Where Philly mayoral candidates stand on the Sixers arena

Philadelphia’s next mayor could wield significant influence over whether developers can move forward with a proposal to construct a new 76ers arena in Center City — so naturally, it’s become a campaign issue.

Nearly all of the 11 Democratic candidates running in the May 16 primary election have been asked about whether they’d support the project.

Most have not provided a simple yes or no answer, perhaps to avoid taking a side in a conversation that has become increasingly contentious — or to maintain bargaining power should they assume office.

Top stakeholders in the city’s Chinatown have opposed the project, which is proposed to be constructed along the neighborhood’s southern border, saying it could imperil Chinatown’s future. Last month, a group of Black clergy and the African American Chamber of Commerce endorsed the $1.3 billion project, citing job creation.

Some movement on the proposal could fall to Mayor Jim Kenney, whose term ends in January and who has indicated support for the arena project. Two past mayors have argued the decision should be up to the future administration and City Council.

Here’s what the top mayoral candidates have said recently about the plan:

Less than a week after the 76ers announced their proposal, Brown said he supported the plan in a news release sent by his legislative office.

“This is a great step in the right direction for the long-term goal to underscore Philly as a true gateway city,” Brown said in the July 2022 release. “The potential impact, if executed thoughtfully, will ripple for generations to come.

Brown said the arena would bring “vibrancy and passion to Market East,” enhancing public safety and reinventing “how the community plugs into opportunity.”

At a forum at Central High School on March 29, Brown was the only candidate who unequivocally said yes to support for building the arena.

Grocer Jeff Brown said during a mayoral forum last month that he leans toward supporting the arena proposal, saying it’s a project he “would like to see happen.”

“We’re against everything here in the city, and that is holding us back from making progress,” he said.

During the forum hosted by the Philadelphia Citizen, Brown said he has met with the parties, including the Sixers, stakeholders in Chinatown, and Comcast Spectacor, which owns the Wells Fargo Center, where the team currently plays.

He said residents and business owners in Chinatown have voiced “legitimate concerns,” particularly about parking and traffic — problems he said he thinks can be solved.

“If we can address the realistic challenges of this project, then this project should move forward,” he said. “You can’t ignore Chinatown’s issues. They have to be addressed. Not the emotional ones, because we all get emotional. I’m talking about the real, real issues, like parking, congestion, those kinds of things.”

Domb, a developer himself, has indicated soft support for the proposal without giving a hard yes. Back in July 2022 when it was first proposed and Domb was still in Council, he said:

“This couldn’t have come at a better time. It will help with public safety.”

Domb told The Inquirer’s Editorial Board last month, “Economic activity is needed in the city and this could be an economic activity that would be really good for the city. But of course, you have the issues of Chinatown that have to get resolved.”

He said questions about the arena’s impact on Jefferson Station needed to be discussed but stressed that on the whole, he wants to see big construction projects come to the city. Domb has said a win-win solution could be green-lighting the stadium and also capping the Vine Street Expressway to bridge the north and south sides of Chinatown.

“We can cover that land and for Chinatown, if we start there, it’s a huge benefit for them.”

Gym has said since last summer that she is “extremely skeptical” of the proposal. In an interview last month with The Inquirer’s Editorial Board, Gym elaborated, saying, “We are taking up a lot of time on a private project that … has to rely on almost a decade of work and years of financing that has not been secured.”

“There are important things that the mayor can and has to do right now to both revitalize East Market Street [and] make sure that neighborhoods and residential bases like Chinatown continue to grow,” she said, “because our city’s future really does rely on a healthy residential Philadelphia.”

Gym said she opposes public subsidies for such a project.

“If that arena even opens up, it will not happen until 2032,” she said, “and I will not wait for an East Market Street revitalization to happen until then.”

Gym has been a strong advocate for the preservation and growth of Chinatown and in 2000 opposed a proposal to put a baseball stadium in the neighborhood. Last summer, after news of the arena plan broke, Gym said she wants to see development “that is not only in harmony with Chinatown, but benefits Chinatown and leads to a thriving downtown.”

Green has said he’s undecided on the arena question. “I have not made the ultimate decision on this issue,” he said at the Center City Business Association’s mayoral forum last month. He cited “unanswered questions.”

At a forum at Central High he also listed his stance as “undecided” until the 76ers put out more information on the project.

Parker initially indicated support but has since said she’s undecided. When news of the planned arena first broke, then-City Councilmember Parker said in a release, “Our city has been presented with a plan that would create thousands of family-sustaining, union jobs that will lift Black and Brown Philadelphians out of poverty and place them on the path to self-sufficiency.”

“Reflexive opposition,” she said in July 2022, “Is a luxury that our city simply cannot afford and one that I will not indulge.”

But this month, at the Center City Business Association’s mayoral forum, Parker struck a more undecided tone.

“I have not publicly affirmed whether I’m for or against. I do know that residents in any neighborhood have a right to have a say in what land use takes place in their community. With that being said, when we’re talking about the poorest big city in the nation, before we... express reflexive opposition, how about we actually know the details about what is being proposed?”

Quiñones Sánchez has been skeptical of the 76ers plan and defensive of its impact on Chinatown, which she said plays a major role in Philly’s tourism economy.

“I’ve told my friends in Chinatown, you … are a community that should be respected, you’re an economic engine to who we are as a city and its diversity and world heritage status,” she told The Inquirer’s Editorial Board. “This negotiation and this process should value that.”

As for the arena, she said she didn’t know enough about what exactly the Sixers plan to do.

“What I do know is what history has taught us that stadiums downtown don’t always end up being the economic engines,” that they are marketed as, she said.

At Central High School last week, she said the proposal was “too complicated” to boil down to a “for” or “against” position.

In an interview last month with The Inquirer’s Editorial Board, Rhynhart said she is undecided, saying, “Any big project needs to be seriously considered … but at the same time, the neighbors need to be comfortable, and they’re not.”

She said “many unanswered questions” remain about the financing of the project and how it could be accomplished without city subsidies.

“I’m still unclear from a financial perspective how that would work,” she said. “And then the neighborhood, the Chinatown neighborhood, the residents, they matter. And I wouldn’t go forward with that project if they were uncomfortable.”

Staff writer Sean Collins Walsh contributed to this article.

An earlier version of this story misstated the name of the organization that endorsed the 76ers arena proposal last month with a group of Black clergy. The African American Chamber of Commerce endorsed the project.