PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia City Council will begin unraveling the legislation it passed to enable a 76ers stadium in Center City. Council got a package of bills at Thursday’s session repealing the arena bills.
Arena proponents often cited the weaknesses of East Market Street — the failed shopping district, empty stores and vacant lots that would have been transformed by the development. The bills repealing the lofty arena plans are a final goodbye to all that, but District Councilmember Mark Squilla said it also clears the slate to start over.
“All these challenges bring opportunities,” he said. “You heard in the mayor’s budget proposal, there’s going to be a task force and a planning process for East Market Street. There’s still the possibility of a joint venture between the 76ers and Comcast.”
Any revival would take years — as will the conversion of Macy’s, the street’s westernmost anchor, which ends its 114-year run as a department store for good next week.
“Sometimes things have to get worse before they get better, and I think we’re at a point now where we see this as an incentive opportunity,” said Squilla.
In December 2024, City Council gave the 76ers organization the green light to move forward with its project, a controversial vote that was condemned by Chinatown neighborhood groups. But by January, the 76ers abandoned their arena plans, which were already two years in the making.
Council members and the mayor said they were blindsided when the Sixers announced they struck a deal with Comcast Spectacor to demolish the Wells Fargo Center and build a new arena in South Philly.
However, Squilla argued that the original legislation had not been a waste.
“It was a process that we learned a lot from,” he said. “We had a lot of community engagement. You saw democracy in action. You saw a CBA getting worked on and the ability to put both citywide and community supports in place, and I think it will guide the new process that will probably start at the end of the summer for a new arena in South Philadelphia.”
The repeal bills will have to go through committee hearings and a formal vote, as the arena bills did, but these bills are expected to sail through quickly.