Opponents of proposed new 76ers arena to protest in Philadelphia Saturday
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Save Chinatown Coalition is holding a rally and march in Philadelphia on Saturday against the proposed new 76ers arena, 76 Place.
The Sixers, who currently play at Wells Fargo Center in the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, have proposed building an arena in Center City next to Chinatown - in an area bounded by Market, Filbert, 10th and 11th streets.
The team and its development arm, 76 Devcorp, want to build the arena and a mixed-use high-rise building with about 395 units on the site, home to the former Greyhound bus terminal and part of the Fashion District Philadelphia mall.
However, the proposal has been met with pushback from groups like SCC, who say the development could harm the Chinatown neighborhood.
One of the impact studies on the proposal found that 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 economic impact study of the project said the arena would bring jobs to the area, as well as $390 million in new tax revenue and $1.9 billion in new economic activity.
SCC said thousands of people would attend the event and that it's one of many planned this fall.
The rally began around 1 p.m. at City Hall and demonstrators planned to move down Market Street and head up 11th Street, right past the site of the proposed arena.
The Sixers declined to comment on Saturday's demonstration.
