Philadelphia is open for business.
That was the message of City Council on Thursday when it voted to move forward with the Philadelphia 76ers’ proposed $1.3 billion arena project on Market East, in addition to the team financing a $60 million Community Benefits Agreement. Separately, Mayor Cherelle Parker has vowed to invest $20 million in public funds for affordable housing in Chinatown. To state the obvious, the effects of this project will be felt throughout the city.
Despite the relentlessly negative media coverage and focused attention on the downsides of the arena proposal, common sense ultimately prevailed. A clear majority of the Councilmembers decided that the benefits of this historic investment in our city outweighed the smaller list of drawbacks.
Mayor Parker, Council President Kenyatta Johnson, and 1st District Councilmember Mark Squilla, whose district will host the arena, deserve congratulations on a deeply transparent and deliberative process, and for showing the courage to put the city’s interests first despite a contentious public debate. Over two and a half years, the City commissioned two independent studies and hosted more than a dozen public meetings and hearings, including, after the mayor had already put forth the legislation, town hall meetings that met people across the city where they live. Every point of view was heard, and every foreseeable issue examined.
In the end, most members were willing to support the project, and in the process they sent an important signal about the city’s business climate under the new class of elected officials.
Unlike many other arena proposals across the country, the Sixers’ project is entirely privately-financed, making approval a responsible choice from the standpoint of protecting taxpayers.
A downtown arena does come with increased traffic congestion, along with other issues that come with being an entertainment destination. However, I believe most of these are solvable problems.
To that end, City Council secured an additional $10 million from the team — the Sixers had originally proposed a $50 million CBA — which will pay for more benefits for existing residents and business owners citywide, beyond what the Mayor negotiated. All said, this CBA will provide resources to address some of the increased public service needs related to the arena, along with other benefits for nearby neighborhoods including public safety and cleaning, support for legacy businesses during construction, and support for new businesses.
The biggest community benefit of all is the opportunity to bring more economic vitality and activity to the struggling Market East corridor, while providing close to 9,000 good-paying jobs to local builders and contractors, not to mention the hundreds of workers who will eventually earn paychecks in and around the new arena. One big development project can’t single-handedly shift Market East onto a more prosperous path, as we’ve seen from our city’s past attempts, but there are good reasons to believe this specific project can succeed where others have fallen short.
Not only does the approval of the Sixers arena fend off an immediate negative hit on the horizon, with the impending closure of the Fashion District Mall,, it also sends a signal of confidence in the future of Market East from the City.
Market East suffers from high commercial vacancy rates and can be something of a ghost town after dark. But a new facility that brings up to 18,000 people downtown, mostly in the evenings, will have positive spillover effects for the whole corridor, and hopefully start filling in more of those empty storefronts with active uses.
The arena’s walkable and transit-accessible location means that it will be easier for arena attendees to access nearby restaurants and small businesses before and after events without getting back in the car — something that’s not currently possible at the Sports Complex in South Philly. By creating more independent opportunities to cash in on the crowds, a Center City arena is more likely to have positive economic spillovers for area residents and businesses, and contribute to a more prosperous trajectory for our downtown.
Mayor Parker and City Council’s commitment to making the Sixers arena work for Market East and Chinatown is commendable, and sends an important message about their commitment to economic growth and opportunity for all in our city. In truth, it will take a lot more than one big project to bring about the vitality we all want for Center City and its neighborhoods, but this was an important moment of can-do spirit from our leaders in the face of intense pressure, and that is exactly the approach we will need to deliver on Mayor Parker’s vision of pathways to opportunity for all Philadelphians.
Mo Rushdy is president of the Building Industry Association and Managing Partner of Riverwards Group.
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