A cadre of protesters fighting against the approval of a new 76ers arena was arrested at a Philadelphia City Council meeting on Thursday.
After an arduous process that took place over several months, a majority of the City Council voted to approve a $1.3 billion arena plan for Center City, according to NBC 10.
The vote was delayed by about 25 minutes after a number of protesters chanted “Shut it down!” in opposition of the new arena, before getting escorted out of the building by police.
The arena is set to open for the 2031-32 season, after the 76ers lease with the Wells Fargo Center expires.
Last week, protesters mounted a plan to block traffic to “simulate the gridlock traffic that foes of the project say will become routine if plans move forward,” according to Philly Voice.
“This arena is a disaster waiting to happen for Philadelphia commuters, residents, patients, and emergency responders,” the No Arena in Chinatown coalition told the outlet in a statement. “There’s no plan to address the guaranteed gridlock it will create, and City Council cannot rubber-stamp a terrible deal that benefits billionaires with no protections or real investment in Philadelphians.”
The 76ers spent over $4 million in lobbying for the new arena, according to Axios.
In recent months, the 76ers had threatened to move to New Jersey if there was no arena agreement deal in Philadelphia.
“We have worked tirelessly for the past five years to build an arena in Philadelphia and negotiations remain ongoing with city leadership regarding our proposal at Market East,” the 76ers said in a statement in September. “The reality is we are running out of time to reach an agreement that will allow the 76ers to open our new home in time for the 2031-32 NBA season. As a result, we must take all potential options seriously, including this one.”
