Philadelphia 76ers' $1.3 billion project calls for downtown arena by 2031-32

The Philadelphia 76ers are creating a new development company that will spearhead a $1.3 billion project to build a privately funded arena in the city's downtown, the team announced Thursday morning.

While the 76ers don't plan to be in the arena until the 2031-32 season — the season after the lease expires at their current home, Wells Fargo Center — and they won't break ground on the new site for several years, the team said it will partner with Macerich, the operator of Fashion District Philadelphia, to bring the arena into being.

«We know the best thing, we believe, for the city, for our fans and for our organization, is to be downtown in a state-of-the-art facility that's going to be privately funded by our ownership team,» Sixers president Tad Brown told ESPN. «And that's going to create a brand-new environment, a whole new environment, that's going to also really give a great economic boost in a development boost to a part of town that really needs it.

»We think it's a win-win for the city and for our organization.… It's going to be a lot of fun. It's a great day."

Sixers co-owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer bought the franchise from Comcast in 2011 and have had designs on building their own arena in Philadelphia for several years. That included an attempted plan to build one at Penn's Landing, on the East side of the city along the Delaware River. The plan ultimately fell through two years ago when the city chose to go with a different development plan.

At that point, Harris and Blitzer decided to team with David Adelman — a lifelong 76ers fan, a season-ticket holder for more than 20 years and a real estate developer — to form a partnership to deliver a new arena.

Adelman will be the chairman of a new company,