Wrecking Ball Begins Whacking Spectrum On Nov. 23rd

SOUTH PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- We finally know the date the wrecking ball will begin taking down the Spectrum.  And it's less than two weeks away.

It's a question Comcast-Spectacor spokesman Ike Richman has been getting for more than two years: when will the longtime home of the Flyers and Sixers, and site of hundreds of rock concerts and circus performances, be torn down?  Now, he has an answer.

"Demolition of the Spectrum has already begun on the inside," he says.  "However, what people have been waiting for and waiting for is the arrival of the wrecking ball, which will take several swings at the exterior of the Spectrum on Tuesday, November 23rd, beginning at 12 noon."

It will be a public event, with dollar hot dogs and sodas.

Philadelphia 76ers legend Julius Erving and the Flyers' Bob Clarke and Bernie Parent will be on hand, watching Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider signal the start of demolition.

The Spectrum officially closed when Pearl Jam completed its fourth show in five nights on October 31, 2009, and is set to make way for an entertainment development on the site.

Reported by Mike DeNardo, KYW Newsradio 1060.