Phillies say they’re joining Comcast Spectacor in a $2.5 billion transformation of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex

The Phillies say they’re partnering with Flyers owner Comcast Spectacor in the company’s plan to turn some of the boundless parking lots of the South Philadelphia stadium district into a dynamic, year-round sports-and-entertainment complex.

The baseball team announced Thursday that it would join in seeking development rights and other approvals from the government for what is projected to be a 10-year, $2.5 billion metamorphosis.

The project, if completed, would put restaurants, shops, hotels, apartments, and a 5,500-seat performance stage on acres of asphalt that fill with cars on event days but otherwise stand empty.

“When I think about what makes Philadelphia unique, it’s our incredible fan base and tight-knit community,” Phillies managing partner and CEO John Middleton said in a statement. “This project focuses on expanding that community and bringing in more residents, workers and visitors.”

The new spaces, he said, would give Philadelphians even “more opportunities to celebrate the passion and pride we have for our city and our teams.”

The Phillies announcement adds additional civic heft and financial strength to a proposal that drew skepticism for its timing when it was announced last month. Comcast Spectacor, which also owns the Wells Fargo Center, opposes the tenant Sixers’ intention to depart the center and move to their own Center City arena in 2031.

That fed speculation that the South Philadelphia plan was a ploy to weaken the Sixers position and stop them from leaving. Comcast Spectacor executives said that wasn’t so, that the proposal for a big transformation had been in the works for some time.

Comcast Spectacor is the local sports and entertainment arm of communications giant Comcast, its newly renovated Wells Fargo Center the decades-long home of the Flyers and Sixers.

Comcast Spectacor chairman and CEO Daniel Hilferty has said he would welcome the Sixers return and wants them to join in the project that now includes the Phillies.

“John Middleton and the Phillies share a big and bold dream for what the future could look like for Philadelphia,” Hilferty said in a statement on Thursday. “John’s input and support of the vision has been so valuable from the very early stages, and our partnership with the Phillies will strengthen the ongoing growth and revitalization of the South Philadelphia community.”

Asked if the project would require public tax dollars, the company said that it was still working on an estimated cost, and that there were many ways to finance the development.

Wells Fargo Center president Phil Laws said the physical structures on the property would be privately funded, not solely by Comcast Spectacor and the Phillies but by development partners who have expertise in creating places like hotels and apartments. The projected financing around parts of the project that involve public facilities, like the nearby SEPTA station and I-95, was still being worked out, he said.

The goal is to turn the Sports Complex, where the city’s three major-league venues stand within blocks of one another, into much more of a destination and neighborhood. If built, the development would be designed to eventually connect to nearby FDR Park and the campus of the Navy Yard, which recently broke ground on its first new housing in 30 years.

In describing Comcast Spectacor’s aspirations to The Inquirer, Hilferty cited popular and profitable sports-and-entertainment developments in other cities, such as Inglewood, Calif., where Hollywood Park is adjacent to SoFi Stadium, home of the NFL Rams and Chargers. In St. Louis, the baseball Cardinals opened Ballpark Village at Busch Stadium.

Comcast Spectacor executives envision two phases, the first rising on property for which they hold development rights. That space runs from Broad Street to 11th Street, and from Pattison Avenue south to the Wells Fargo Center.

That area would hold the performance venue, a hotel, retail shops and restaurants, an outdoor plaza, and new parking.

Phase one is expected to commence this year with a $12 million renovation of the Xfinity Live! sports bar and conclude in 2028.

The second phase is more aspirational and would require a larger agreement with multiple parties, including city and state agencies and surrounding neighborhoods. It would expand the development north across Pattison Avenue and west on parking lots controlled by the Phillies, an area that reaches from Citizens Bank Park to Broad Street.

If undertaken, that phase would include the residences, a second hotel, more retail, green space, parking facilities, and potentially offices. It also will include a “Phillies Plaza,” adjacent to the ballpark, that will provide gathering spaces for fans.

Phase One would be privately funded by Comcast Spectacor and a number of investment partners.

The plans include room for a pro-sports arena that would eventually replace the Wells Fargo Center, which recently completed a $400 million renovation. The future arena would go on what is now a parking lot between the Wells Fargo Center and Lincoln Financial Field.

Hilferty said he wants the Sixers to become a 50-50 partner in that new venue, but team co-owner David Adelman says the team will not play in South Philadelphia come 2031. The team has said that it will accept no city tax dollars to construct its downtown arena, but that it’s open to state and federal funding.

The Sixers said Thursday that they had no comment on the Phillies decision to join with Comcast Spectacor, except that it would not impact their intention to build on Market Street East.

The Eagles said they were not involved in the Sports Complex project at this time but were continuing to talk with the other organizations there. Efforts to reach the Packer Park Civic Association — that neighborhood abuts FDR Park, not far from Citizens Bank Park — were unsuccessful Thursday.

The Sports Complex parking lots are often barren, criticized as a no-man’s-land populated by one isolated sports bar and a casino. But the potential disappearance of large amounts of parking is no small thing.

While game-day traffic can be thick and slow, the district’s plentiful parking is a big reason that so many people drive there. Across all events, about 85% of guests drive to the 21,000-seat Wells Fargo Center, according to Comcast Spectacor.

The Sports Complex contains one of the largest parking areas in North America — about 22,000 spaces, more than the 13,500 at Philadelphia International Airport and the 12,750 at the biggest shopping mall in the country, the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn.

Company executives have said they view the vast parking area as an asset, not as wasted space.

The room allows more than one major event to be held simultaneously, and provides drop-off spots and space for tailgating. The lots also comfortably handle the gargantuan tours of popular music performers, who may arrive with 30 tractor-trailer-sized trucks and buses carrying stages, equipment, and people.

“We’re not getting rid of parking,” the Wells Fargo Center’s Laws said. “We’re replacing surface parking with structured parking.”

When the project is completed, he said, the Sports Complex will have about 2,000 more parking spaces than it does now.