Community organizers in Philadelphias Chinatown woke up to joyous news this morning after the Sixers announced yesterday the franchise has abandoned its plans for a new stadium in Center Citys Market East corridor. The master plan for the scrapped $1.3 billion mixed-use stadium project, dubbed 76 Place, was by Gensler. Instead of moving to Chinatown, the team will remain in the South Philadelphia stadium district. Wells Fargo Center will be demolished and a new purpose-built home for the Sixers and Flyers will be built in its place. The stadium could also be home to a future WNBA team pending a successful bid for one, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said at a press conference this morning.Parker, City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, 76ers Managing Partner Josh Harris, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, and other 76 DevCo. officials such as David Adelman addressed the decision at a press conference this morning. We are still committed to revitalizing the Market East corridor, Adelman said, however what that revitalization will look like minus the stadium is to be determined. This is a curve ball none of us saw coming. Weve been talking around the clock the last 72 hours, Parker said. The Philadelphia Mayor added that a new master plan for the Market East corridor will be fast tracked, and significantly informed by community input. Parker also pointed to The Battery in Atlanta, where the Braves play, as an example of what shed like to see in South Philadelphia for the new stadium.Wanda Sykes, the comedian and actor, was also at the press conference. Sykes is helping lead the effort to bring a WNBA franchise to Philadelphia, and will help broker negotiations with the South Philadelphia stadium team.On Saturday, September 7, almost 4,000 people showed up outside Philadelphia City Hall to protest a new basketball arena by Gensler in Philadelphias Chinatown. (Courtesy Save Chinatown Coalition)The stadium proposal in Chinatown was protested heavily. More than 39,000 people signed a petition against the arena, and a survey showed that 69 percent of Philadelphians opposed the project. The development team behind 76 Place countered this petition by starting their own petition, which garnered over 30,000 names who supported the arena. Groups like No Arena in the Heart of Our City Coalition partnered with anti-gentrification organizations across Philadelphia to stop 76 Place from happening. Were relieved to hear that the nightmare of a Center City Sixers arena will not haunt our city any more, the No Arena Coalition said in a statement.To every Philadelphian who called, marched, testified, and warned City Hall that this was a raw deal: This win belongs to you, and the lesson for politicians is to trust the people, No Arena added. To the five Councilmembers who stood on the right side of this fight: We will not forget.(Courtesy Save Chinatown Coalition)The No Arena Coalition continued: We were clear from day one that it was dangerous to play in the viper pit with billionaires, but City Hall toyed with the snakes, and they got bit. 12 of 17 Councilmembers turned their backs on decades of research on the false promise of stadium developments, common sense, their voters, and the 70% of Philadelphians who opposed this arena.The activist group also expressed discontent with how the stadium planning process unfolded. This sham of a process laid bare what Philadelphians have long known, the group elaborated.Anti-stadium activists rented an airplane to send the development team behind 76 Place a message. (Courtesy Save Chinatown Coalition)Decisions about the future of neighborhoods are not being made by the people of those communities nor with their best interest in mind, but by a select few who represent their own benefits and bank accounts and a City Hall thats bought and paid for, No Arena said. As planning for the future of Center City continues, lessons must be learned, and the city needs a new class of politicians who respond to peoples needs instead of corporate greed.The new stadium in South Philadelphia is slated to open in 2031.Gensler had no comment for this story.