(Bloomberg) -- New Jersey is trying to entice the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team to move across the river to a proposed mixed-use complex in Camden after the team’s plans to build a new downtown arena have stalled.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and his economic development agency on Monday sent a letter detailing the offer to Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, the owner of the National Basketball Association franchise. The firm was created by David Blitzer, a senior executive at Blackstone Inc., and Josh Harris, a co-founder of Apollo Global Management Inc.
According to the letter, the state would make land available on a former prison site adjacent to the Delaware River and near the Ben Franklin Bridge, which connects Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The project would be self-financed by HBSE but would include government incentives. In addition to the arena, the site would include commercial, residential and retail development, according to the state proposal.
“We are committed to bringing the 76ers to Camden,” wrote Tim Sullivan, chief executive officer of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.
A spokesperson for the 76ers said the team will seriously consider the option. The letter was reported earlier by the news site ROI-NJ.
The 76ers ownership group proposed building a privately financed sports and entertainment district with a new basketball arena near the Chinatown section of Center City more than two years ago. However, the development, dubbed 76 Place, has run into opposition from locals and Comcast Corp., owner of the 76ers’ current arena, the Wells Fargo Center, and the arena’s co-tenants, the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team.
Most recently, a community impact analysis of the proposal requested by the city of Philadelphia found that small businesses in Chinatown may experience adverse effects from the project.
Because Chinatown is a unique and interconnected system, significant impacts to small businesses or transportation can affect the whole community and “may trigger a cascade of indirect impacts throughout the system, which could potentially result in the loss of Chinatown’s core identity and regional significance,” according to the report.
Protest March
Comcast wants the 76ers to stay in the Wells Fargo Center, and as one of the city’s biggest employers, the media giant holds sizable political influence.
Community advocates marched through the streets of Philadelphia last year to protest the project. Residents expressed skepticism related to the team’s promises of jobs and revitalization.
The team had aimed to complete the new $1.3 billion project by 2031, when its lease at the aging Wells Fargo Center expires.
New Jersey saw the delay as an opportunity. The state said it’s prepared to work with its legislature to enable the structuring of up to $500 million of special-purpose bonds supported by fees generated from the arena. Camden is already home to the team’s headquarters and practice facility.
“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,” a spokesperson for the team said in an email. “As a result, we must take all potential options seriously, including this one.”
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