The 76ers arena saga has dominated Philadelphia City Council’s legislative agenda since October, when Councilmember Mark Squilla introduced the legislation. Its final vote was at the last session of Council on December 19th.
The fall session was originally set to end on December 12th, but the additional date was added to ensure passage of the arena legislation by the end of 2024. If the final meeting had not been added, the legislation would not have been able to have a second reading required for passage of any bill and, therefore, would have had to wait for final passage until January 23rd, the first meeting of the spring session.
The raucous meeting began with protestors locking arms and refusing to leave the council floor.
After about half an hour, the protestors were forcibly removed by Sheriff’s deputies and the Philadelphia Police Department. Despite jeering from remaining anti-arena activists, each piece of legislation was passed by a vote of 12-5, with Councilmembers Jamie Gauthier, Rue Landau, Jeffrey Young, Kendra Brooks, and Nicholas O’Rourke dissenting.
Before the arena bills were read for a second time prior to the final vote, Councilmember Mark Squilla said the process by which the legislation had come to fruition had been difficult for members of Council.
“The time we all spent meeting with stakeholders and discussing with one another have led to companion legislation and amendments to the CBA,” Squilla said. “This is not the end of the process; I will continue to meet with all the stakeholders, especially the Chinatown and Wash West communities.”
Before the meeting ended, some councilmembers expressed their frustration with the arena legislation and how the process played out.
“My base across Philadelphia has demanded and pushed me to fight against these corporate interests on behalf of our neighborhoods, including Chinatown,” Councilmember Kendra Brooks said. “The arena vote today demonstrates how far we have to go as a council to truly listen to and reflect the voices of our community instead of the wealthy few.”
Councilmember Curtis Jones, an arena supporter, seemed surprised by the reaction of his dissenting colleagues.
“They would have you believe the city took an ‘L’ (loss) today,” Jones said. “We didn’t lose. There’s a kid sitting in a barbershop who has a shot at getting on a construction site today, who may work at the stadium, learn some things, start their own business, and become the next person of means in this town.”
However, Councilmember Jay Young echoed the sentiment of his anti-arena colleagues and those who opposed the project from the various communities around the impending site.
” I want folks to know that it is not an arena that has caused issues,” Young said. “I really think if this was planned differently, a little more thoughtfully, we could come to a conclusion that would benefit all Philadelphians. I think when we allow corporations to basically create the deal, that’s not in the best interest of Philadelphians.”
After the council session concluded, Mayor Cherelle Parker held a press conference in the Mayor’s Reception Room, praising the Council’s action and declaring the project a “historic, game-changing economic development project.”
” All of Philadelphia will benefit from (the arena project),” Parker said.
Parker also addressed concerns about Chinatown’s future, promising that the community would not only survive but thrive.
” Chinatown, we will make sure that is our responsibility,” Parker said. “We will ensure that you are not harmed by this arena. Not on my watch as mayor.”
The No Arena in the Heart of Our City Coalition, one of the prominent groups opposing the arena, decried not only the final vote on the legislation but also the arrests of those protesting Council prior to the council meeting.
“Today’s vote was an utter disgrace, as Council bowed to billionaires, defied the will of the people, and voted through a toxic deal that robs schoolchildren, endangers patients, threatens Chinatown, jeopardizes SEPTA, and gives developers a free ride on $400 million in property taxes. These Councilmembers didn’t roll out the red carpet, they became the red carpet that billionaire developers walked all over.
“After two years, dozens of hours of hearings, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in City time and money wasted, not one of these Councilmembers can tell us how they’ll deal with the housing crisis or what the billion-dollar plan is for our schools. For months, this arena halted work on every other issue facing our city and we are no closer to solutions. Meanwhile, kids attend crumbling schools, families struggle to pay rent, and people die on our streets and in our jails.
“We have been here before: Both the stadium and the casino foisted upon Chinatown had the support of Council and the Mayor, and neither were built. The developers have money, but we have what they could never buy: Soul, heart, courage, and perseverance. We have more in our playbook to kill this deal, and the fight continues in 2025.”
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