So, I Guess I Should Write About the Arena, Huh?
A town hall, a life science hub, t-shirts, billboards, and a new rendering from the government of New Jersey
Jiminy Cricket’s, everyone, there sure is a lot happening when it comes to the proposed 76 Place arena! I could go into a longform essay with every detail that has led us to where we are today. However, while this would likely be the tour de force that propels me to international fame and celebrity in the Sixers community, I have decided to avoid venturing fully into the mess and oversaturating the digital headlines.
Until now.
A quick summary to catch ourselves up: the Sixers’ ownership group, after purchasing the team from Wells Fargo Center/Flyers owner Comcast Spectacor in 2012, has long had plans for a new, Center City arena for our beloved squad. In September 2020, a mixed-use proposal with an arena as the centerpiece was pitched along Penn’s Landing, only to be passed over for another mixed-use proposal from The Durst Organization that has yet to be realized/started.
A pivot from these plans soon followed, with iterations for the current Market East/Fashion District first coming out almost two years later in July 2022. Since then, a residential tower and other refinements have been added to the proposed concept for 76 Place, a now $1.5-billion investment with retail, transit and pedestrian interventions also on tap. Given the proximity to the bustling Chinatown neighborhood, there has been tons of pushback from many folks both near and far, though plenty of others are seemingly very much in favor of the plans for the westernmost third of the newish multi-level mall.
To add to the drama, current landlord Comcast Spectacor has also thrown some spiciness into the mix, both with their huge reimagining of a mixed-use, state-of-the-art Sports Complex as well as their sudden interest in turning a piece of Market East they don’t own into a mixed-use, biomedical hub.
If that wasn’t enough, New Jersey decided to get involved, offering hundreds of millions of dollars to the Sixers’ brass if they made their new home on the east side of the Delaware River. And then just this morning, ROI New Jersey reported shiny new renderings for a Sixers arena along the waterfront were released, though these conceptual visuals are from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, not from the Sixers. Fun!
Whew, feeling caught up? Well, you aren’t quite there yet, because the biggest, newest news of all happened just last night: Mayor Cherelle Parker’s town hall event, which was packed with both billboard-driving supporters and shirt-donning opponents. We didn’t attend because we actually do things in the evening sometimes. Like eat pizza. Anyways, there were no decisions made at this event, though folks from all perspectives were offered an opportunity to have their voices heard.
For us, though, the most telling part was Mayor Parker’s speech at the end of the night. It covered a wide variety of topics, ranging from past budget experiences and growing up in an area that experienced displacement to restating credentials and distancing her administration’s work from that of her predecessor’s. It sounds, however, that a decision on whether this will happen will be coming directly from her - and soon.
So, what in the Jiminy Freakin’ Cricket’s is going to happen here? Reading between the lines - and leaning on our own past experiences with corporate communications in many functions - we are venturing a guess:
Before Halloween, Mayor Parker will announce that plans for a Sixers arena in Market East will be approved to move forward. Along with this approval, a beefed-up Community Benefits Agreement will be included - doubling the original $50 million figure. Additional coordination with SEPTA will also be included to help increase transit usage and assuage parking fears. The existing Fashion District Businesses will relocate to other spots within the remaining portion, with demo to start in January 2026.
So, is this a good outcome? I’m just a real estate blogger, how in the Furkan Korkmaz (miss you) am I supposed to know? Seriously, there is so much at play here, from transit to gentrification to redevelopment to concerts to retail opportunities to addiction support services to the very existence of Chinatown as we know it today. As someone who actively shops at the Fashion District, I believe that concerns around its demise are mostly overblown. As someone who walks along Market Street often, I believe that Market East can and should be a much more awesome area. As someone who is pro-transit, I believe this location is second to none. As someone who has loved the vibrancy of Chinatown for years but doesn’t live there, I believe we can’t ignore the concerns of those who have made this place home for decades.
I mean, a book could be written about this with all of the ins and outs and different moving pieces (I WILL NOT BE DOING THAT…unless someone wants to pay me/will introduce me to Joel Embiid). My only hope is that whatever outcome is eventually decided upon, that Philadelphia ends up in a better place because of it.
Disclosure: I was unknowingly wearing an Allen Iverson shirt for the writing of this article.