After two years, the clock is ticking on the Sixers plan to build a Center City arena [Video]

By Jeff Gammage, The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS)

In July 2022 the Sixers announced their intention to construct a world-class showplace on East Market Street, a billion-dollar project they said would not only benefit the team but bring new life and economic vitality to the struggling business corridor.

What followed has been 24 months of broken or delayed deadlines and timelines, sharpening the stakes for all involved: a post-pandemic Philadelphia that is struggling to fill office buildings, retail stores, and public-transit lines; a Chinatown neighborhood that sees the arena as the seed of its destruction; and a Sixers ownership that stands to grow stronger and wealthier through control of its own venue.

Here at the two-year mark, we explain where things stand in what has become the city’s most divisive development battle in years.

When might the city actually consider whether to approve the project?

Fall. That’s the target, once City Council returns from its summer break Sept. 5. But don’t expect immediate …