Jason Kelce didn’t hesitate to give his opinion on the Philadelphia 76ers’ proposed arena in Center City, a day after Mayor Cherelle Parker supported the controversial project.
On SportsRadio WIP on thursday, Kelce, the Legend of the Philadelphia Eagles And now TV analyst at ESPNsaid he abhors the idea of ​​the arena on Market Street and would prefer an arena at the South Philadelphia Sports Complex.
“Once it gets built in Center City and all those people are displaced, people will probably end up loving it,” Kelce said. “In 10 years, this will all be different and we’ll probably be really happy that this beautiful complex has been developed and it’s a thriving part of town. But right now, I really hate it.”
Kelce said he has “deep scars” from growing up in Cleveland and watching former Browns owner Art Modell pressure the city into moving the team to Baltimore in 1996.
Kelce alleged that the Sixers were “pressure” on the city of Philadelphia to acquire the arena on Market Street and lashed out at the team’s owners for owning rival franchises.
Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Sixers, also owns the New Jersey Devils and Washington Commanders.
“It has nothing to do with the city. They’re forcing the city,” Kelce said. “What do you do? Risk losing the Sixers? And the only thing the fans can do is say, ‘Fine, go away.’ We’re not going to do that. We’re not going to have a basketball team. And that just sucks. That just sucks. … The ownership group is not Philadelphian. You have a New Jersey Devils team, a Philadelphia team, and now a Washington team. And now they’re forcing the city to do what this man wants, and that sucks. But in the end, we’re all going to be very happy with it.”
The proposed $1.55 billion arena76 Place, which would be located at Market and Filbert Streets and 10th and 11th Streets and would replace part of Philadelphia’s Fashion District, has not yet been completed.
After Parker approved the project, the proposal now needs support from the city council to get final approval. Parker’s announcement came after New Jersey offered the Sixers the opportunity to build the proposed arena on the Camden waterfront, just north of the Ben Franklin Bridge. The deal included more than $1 billion in tax credits and bonds.
At the end of August the city four long-awaited independent studies on the impact of the proposed arena. The long-awaited reports focused on the community impact, traffic impact, economic impact and design of 76 Place.
The reports indicated that the Sixers’ proposed arena could indirectly displace businesses and residents in Chinatown, which would be located north of 76th Place.
The Philadelphia Building Construction Trades Council, IBEW Local Union 98 and the NAACP Philadelphia have all supported the arena. But the Save Chinatown Coalition has strongly opposed the arena.
