sears tower rename

For Chicagoans it may be the architectural equivalent of having to watch Michael Jordan finish his career in a Washington Wizards uniform: The Sears Tower is turning into something called the Willis Tower.

That's right, the tallest building in the United States is getting a new name later this year, building management said Thursday.

all part of a deal with London-based Willis Group Holdings.The naming rights to the western hemisphere’s tallest building have been handed over to a London-based insurance broker that will move 500 employees into 140,000 square feet of the Chicago skyscraper, Crain’s Chicago Business reported Thursday.The Willis Group gets the naming rights as part of its lease agreement with the real estate investment group that owns Sears Tower.

The name change isn't the first in recent years for Chicago. In 2006, the city's State Street shopping district saw Marshall Field's department store become Macy's and in 2003 the White Sox stopped playing baseball at U.S. Cellular Field instead of Comiskey Park.

"We certainly appreciate and understand the sentimental attraction to the Sears Tower name, and it's certainly a Chicago icon," said Will Thoretz, a spokesman in New York for Willis Holdings Group. "Our move into Chicago is a good thing for the city. We're bringing hundreds of jobs into the city."

The company is not paying extra for naming rights to the tower, Thoretz said.

"We asked for the naming rights," Thoretz said. "There was no additional cost to us."

The insurance broker will occupy more than 140,000 square feet. Willis is moving five local offices into the building. The move is expected to be completed by late summer.Willis told Crain’s that they are paying $14.50 per square foot in the 110-story building, but is not paying extra for the naming rights.

"They own the building," Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley said. "They should name it, sure. Sears moved out a long time ago."

The tower was the world's tallest building until 1996, when it was surpassed by the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.