76ers arena is a go | Morning Newsletter

Happy Friday, Philly. Bundle up: Snow is possible in the Philly region today. We should also expect a frigid solstice this weekend and a wintry mix on Christmas.

City Council on Thursday approved the 76ers’ proposal to build a new $1.3 billion arena project in Center City. The vote came after more than two years of contentious debate, months of negotiations, and one final protest that briefly shut down proceedings.

And South Jersey’s red foxes are dying from mange. This man is on a mission to save them.

Here’s what to know to close your week strong.

— Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

P.S. Friday means new games! Test your Eagles players know-how with a new Bird Box, then take our latest news quiz, including questions on Philly’s Chicken Man, a Jalen Hurts look-alike, and more.

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More than two years after the Sixers first pitched the idea of building a basketball arena atop Jefferson Station, City Council members voted 12-5 to allow the 76 Place at Market East project to move forward.

The timeline: Construction is tentatively planned for 2026, pending approvals for a transit plan, a demolition and business interruption strategy, and other steps. The Sixers hope to open the arena for the 2031-32 NBA season.

Community reactions: Police officers and sheriff’s deputies handcuffed and removed shouting protesters from the Council floor before the final vote. Community members representing Chinatown, which borders the arena site, have long sounded the alarm about the potential for displacement and disruption due to the project. After the vote, opponents issued a firm statement: “It’s not over.”

Executive support: “All of Philadelphia will benefit from this project,” Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said at a City Hall news conference, adding that the arena would be a “historic game-changing economic development project.” She also promised to protect Chinatown.

Reporters Sean Collins Walsh and Anna Orso have the story from City Hall.

In other legislative news: Council members also approved legislation to create an independent oversight board to monitor and investigate the city’s jail system amid a yearslong crisis of disorder.

This one’s for the animal lovers.

🐾 Through his nonprofit An Itch in Time, South Jerseyan Luke Ogden captures red foxes sick with mange so they can get treated by a licensed wildlife rehab and released back to the wild, sparing them a painful death. Volunteers have rescued over 90 foxes in the past two years.

🐾 The highly contagious skin disease sarcoptic mite mange is the biggest killer of red foxes and coyotes in New Jersey, according to the state.

🐾 Reporter Rita Giordano has the details on the regional efforts to save these clever critters.

Also in Jersey: The Federal Aviation Administration announced new drone flight restrictions in the state amid the recent surge of sightings. A bill would require public schools to create their own policies about restricting cell phones during class. And a man’s obsession with a prehistoric fish resulted in a potential state record.

Welcome back to Curious Philly Friday. We’ll feature both new and timeless stories from our forum for readers to ask about the city’s quirks.

This week, we’re resurfacing a story from 2019 about the Enchanted Colonial Village display that delighted midcentury visitors to the Lit Bros. department store at Seventh and Market Streets. When the store closed in 1977, the festive animatronics traveled between several homes.

The display was eventually reconstructed at the American Treasure Tour Museum in Oaks — and it’s still there now among other Christmas decorations. Here’s the full explanation.

Have your own burning question about Philadelphia, its local oddities, or how the region works? Submit it here and you might find the answer featured in this space.

Bomb Bomb BBQ Grill & Italian Restaurant in South Philly is closing. How did it get its colorful name?

A) A celebrity superfan kept calling it “the bomb”

B) It became infamous for serving extra-spicy sauce

C) An Inquirer food critic once said they expected it to “bomb,” or fail

D) The location was bombed twice in the 1930s

Think you know? Check your answer.

🐦 Learning: About the human risk of the bird flu outbreak.

🥟 Eating: The fêted pierogi found at Little Walter’s in Kensington.

📚 Gifting: These nonfiction books about Philly and by Philly authors.

⚕️ Asking: RFK Jr. to address these six questions during his Senate confirmation hearings.

Hint: Jersey-born rocker

JOJO VON NIB

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Suzanne McKinney, who solved Thursday’s anagram: Habitat for Humanity. The affordable housing nonprofit’s local arm is one of the favorites of The Inquirer’s opinion team. (Plus: Read about the latest charity featured in our Philly Gives campaign, the Domestic Violence Center of Chester County.)

👀 Does Santa know something about the drones?

And with that thought, wishing you a smooth hover into the penultimate weekend of 2024. I’ll be back with you Monday.

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