City Council gives final approval for new Philadelphia 76ers arena in Center City
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphia City Council gave final approval for the proposed Sixers arena in Center City during a session on Thursday morning.
The vote fulfills the Sixers' hope that the legislation would be approved by the end of the year to stay on schedule.
The team plans to open the arena, called 76 Place, in 2031 when its lease expires at the Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia.
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Protesters were taken into custody on the floor of Philadelphia City Hall on Thursday morning ahead of an expected vote on the proposed 76ers arena in Center City.
Video from inside council chambers showed protesters sitting in a circle as Philadelphia sheriff's deputies started taking people into custody.
The Action Cam was outside City Hall as protesters were taken to a bus from the sheriff's office. They could be seen wearing red t-shirts that said 'shut it down.'
Police have shut down part of the Intersection of Broad and JFK as protesters are being escorted out of City Hall.
The session of City Council is now underway, with a vote expected sometime today. As of 11 a.m. council was taking public comment.
The final vote on legislation approving the arena, 76 Place, is expected Thursday.
It's potentially the end of the two-year process of the Sixers trying to get their arena approved.
City officials who spoke with Action News say that they do not anticipate any changes to the bills that council were initially approved last week.
Members of the No Arena Coalition said their goal is to fill council chambers as they did during last week's vote where the majority of council gave early, but not final approval of the arena.
Not everyone in attendance is opposed to the arena. Dozens of members of labor unions, who anticipate the creation of thousands of jobs from the proposed Sixers arena, waited in long lines to get into City Hall earlier Thursday.
Action News is told that Councilman Mark Squilla, who represents the Center City district where the Sixers want to move, plans on bringing each bill forward individually without any changes, council will then vote on them separately.
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We've also learned that as of now, there aren't any plans to change the cost of the highly contested $60 million Community Benefits Agreement or CBA.
Council negotiated the number with the Sixers last week despite public outcry calling for a higher amount.
The CBA is to be paid over 30 years for various initiatives if this becomes a done deal.
City leaders continue to say that taxpayers will not have to pay for the $1.3 billion project.
Right now, it looks like council could approve the arena 12 to 5 if they stick with how the voted last week.
