Arena deal good for South Philly, Market East
Many thanks to reporter Mark Zimmaro for his detailed report on the proposed new sports arena coming to the South Philly Stadium Complex (“New arena coming for Sixers, Flyers,” Jan. 22). He includes all the vital details behind this historic plan.
As Zimmaro explains, this new proposal takes the place of the former plan to build a 76ers arena on Market East. Three groups, including city officials, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment and Comcast Spectator, announced the new deal on Jan. 13. They expect the work to be done by 2031 when the arena will become home to the Philadelphia 76ers and Philadelphia Flyers.
To save some of the improvement proposals made earlier for Market Street in Center City, both teams have also agreed to invest in a revitalization plan. It is only fair since so many planners had lots of ideas for change to that area of the city. At the same time, this new design will save a lot of neighborhood businesses from serious damage resulting from the original construction plan.
As Zimmaro also reports, this new construction will become part of an already planned $2.5 billion revitalization project. So many changes and improvements will impact the whole South Philly sports complex. We can only imagine what it will do for the entire South Philly neighborhood.
What pleases me especially is that this new idea makes winners of most of those involved. There will be investments in both areas where the arena construction has been proposed. This was indeed a smart move and will improve large parts of our city.
As always I am grateful to Mark Zimmaro and the South Philly Review for providing a detailed and comprehensible report. It’s much more understandable than the rants and raves in other media. Well done.
Gloria C. Endres
