Philadelphia Approves $1.55B Sixers Arena Despite Demonstrators

After several years of proposals, planning, and plenty of local friction, the 76ers’ planned $1.55 billion downtown arena is officially a go. 

The Philadelphia City Council approved Thursday the NBA team’s controversial bid to leave the south Philadelphia sports complex and pursue a new venue development, 76 Place at Market East, near Philadelphia’s Chinatown. The 12–5 vote on multiple bills related to the arena project was the largest and most dramatic step yet toward making the arena a reality following a prior, preliminary council approval, an improved community benefits agreement, and ardent support from Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker. 

The council vote, however, still contained plenty of drama as anti-arena demonstrators locked arms in the chamber and briefly delayed the start of the meeting before they were removed. The arena effort has long been controversial—particularly with the neighboring Chinatown neighborhood fearful of potential gentrification and the forcing out of incumbent ethnic communities. Many other opponents who packed the chamber chanted “Council sellout!”

The team, however, has been strongly pushing to get the needed city approvals by the end of the year to stay on a timetable targeting the new venue to open for the 2031–2032 NBA season—when a current lease for the Wells Fargo Center expires. The council’s approval arrived at its final session of 2024. The building will be privately financed. 

“The leadership [the] council and the mayor have displayed embodies a greater vision for Philadelphia,” David Adelman, 76ers co-owner and lead developer, said in a statement. “They recognize how important this project is for the revitalization of our city.”

While the arena plan is progressing, the 76ers continue to struggle on the court after holding championship aspirations. The team is 8–16, the fourth-worst mark in the Eastern Conference, and 2022–23 MVP Joel Embiid has missed most of the season dealing with a series of injuries.

Big Progress in D.C., Too

Just a little farther south on Interstate 95, the parent organization of another NBA team also made sizable progress Thursday on its new facility dreams. Monumental Sports & Entertainment—the parent organization of the Wizards, the NHL’s Capitals, and the WNBA’s Mystics—and the District of Columbia broke ground on a planned renovation of Capital One Arena worth at least $800 million.

The project, contemplated since a dramatic reversal from a proposed arena project in Virginia, is slated to be complete in time for the 2027–2028 NBA and NHL seasons. MSE also released a new set of building renderings, with the Gensler-produced design showing a sweeping new vision for both the facility’s exterior and interior. 

“The arena will be a marvel of modern design and technology, the intersection of style and comfort and a futuristic and first-class fan experience from street to seat,” said MSE founder and CEO Ted Leonsis.