76ers Won't Build $1.3B Center City Arena, Will Stay in South Philadelphia

The Philadelphia 76ers have reportedly scrapped a controversial plan to build a new arena in Center City, according to reports from the Associated Press, Hayden Mitman and Lauren Mayk of NBC Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Instead, the organization is expected to eventually build a new arena for the Sixers and Philadelphia Flyers in the South Philadelphia complex where the Philadelphia Eagles and Philadelphia Phillies also have stadiums and where the Wells Fargo Center currently stands.

"The commissioner of the NBA was involved in it, and the commitment to Market Street redevelopment is still there," Ryan Boyer, the head of the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We think that overall it will be good for the city. It's just a pivot."

His optimism was not universally shared.

"I feel completely bamboozled," Philadelphia city council member at-large, Jim Harrity, told NBC Philadelphia. "I'm not going to forget this... I feel they not only bamboozled me but bamboozled the citizens of Philadelphia and I'm not going to forget that."

The plan to build a Center City arena had divided opinion in the region, with detractors pointing to potential harm to the Chinatown neighborhood due to gentrification and the fear of traffic gridlock on game days in the already congested Center City region. The stadium district in South Philadelphia already has other stadiums present, available parking, restaurants, a subway stop on the Broad Street Line and accessible exits off of major highways, making it a fairly ideal location for an arena.

Supporters of the proposed site, including Mayor Cherelle Parker, were hoping it would help revitalize the Market East retail corridor. The Philadelphia city council gave an initial approval for the downtown arena plan in December.

It's a moot point now, as the Sixers are abandoning the Center City project just one month later.