76ers acknowledge offer from New Jersey on new arena: "we must take all potential options seriously"
CAMDEN, N.J. (CBS) -- Hundreds of millions of dollars in tax credits and millions more in government-issued bonds could be available to the Philadelphia 76ers ownership if they decide to build their proposed new arena and residential project, 76 Place, in Camden, New Jersey, officials said this week.
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority sent a letter on Monday to Harris Blitzer Sports Entertainment, the company that owns the Sixers, affirming that the agency, Gov. Phil Murphy and other Garden State leaders are "committed to bringing the 76ers to Camden."
The letter says the project may be able to get two separate tax credits worth up to $400 million each through the Aspire program. One tax credit would go toward the arena and another would be for the mixed-use development around the arena, the NJEDA said. On top of that, there could be a potential $500 million in bonds available that would be paid back via fees and surcharges on tickets, concessions and parking.
The letter also proposes "for low or no cost" transferring parcels of land where the arena and associated residential and commercial real estate could be placed, at the site of the former Riverfront State Prison, just north of the Ben Franklin Bridge and Rutgers University–Camden.
Here's how the Sixers responded:
We appreciate Governor Murphy and the NJEDA for presenting a thoughtful and compelling vision for the revitalization and economic growth of Camden, a city we are already committed to through our Training Complex. We have worked tirelessly for the past five years to build an arena in Philadelphia and negotiations remain ongoing with city leadership regarding our proposal at Market East. The reality is we are running out of time to reach an agreement that will allow the 76ers to open our new home in time for the 2031-32 NBA season. As a result, we must take all potential options seriously, including this one.
The letter comes as the Sixers await a go-ahead from Philadelphia and City Councilmember Mark Squilla on whether the proposed 76 Place arena can be built in Center City next to Chinatown, in an area bounded by Market, Filbert, 10th and 11th streets in his district. Squilla said a decision would likely come "in the fall," with legislation on the arena to be shared with key stakeholders 30 days before it's introduced.
CBS News Philadelphia asked Squilla, whose district includes Chinatown and the proposed site for the arena, if the New Jersey proposal has an influence on his decision.
"We have to do this together as a city, right? We cannot put one development there that's going to be detrimental 30 years from now saying, well, they would have left if we didn't do this, right?," Squilla, who also added that he'd like to try and keep the arena in Philadelphia, said.
One of a group of impact studies on the proposal found half of the small businesses in Chinatown "are not positioned to benefit from the Arena and may experience negative impacts."
Another study found that traffic associated with the arena would only be manageable if 40% of attendees drove to the games and 40% took public transportation.
The Center City arena proposal has also been met with pushback from neighborhood groups, including the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation, who say the construction of an arena could hurt the neighborhood.
Some members of the Save Chinatown Coalition believe the Sixers are only pretending to consider Camden as an option to pressure Philadelphia leaders.
"It's a threat," Mohan Seshadri with the Save Chinatown Coalition said. "You know, it's there to scare people into thinking that, oh, if we don't give these developers everything they want in terms of their downtown arena right next to Chinatown that they'll pick up sticks."
Philadelphia's elected officials will ultimately decide whether to proceed with the Market East project.
76 Devcorp, the development arm behind the Sixers' arena proposal, says it would bring jobs to the area and that some of the completed residential units would be designated affordable housing.
The push and pull over the Philadelphia proposals has prompted other governments like New Jersey to get the Sixers' attention. Even the state of Delaware has tried wooing the Sixers as they look beyond South Philadelphia's former Wells Fargo Center.
In July, Murphy told CBS News Philadelphia's Brandon Goldner a conversation started after seeing opposition to the Center City proposal.
"So, we've been observing the lack of progress in Philadelphia, and we said you know what, we're going to raise this with them," Murphy said.
The Sixers at the time said they "remain focused on bringing a state-of-the-art arena to Philadelphia as we have been for the last four years."
