If It HAS To Happen: The Pros & Cons of 76 Place In Market East / Chinatown (but it doesn’t have to happen)
First & foremost…
a question for Comcast and the Sixers ownership:
What the fuck, fellas?
You both put the city in this mess.
For quite a while now, Comcast has been RENTING the Arena to the Sixers. The Sixers, who’s lease is coming to an end, have wanted a new stadium and they want to OWN it.
No surprise there, the Sixers are the 10th most valuable team in the league and valued at around $5 billion.
But the fact that this can’t be resolved while on the cusp of a Sports Complex redevelopment project is infuriating.
No one is really asking for this upheaval besides the Sixers and they’re forcing it like children because they aren’t getting their way at the Sports Complex… waving a potential move to Jersey in our faces. But ultimately settling for Market East / Chinatown / Center City area, where they will disrupt everything on game nights.
Comcast, be reasonable.
Sixers, stay in South Philly.
If the Sixers want a new stadium, then Comcast should work to make it happen with them as part of the new complex.
You’re a communications conglomerate, Comcast. You’ve got the dough. Josh Harris owns multiple pro franchises. He’s got the dough.
If this quote from Comcast-Spectacor Chairman & CEO Dan Hilferty is true, then staying in South Philly sounds pretty doable.
“We firmly believe that the best outcome for our fans and the community is the 76ers and Comcast-Spectacor, united and based in South Philadelphia.
To that end, we continue to offer the 76ers a 50/50 partnership of the Wells Fargo Center and have been clear that we’re open to building a new arena together at the right time.
The door will always be open for the 76ers and we sincerely hope together we can create a vision for what’s best for Philadelphia.”
Because NOW is the right time.
Keep the South Philly sports lot intact. The City of Philadelphia can do something else with Market East because it still sucks. Don’t fuck up Chinatown and ruin a historical neighborhood with generations of family history. The way Chinatown representatives are reacting to the news should tell us all we need to know about the situation. They don’t deserve to be removed from their historical home. But we’ll still dive in further.
Side note, can Michael Rubin just buy back the Sixers? Is Fanatics that much of a conflict of interest? Harris can go mess with the Devils and the Commanders and get out of Philly.
The Arena in Market East
As your Mayor, I'm speaking from my City Hall office with a very important announcement. I am proud to share that I have made my decision, and an agreement has been reached to ensure that our Sixers are staying home.
— Mayor Cherelle L. Parker (@PhillyMayor) September 18, 2024
I wholeheartedly believe this is the right deal for the People… pic.twitter.com/Fnj19mrBOV
Let’s be clear…
This is still not officially set in stone and it’s unlikely that , but an agreement between the City of Philadelphia / Mayor Parker’s Administration and the Philadelphia Seventy Sixers has been made. Now City Council will need to approve it. Let’s say that it passes (it will), there will still be lots of protests and town hall meetings to keep this thing from moving forward in Chinatown, but all signs point towards a new arena in Center City opening within the next seven or so years.
A lot can happen in a year, let alone seven, but with the big breaking news of the agreement, let’s talk Sixers in the heart of the city. The traffic, the economy, the vibe, and everything else that goes with it.
PROS
1. Private INvestment
In a day and age when billionaires get stadiums built and paid for them by the general public’s hard-earned money, 76 Place will be privately funded.
Yippity F@#%^!& Doo Dah… as it SHOULD be.
There’s no way this would pass if it came out of the already over-taxed pockets of Philadelphians.
The added bonus here is the Sixer’s claim that they will be further investing in the community (see below) beyond the arena with “goals” specific to the concerns being raised.
Should that turn out to be a bunch of horseshit, this immediately becomes a con.
via 76 Place website
2. Market East Evolution
Market East kinda sucks and I’m not totally sure why. There aren’t any real high quality bars or restaurants in the area for starters, but there’s a gray cloud that hovers over the so-called Fashion District that feels insurmountable at present. For a while it was the Art Gallery, then it was Market East, recently it’s been rebranded as the Fashion District but it remains the ugly bastard of Center City, despite its standout attractions — Reading Terminal, the shopping, Chinatown, Hard Rock Cafe, Rec Philly, the movie theater, and other elements that make it attractive, it continues to flop. Part of that gray cloud hovering could be the cumulus methadone clinic on 8th & Market.
Market East via Reddit
3. The Feel of a Center City Arena
Walking to the arena has a different feel. The stadium glow on a random Wednesday, it’s palpable. Even when they suck again, which they will, I think it’s a bonus. By the time this arena is up and running Embiid will be retired and they likely won’t be a perennial title contender (which is a streeettttchhh to say even now) but even if they stink, I think the glow and allure of a Center City arena will bring a different feel to the city. One can assume the outer walls of 76 Place will do more than promote Sixers games, especially in their infantile stage as they seek to win over the area for fucking up the community.
Not that the Sixers have an attendance problem at this time, but the Center City location will brighten darker times… a la, The Process.
“76 Place” sounds like a West Philly row home where the roommates put on art exhibits to make rent.
4. The Economic Boost
This is 1A to the Market East Evolution. An entirely new sub-economy will be created around Sixers games in Center City. Sure we go hard in any part of the city for an important Sixers game, but having the arena within arms reach will turn things up a notch. Not to mention the pregaming around the area from the moment people get off work until they show up to the game. Considering the Sixers don’t typically pull in a heavy tailgating crowd this is one of the bigger wins, considering there’s little to no trade-off. Not only that, but it will be the bars, restaurants, and overall Market East experience that will benefit. Not just Xfinity Live! and Delco liquor distributors.
