A coalition of Chinatown community members is forming against the 76ers proposed stadium in Center City at 10th and Market:

Asian Americans United consists of Chinatown community members, business owners, community leaders, artists, and young people who oppose the 76ers’ plan to build a new facility at 10th and Market. A new arena, the group claims, will diminish Chinatown’s vitality and shrink its residential footprint in the city.

I don’t think this will surprise anyone if you recall the controversy surrounding the proposed site of Citizens Bank Park back in the early 2000s. Developers pushed for a stadium at 12th and Vine, but it was sunk by a combination of community groups, citizen organizations, and opposition from the Chinatown community.

It isn’t just professional sports franchise looking to relocate downtown that have felt the heat in the city. There was also a group at Temple back in 2016 that called themselves the  “Stadium Stompers” when the university wanted to build a football stadium on North Broad.

Every major construction project will have some type of opposition, and it’s unlikely this will be the last group we see opposing the 76ers’ plans.

I saw a conspiracy theory floating around on Twitter that I wouldn’t put past Josh Harris and David Blitzer to conjure up:

You don’t become a billionaire by not always being a few steps ahead. The only wrench in this theory is the stadium is privately funded. That’s kind of the trump card here that’s always going to be Harris and Blitzer’s main selling point to the opposition.

Russ and I shared our thoughts on the stadium on Crossing Broadcast yesterday: