, key money makers for modern arenas.
PeoplesBank is a relatively new name in Connecticut and was among a field of about a half-dozen institutions in the running for the naming rights. But PeoplesBank quickly rose to the top and stayed there through nine months of negotiations, Luukko said.
Seven years ago, the community bank — with no connection to Bridgeport-based People’s United Bank, acquired by M&T Bank in 2022 — made its first move into Connecticut branch banking, buying a small Suffield bank. Now it has five branches — its West Hartford office serving as its hub for the region — and a sixth to open soon in Glastonbury
Tom Senecal, the bank’s chairman and chief executive, said the bank is in active negotiations for a branch location in downtown Hartford. In addition, the bank is searching for up to 7,000 square feet of office space downtown to establish a larger regional hub.
Senecal said the bank’s community focus is strengthened by its mutual bank structure, meaning the institution is essentially owned by its depositors and not shareholders or Wall Street. The bank will not be bought or sold, Senecal maintained, and will remain an independent institution.
“This is more than a naming rights agreement for the city of Hartford and the state of Connecticut,” Senecal said. “This is a statement from PeoplesBank about who we are and who we are not. What we believe in and where we are headed together.”
Senecal emphasized the bank’s local roots and strength of its Connecticut franchise, which now rivals its market in Massachusetts. He drew a contrast with larger national banks, stressing PeoplesBank’s local decision-making, local staffing and local community involvement.
“We chose to invest in this arena because we believe in Hartford,” Senecal said. “We believe in the revitalization happening here; the momentum building downtown; the renewed energy in the business district, the arts; the restaurants, the culture and, of course, the sports.”
It is increasingly common that financial services firms involved in mortgages, insurance and other loans are interested in promoting their brands with venue naming rights. Technology companies and national retailers also are interested in lending their name to arenas.
The naming rights are certainly a powerful branding opportunity for the bank. The name will be over the front entrance off Trumbull Street and throughout the arena. The agreement also gives the bank rights to premium seating for their use and other perks.
Michael W. Freimuth, executive director of the Capital Region Development Authority, which has the overall responsibility for the arena’s operations, said PeoplesBank has become an increasingly active partner with CRDA in financing housing projects in the Hartford area.
“Adding their name to the civic center is further affirmation of their commitments to the central Connecticut marketplace while helping to refresh one of our premier entertainment venues,” Freimuth said.
Gov. Ned Lamont noted at the announcement that the arena has strong potential for a bright future with a strong line-up of sports, including the University of Connecticut’s men’s and women’s basketball programs; UConn men’s hockey and the AHL’s Wolf Pack. In addition, there is the promise of more events, particularly concerts.
Lamont also referenced reports that the Mohegan Tribe is exploring the sale of the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun, a move that could relocate the franchise out of Connecticut.
“And, as you maybe know, a few of us thought this might be a pretty nice place for the Connecticut Sun to play a few games as well,” Lamont said. “Who knows? You never know.”