Featured image credit: 76 Place
NBA franchise the Philadelphia 76ers has scaled back its plans for a proposed $1.55bn (£1.19bn/€1.44bn) arena project by eliminating a 25-story apartment tower from the scheme.
The Sixers added plans for a $250m mixed-income housing development as part of updated proposals for its 76 Place project back in August 2023. The revised plans, which included almost 400 dwellings and the raising of the event floor to one level above street level, came in the wake of feedback garnered during a community engagement process that included more than 75 meetings with local residents, community leaders, businesses and other organisations.
However, the development has been one area of criticism for what has become a controversial project. It was due to have risen above the arena on the north side of the venue, with the Sixers having pledged that 79 apartments, or 20% of the 395-unit tower, would be set aside for affordable housing.
The arena itself is due to be located adjacent to the Chinatown neighbourhood of Philadelphia, with local residents having been particularly vocal over the development’s potential impact on the area. Eliminating the $250m tower came at the request of Councilman Mark Squilla, whose district includes the Market East arena site, based on complaints from the community.
“We still have a lot more time to figure out what else will be getting done in the process, but at this point, it was agreed on,” Squilla told the Philadelphia Business Journal regarding the Sixers removing the tower from their plans. A spokesperson for the team confirmed the change.
The removal of the apartment tower reduces the total number of residential units the Sixers plan to develop around the arena from 1,115 to 720, while also dropping the price tag of the privately-funded scheme to $1.3bn.
Squilla continued: “(Chinatown residents) believed that it wasn’t a truly affordable project that the development team was considering. They were looking at the 80% to 100% (area median income) as not something that would have benefited members of the Chinatown community, or even the (Washington Square West) community for that matter. Therefore, they looked at it as sort of a middle finger to their community by saying it was for them.”
In response to yesterday’s (Tuesday’s) news, the Save Chinatown Coalition said: “The billionaires behind the arena don’t care about affordable housing and the tower was always a PR sham. Councilman Squilla gave fuel to their lies and is pushing the Mayor’s disgraceful deal that secures exactly $0 for the housing trust fund and affordable housing.
“They’re letting rich developers off the hook despite housing being a central mission of the city and a stated priority for this Mayor. The city’s getting taken for a ride, and Mayor (Cherelle) Parker and Councilman Squilla are helping push the cart, lowering the bar for every development yet to come.”
Parker last month shared more details around the city’s deal to build a new arena for the Sixers, with 11 ordinances having been submitted for the Council to vote on. These 11 ordinances must be approved by a majority of the Council for the 18,500-seat arena plans to move forward.
Earlier, Parker backed plans for the 76 Place scheme despite objections from locals in Chinatown. The backing is set to secure the Sixers’ future in Philadelphia amid interest in the team from the nearby states of New Jersey and Delaware.
Full details of the arena deal were published, with Parker reiterating that the partnership represents the best sports facility agreement in the history of Philadelphia. It will ensure the Sixers will continue playing in the city until at least 2061.
The Sixers currently play at Wells Fargo Center, which is owned by Comcast Spectacor. The team’s lease at the facility is due to expire in 2031, at which point it is hoped that the new arena will be open for business.
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