Dan Hilferty Expands On New Vision for Philadelphia Sports Complex
The announcement of the expansion at Xfinity Live! drew excitement for upcoming changes at the Philadelphia sports complex. However, CEO and Chairman of Comcast Spectacor Dan Hilferty has a greater vision.
He spoke on The John Kincade Show about his long-term vision for South Philadelphia. Hilferty even boldly proclaimed his desire for a partnership between the Flyers and the 76ers at a new arena.
“Let’s take a step back and think of South Philadelphia. You have this incredible sports district. You have the emergence of an amazing business park and more, frankly, in the Navy Yard, and then you have the old Sunoco plant, now called the Bellwether district. Think of the opportunity for amazing growth in South Philadelphia.” -Dan Hilferty
Xfinity Live! and G/H Lots
The expanded partnership between Comcast Spectacor and the Cordish Companies will yield an estimated $12 million in upgrades. The immediate plan at Xfinity Live! will include an outdoor plaza for game day activities, festivals, and other community events.
The long-term plan includes the construction of a 5,000+ seat concert venue, a 250-300 room hotel, new retail locations and restaurants, and a larger outdoor plaza. The upgrades will stretch into the H and G lots along Pattison Avenue west from 11th Street toward Broad Street near the former location of the Philadelphia Spectrum. There are additional possibilities in the works.
“I have a dream. We have a dream. Wouldn’t it be great if the Philadelphia sports museum could be part of that?… As part of our development rights here, we have the ability to do that. That is our vision to get moving on that.” -Dan Hilferty
Comcast Spectacor hopes the upgrades at Xfinity Live! will be complete in 2025. The further expansion up Pattison Ave. will likely stretch late into 2027 or into the early months of 2028.
“Our goal was simply to put a vision together (that) we thought would excite the fan base, would provide an opportunity to serve the public in a more enhanced way, have people come here not just for a game but ultimately to enjoy dining, to stay in a hotel, and really make this a more festive area.” -Dan Hilferty
A New Flyers and Sixers Arena?
Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE) has laid potential plans to build a new 76ers arena in the Fashion District. The long-term project has caused controversy and intense debates within various communities within the city of Philadelphia.
Hilferty proposed a possible solution to keep the Sixers with the three other major professional sports franchises in Philadelphia.
“We would welcome the Sixers being our 50-50 partner, not only in the Wells Fargo Center, but ultimately at some point in the future a new arena and participate to the level they would want to in development.”
— Colin Newby (@ToNewbyginnings) February 28, 2024
-Comcast Spectacor CEO Dan Hilferty on @975TheFanatic
The likeliest location of a new arena hosting the Flyers, Sixers, concerts, and other events is east of the current location of the Wells Fargo Center toward I-95, the Navy Yard, and the Delaware River. Hilferty also mentioned that recent renovations to the Wells Fargo Center have expanded the building’s lifespan and created flexibility for the long-term vision.
“Could you imagine the great Sixers organization, the great Flyers organization, and Comcast Spectacor teaming up based on cities all over the country, all over the world, to bring the best acts, the best concerts right here to South Philadelphia where we can accommodate them with all this great space?” -Hilferty
The Future of the Philadelphia Sports Complex
The long-term vision for the Philadelphia Sports Complex certainly won’t materialize without its fair share of challenges. The success of HBSE pursuing the construction of the new 76ers Place is potentially the biggest harbinger to determine the direction of future projects.
Construction poses its own obstacles for parking, traffic, and pedestrian concerns surrounding the complex in the immediate future.
“In order for what we call the aspirational phase to take place, the whole parking, traffic pattern plan dates back to 1971. For any of this to be successful, we need to start with a couple of things. Number one, working with PennDot, working with the Department of Transportation, working with the city looking at ways we can get more direct accessibility to I-95 or route 76.” -Hilferty
He also mentioned the desire to install pedestrian bridges to extend over major intersections surrounding the complex. A high-scale vision to reshape the Philadelphia Sports Complex has unimaginable ripple effects throughout every corner of the city. There’s plenty of details left to be determined.
“Public safety is paramount to anything we would do moving forward. In collaboration with the Phillies, the Eagles, the community organizations, we hope to engage Mayor Parker, engage city council, and engage the police department to continue to ensure in a more enhanced way the safety of our folks coming to games, concerts, and other events.” -Hilferty
Then, of course, there’s money. Who will pay for such a major expansion? Is it coming out of the tax dollars?
“The development is privately funded. It’s something that we, certainly Comcast Spectacor, will participate in. When you think of the different projects, each one of them will have a partner from the…private sector who will be our partner, who will be investors, and will work together to build this thing.” -Hilferty
Dan Hilferty’s reach in the city of Philadelphia is unparalleled following a long tenure as the President and CEO of Independence Blue Cross, leadership and recognition within the local Catholic/Jesuit community, and admirable initiative as a philanthropist.
He has developed strong relationships with local labor unions that will unquestionably play a major part in the proposed construction projects. He’ll now attempt to lead Comcast Spectacor toward an incredible goal of remaking the Philadelphia Sports Complex.