Mayor Parker to share details on Philadelphia 76ers' Center City arena deal during public meeting

Wednesday, September 25, 2024 9:53AM ET
PHILADEPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphians will learn more details about the proposed 76ers' Center City arena deal on Wednesday.

Mayor Cherelle Parker is expected to discuss the details of an agreement between her administration and the sports team during a public meeting.

The video featured is from a previous report.

The meeting is being held at 5:30 p.m. in room 121 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, and is open to the public.

You can watch it live on 6abc.com or wherever you stream.



Last week, Parker announced that she had forged a deal to keep the NBA franchise in Philadelphia. It will now be sent to the City Council for approval.

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The decision comes despite objections from nearby Chinatown residents and just weeks after New Jersey's governor offered $400 million in tax breaks to build the site across the river in Camden.

"This is a historic agreement," Parker said in a video posted on the social platform X. "I wholeheartedly believe this is the right deal for the people of Philadelphia."

Parker said the deal for the arena represents $1.3 billion in private investment in the city, hundreds of millions of dollars of tax revenue for the city and the school district, and hundreds of jobs.



"It is the best financial deal ever entered into by a Philadelphia mayor for a local sports arena," Parker said.



The team has vowed not to renew the lease on their current home, a circa 1996 arena in the city's Wells Fargo Center, when their lease runs out in 2031.

The team now rents the arena from Comcast Spectacor, which also owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL, who also play there. Instead, the Sixers' owners want their own, more modern facility, one they could also rent out for concerts and other events.

In a statement, the 76ers said, "We are grateful to Mayor Parker and her team for their time and diligence in evaluating our proposal and look forward to advancing to the next steps with City Council."



The team's proposed arena, 76 Place, would be located about a block from Chinatown and has been a hotbed of controversy since it was announced.



Some in the community worry that street parking could disappear, traffic could rise and it could be harder to hold festivals, including in nearby Chinatown.

"To the people of Chinatown, please know that I hear you. We have the best Chinatown in the United States, and I am committed to working together to support it," Parker said.

Chinatown activists who have felt the squeeze of development repeatedly since at least the 1990s had urged the mayor to reject the plan. They are only now getting some relief from a sunken expressway that cleaved their community in two in 1991, in the form of a $159 million grant to build a park over the six-lane highway and reconnect the area.

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Parker, who inherited the 76ers issue when she took office in January, had promised to consider their input but activists have complained that she has allegedly ignored it. They say the project will increase vehicle traffic in their pedestrian-friendly neighborhood and force vulnerable residents -- older people, low-income families and new immigrants -- out.



Comcast Spectacor Chairman and CEO Daniel J. Hilferty said they will keep the door open for the 76ers as the plan unfolds while working with the Phillies to expand entertainment venues and jobs at the South Philadelphia complex.

"Either way, we always want what is best for Philadelphia," Hilferty said in a statement.
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