The Camden Sixers

Next up: New Jersey’s bet to revitalize the Camden Delaware River waterfront.

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority and State of New Jersey pitched $800 million in economic incentives to the 76ers to redevelop the site of the former Riverfront State Prison, which was demolished in 2010.

The state agency and the Sixers declined to be interviewed.

Plans show a glimmering multipurpose indoor arena on the Camden waterfront with public outdoor space, a parking garage, residential space and mixed-used commercial development towers.

“The rendering shows the potential transformation of Camden’s waterfront at the former state prison site north of the Ben Franklin Bridge [and across the river from Philadelphia],” said Tim Sullivan, CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, in a statement. “The proposed project is more than just a state-of-the-art arena. It’s an open space, new housing, restaurants, and office space.”

The ultimate goal, Sullivan said, is that the project will “help bring new good-paying jobs to the city.”

In the state’s economic pitch for the sports arena, Sullivan touted, “when New Jersey commits to the success of a project, we deliver,” as its promise.

The state’s Aspire Program could offer two tax credit awards totaling $800 million, which would offset the cost of the arena and the parking garage, Sullivan said.

That Aspire program “would be subject to a standard Net Benefits Test ensuring that New Jersey taxpayers are more than paid back for their investment via incremental state, county and local tax revenues,” according to the pitch letter to the 76ers.

New Jersey is also offering to ask for $500 million in special purpose bonds from the state legislature to finance the project up front. The money would be repaid over the years via “fees and surcharges on tickets, concessions and parking” remitted by the team owners.

The Garden State is already gearing up for a big sports event at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, with the FIFA soccer World Cup final in 2026.

“The World Cup will be held here which is going to bring the world to focus on the state of New Jersey,” said Tom Bracken, president and CEO of the New Jersey State Chamber of Commerce. “Getting the 76ers to move to New Jersey [would be] very significant to boost our state’s image and perception. And that means a lot when you’re talking about trying to make the state a good place to live and work and retain businesses.”

Bracken said Camden could really benefit from a Sixers relocation.

“Camden has come a long way over the last bunch of years, going from a town that was really distressed and significantly impacted negatively and it has had a revival. There’s still work to do,” he said. “Something like this would just accelerate that momentum. The stronger you can make the urban areas of New Jersey, the better off it is for the entire state.”

Camden’s mayor Victor Carstarphen called the state’s proposal “a generational investment” in the city.

“A lot of work is being done here, infrastructure, parks, improvement, our police department,” he said. “We are home to corporate entities like Campbell Soup … to the executive headquarters of Subaru. I think we’re prime for a project like the 76ers arena. We’ve been building and building and building for a situation like this.”

There’s a $300 million plan to overhaul the Walter Rand Transportation Center downtown. Coincidentally, there’s a brand new PATCO train station near Independence Mall in Center City Philadelphia.

The team’s owners have roots in New Jersey. In 2013, 76ers owners Harris Blitzer Sports Entertainment purchased the New Jersey Devils, who play in Newark’s Prudential Center. In 2016, the company opened a 76ers practice complex in Camden.

“The governor’s full steam ahead with leading this charge. The Sixers of course have been tremendous partners with our city, just very much engaged,” Carstarphen said. “This is by no means a competitive thing with the city of Philadelphia. I have a great amount of respect for Mayor Parker and sympathize with the potential impact on Chinatown. We just have this space shovel ready.”

But, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy didn’t project confidence in landing the 76ers in Camden during the “Ask the Governor” show Sept. 12, despite the hefty incentive package floated by his team.

​​”I want to say up front, it’s not clear that we’re going to win this. The Philadelphia 76ers, they’ve been there a long time. [But] this will transform Camden,” Murphy said.

If the Sixers do choose Camden, Murphy promised there would be a community benefits agreement for that neighborhood, too.

“We deliberately went out to the community [to a] bunch of the leaders there who we’ve worked with over the years and made sure that they knew that we had their back,” Murphy said. “If we get this, this is a game changer. Generational game changer.”

In response, the Sixers said they are weighing their options as their lease is slated to expire in the coming years.

“We appreciate Governor Murphy and the NJEDA for presenting a thoughtful and compelling vision for the revitalization and economic growth of Camden, a city we are already committed to through our Training Complex,” the 76ers said in a statement. “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 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.”

The Delaware Sixers

Details about the state of Delaware’s pitch for the next Sixers stadium are scant, save for a social media post in mid-August by outgoing Gov. John Carney.

Gov. Carney touted that the Sixers have a “large fan base” in the state with the “best community around” in the city of Wilmington, in addition to the state’s lack of sales tax.

Gov. Carney’s office did not respond to a request for comment. Choose Delaware, the state’s economic development arm, deferred comments to the governor’s office, citing that the agency is not involved in such a pitch.

The Comcast Sixers

In late August, representatives of Comcast Spectacor approached the Washington Square West Civic Association board about a new NBA basketball arena for redevelopment on Market Street, east of City Hall.

The board agreed to a closed-door meeting, according to the Washington Square West Civic Association’s president Tami Sortman.

As of Sept. 6, the civic association’s board has endorsed neither the Comcast vision nor the Sixers’ arena proposal.

Comcast Spectacor pitched its presentation to the association board with several graphic renderings. Its vision includes a biomedical hub inside the less popular section of the Fashion District.

“Our hope is that the 76ers will remain in South Philadelphia as a partner in the Wells Fargo Center,” said Dan Hilferty, chairman and CEO of Comcast Spectacor, in a statement.

As it stands, the Fashion District is owned and operated by Macerich, a Santa Monica, California-based real estate business. Macerich told WHYY News that the company is “very excited” to be working with the Sixers on its new arena.