City councilmember blasts Sixers for scrapped arena plans: 'They owe the city an apology'

Philadelphia City Councilwoman Jamie Gauthier said she believes the Sixers "owe the city an apology" after they abruptly ditched plans to build a new arena in Center City following years of heated debate. 

"This was such a contentious project and debate, it pitted neighbors against neighbors, it pitted the community against labor unions, all for nothing at the end of the day," Gauthier said on Good Day Philadelphia. 

Gauthier, who represents Philadelphia's 3rd District, said there were several reasons that prevented her from joining the majority of City Council that voted to approve the arena plans at the end of last year. She cited "gaps in information", an unsatisfactory traffic plan, and – most importantly – the impact on Chinatown. 

"The biggest deal for me was that there weren't enough protections for the Chinatown community," Gauthier said. "The City of Philadelphia paid for an impact report that clearly stated that Chinatown would be displaced by the arena – housing costs would go up, costs for small businesses would go up."

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Philadelphia officials expected to speak after Center City arena plan abandoned: sources

A sudden change of plans will keep the Sixers in South Philadelphia, according to sources who say city officials will gather Monday to speak out on the team's unexpected decision to abandon their Center City arena proposal.

The Sixers will instead remain alongside the Eagles, Phillies and Flyers after striking a deal with Comcast Spectacor to build a new arena in the South Philadelphia sports complex, leaving some to wonder if the Sixers used the city as leverage to get the deal they always wanted.

"I think the Sixers have to answer for that themselves, but I also think that they owe the city an apology" Gauthier said. "It is profoundly disrespectful to everyone in the city – to the citizens, to city council, to the mayor, to everyone who negotiated and worked on this project – we spent 40+ hours in hearings about this."

The Sixers' abandoning the "76 Place" arena plans comes days after Macy's announced it will close its iconic storefront in the historic Wanamaker building, dealing another blow to the city's effort to revitalize Center City. 

"The Fashion District is still in trouble, Market East is still in trouble, but this is an opportunity for the city to do what it should have done in the first place: work with the city planning commission and the community to create a vision for Market East that is driven by our residents, not by billionaire developers," Gauthier said.

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