Philadelphia City Council hearings begin on proposed Sixers arena with questions about SEPTA at forefront
Tuesday marked another big step in making a Philadelphia 76ers arena in Center City a reality.
Philadelphia City Council held its first of six public hearings over the Sixers' proposal to build 76 Place at Market East. Councilmembers peppered Mayor Cherelle Parker's administration members with questions about the $1.3 billion deal.
After about five hours of testimony, it's fair to say councilmembers have many questions. Two questions that came up repeatedly on Tuesday were the role of public transportation in making the arena a success and who would pay for the additional SEPTA services.
Inside City Hall, members of Parker's team addressed all 17 city councilmembers. The first of six hearings allowed the council to deliberate and raise concerns. If a majority of city council votes to approve the project, it's game on.
The Parker administration outlined the legislation being considered to make the arena a reality, including construction and zoning ordinances, property rights and community impact.
Some councilmembers asked for more details about how the arena will benefit minority businesses in the long term and raised concerns over whether there was enough in the budget to protect Chinatown.
At least two councilmembers rejected the proposal altogether.
"People across Philadelphia love the South Philadelphia sports arena complex," Councilmember Kendra Brooks said. "But most importantly, this is not the priority of this council party should be focused on right now in these coming weeks during the time when we have hearings going on about proposed school closings, we have a housing crisis that we're failing to address and an impending Trump administration that has Philadelphia at its target."
Some voiced concerns over convincing fans to take public transportation to avoid traffic issues in the city and how SEPTA will pay for additional services amid a budget deficit. SEPTA said that on Tuesday, fares would increase by nearly 30% beginning in 2025.
"We know that SEPTA has been struggling financially for a while, so asking them to absorb any cost, whether construction or operational, to subsidize the Sixers arena hurts the entire city," Councilmember Jamie Gauthier said during the hearings. "If SEPTA's financial stability is not explicitly addressed in the legislation, we should not vote for the arena."
In a later statement, Gauthier added, "Given SEPTA's impending 'death spiral,' the 76ers should cover any additional costs the transit authority incurs due to the construction and operation of the arena."
City leaders said the Sixers are on the hook for the cost of building a new subway station, but it's not yet clear who will pay for the cost of service and operations once the arena is operational.
City council could vote on the proposed arena in December.
According to the legislation's terms, the new arena would open in August 2031.
City council will get the chance to ask Sixers representatives on Wednesday about their concerns during Day 2 of the hearings.
If 76 Places happens, the new Sixers arena will replace part of the Fashion District Philadelphia.
While city council will not allow the public to testify until next week, people near City Hall already expressed their feelings.
Outside City Hall, emotions were heavy as dozens expressed their concerns over the proposed new Sixers arena.
"We need them to hear the needs that we have as Philadelphians," Seth Anderson-Oberman, executive director of Reclaim Philadelphia, said.
Anderson-Oberman argues there is no need for the arena in Center City when the city already has other needs like affordable housing.
"I'm born and raised in this city. I love this city, and I don't want to see it sold out to a bunch of billionaire developers who don't live here," Anderson-Oberman said. "Who doesn't care about what happens here."
The new arena could greatly boost Philadelphia's Market East section.
"For us, it's much more about, you know, revitalizing the city of Philadelphia," T.J. Lepera, political director for IBEW Local 98, said, "and revitalizing Market Street all the way down to the river."
Lepera with IBEW Local 98, representing more than 5,000 labor workers, stands with Parker's endorsement of the arena.
"We hope city council can get on board with building a $2 billion arena, revitalizing Market Street, creating opportunities for the people of Philadelphia," Lepera said.
But at what cost?
Vivian Chang with the No Arena Coalition believes the arena will be an expensive monument that will ultimately hurt the Chinatown community by exacerbating traffic congestion and gentrification.
"It's the community destruction that will happen. It's the threat to lives," Chang said. "Jefferson ER is right there. It's the only level 1 trauma center left."
The first public testimony is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 19.
There are several opportunities for public testimony in the coming weeks:
- Nov. 19: 1:30-4 p.m.
- Nov. 20: 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
- Nov. 21: 6-9 p.m.
- Nov. 26: 1:30-4 p.m.
- Dec. 2: 6-9 p.m.