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The Philadelphia 76ers are looking to leave Wells Fargo Center to build its own home in Center City Philadelphia. 76DevCorp, the company behind the project for the proposed arena, 76 Place, strives to renovate an existing space within the city and construct an arena that will open in time for the Sixers' 2031-32 season.
Some key new details of the Sixers' arena proposal illustrate the numerous benefits it intends to have on Philadelphia. An announcement from 76DevCorop outlines key agreements that the company seeks to make with Philadelphia in order to make it a more beneficial project for the city.
“We have been clear since this project was first announced: we are committed to making 76 Place a win for the team, our fans and the city,” said David Adelman, the chairman of the arena development corporation and a co-owner of the Sixers, in the press release. “These agreements we’re prepared to make with the city keep that commitment by generating new tax revenues – revenues that won’t be available if the 76ers stayed in the Wells Fargo Center – and give the city more discretion over the project to ensure it’s a true community asset. We believe when the city’s analysis is complete, it will be clear how much of a benefit a new arena will be for the city, its workers and taxpayers.”
76DevCorp calculates that its plans would provide the city and its school district with $1 billion in tax benefits through the 30-year lease term. The Sixers plan to purchase the land needed for the new arena and convey it to the city for no charge in order to provide it with more control, specifically over 76 Place's design and usage of the arena for community needs.
The Sixers plan to waive the Tax Increment Financing (TIF) in place “upon demolition and conveyance of the arena site to the city,” the press release said. Forgoing the tax abatement, which the team would inherit and expires in 2035, would provide more tax revenue for the city and its school district. The Sixers also plan to create a PILOT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes) structure to set up payments that go to the city.
Many activists in Philadelphia are opposed to the Sixers' arena plans over concerns about its impact on the city's Chinatown. The proposed site of the venue, the portion of the Fashion District mall located on Market Street and between 10th Street and 11th Street, is in very close proximity to the neighborhood. Residents and activists have pointed to rising costs and increased traffic in the area as key issues posed by the arena and its construction.
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Adelman stated previously that the Sixers' arena plans will not displace Chinatown residents or businesses and has offered assistance for the area through business promotions and investments into infrastructure. Still, activists maintain a strong anti-arena stance.
Philadelphia will conduct three studies on the impact of the arena, with consultants chosen by the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation. The Sixers will pay $655,000 to cover the costs of two studies, according to Jeff Gammage and Jake Blumgart of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The cost of the third has yet to be determined.
The Sixers funding the studies, rather than allowing it to be paid with taxpayer money, goes in line with their intentions of making the 18,500-seat arena a privately funded venture. Activists for Chinatown have claimed that the team funding the studies for its own arena proposal makes them difficult to trust.
“How do we go to our community and say, ‘You can trust the results of this’?” said Mohan Seshadri, executive director of the Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance, via the Inquirer. “The people doing the studies know who is paying. And they have a profit motive to pay attention to who is paying. They’re going to want contracts in the future. They’ll orient the studies around the needs and wants of the developer.”
While the opening for the proposed arena remains eight years away, the Sixers and 76DevCorp are taking steps to garner support for the project from the city of Philadelphia and its inhabitants.