Can we talk about how good some late-night, high-quality Chinese food will be after a Sixers win? And how much more of it I’ll buy, eat, and hate myself over after a bad loss? Pre/post-Sixers games could become synonymous with Chinese food in the near future and I’m about it.
This will also be a con in the next section, as economists and city planners have shown examples of arenas disrupting downtown cities all over the country.
via Visit Philly
CONS
@noarenawashsquarewest did a good job of laying it out above. Some of the cons are hypotheticals, some are based on the Sixers living up to their word, some are standard transportation measures.
1. TRAFFIC
I mean… it’s going to suck. Public transportation will be the 100% best option. The dispersion between MFL, BSL, and Trolleys might make it a slight improvement to waiting for the Broad Street Line for a big game. Then again, weekday Sixers games are nothing like Eagles Sundays at the Sports Complex while waiting for the Broad St Line. The arena is half the size and there are not nearly as many tailgaters. The arena is too close to Center City to NOT affect traffic.
Suburbanites will surely be deterred from going to games if the team sucks and public transportation is still subpar.
That being said, driving will be total fuckery. There’s truly no other way to see it at this time. The amount of parking required will consume blocks and it doesn’t look like that will be granted.
This is a problem for anyone who doesn’t live in Philly. Public Transportation gets a bad rep, as it should, but it’s still relatively convenient and accessible to city dwellers.
The arena causing transportation and access issues to the ONLY Level 1 Trauma Center in Center City is worrisome. They need a strong and investment-based solution to this issue. Philadelphia already has all kinds of hospital resource issues.
Even the 76place.com site is having technical difficulties with the concept as you can see below…
But I suppose traffic out of the complex already sucks. I also have faith that SEPTA will increase trolley and regional rail frequency to and from the area on game nights, which would slightly lessen the burden.
via WHYY
2. CHINATOWN / Local RESIDENTS
Writing is thinking, and after putting together this article I’m not so sure 76 Place is a bad thing for Chinatown. Sure some things may shift. Some residents may need to move. That sucks beyond measure. To uproot families that have made Market East their home for years will be terrible. But at the same time, I don’t think there are a whole lot of generational families residing in the area. You’d have to check the stats on that.
It wouldn’t surprise me if 20 years from now, the local residents and Chinatown look at the Sixers arena as a massive plus. For starters, anyone who actually owns their residence is jumping for joy; and as far as Chinatown goes, if anybody can actually improve the area by moving into it, it’s one of the city’s sports franchises. This is after all, a sports town. If the Philadelphia Seventy-Sixers actually commit to the improvement of Chinatown alongside their arena, then I think it will lead to more sales for the area’s restaurants but could also increase rent.
So far, Mayor Parker has stood on her word (as you can see here). If she is claiming to work with local residents and suggests the arena will bolster the Chinatown economy, for now, I’ll believe her.
The Sixers are who I don’t believe.
If it was the Eagles I’d believe Mr. Lurie.
Phillies, I’d believe, Mr. Middleton.
But Josh Harris and the pure dysfunction that is the Philadelphia Seventy Sixers … nope.
3. Not AS Economically Friendly to The City As It’s Supposed To Be
At the city council hearings this week, a University of Pennsylvania professor argued the case that arenas in downtown areas of the city, contrary to popular belief, aren’t actually beneficial to the environment.
4. breaking up the sports complex
via Pattison Place website
According to Google AI — “Chicago, Denver, Detroit, and Philadelphia are the only metropolitan areas in the United States with a team in each of the four major league sports that plays within the city limits. Chicago is the only one of these cities with five teams playing within city limits, including two MLB teams.”
Maybe if this was Atlanta, San Diego, Miami, or another shitty sports town, this would be a serious concern, but I think Philly will be just fine. We’d still support our teams with a fiery passion if they moved to Camden. We’d just be really annoying about it.
Sixers owner Josh Harris
5. Lies
One thing that pisses me off about the announcement around the agreement is the “creation” of all these jobs. Of course a new arena would create new jobs. No fucking shit. But it will also take them away from the South Philly location for 20-40+ nights of the year. You can imagine that the Wells Fargo Center will supplement some of those days with concerts, but many of those created jobs are just being moved from one part of the city to the other. Further, it takes nights away from stadium workers who do both Flyers and Sixers games. Xfinity is always rocking so they’ll be good.
We’ll see how it all shakes out, but for now, I suppose I have faith.
IN CONCLUSION
IF IT HAS TO HAPPEN…
( probably doesn’t, but playing devil’s advocate here )
… if the right intentions are put into action for Chinatown, the hospitals, and for public transportation, this could be very good for the city.
If the wrong intentions are put into action, or the right intentions are only those—intentions—this could be a downgrade from the Sixers at the Sports Complex.
Should all go according to plan, and the Sixers live up to their words, I think it will ultimately benefit the local Chinatown residents (eventually), enhance Market East, and foster improvements to SEPTA.
If the arena doesn’t do the things it’s supposed to, if the Sixers ownership lies, if SEPTA doesn’t step up, and if Market East doesn’t improve, than I’ll sadly eat my words.
Only time will tell.
RIP Dikembe Mutombo
via CBS NEWS
If you want to read up on 76 Place from the organization itself — https://76place.com/
via Philly Mag
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