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In the end, the Wachovia Spectrum suffered the same fate as many of the teams that inhabited the oval-shaped South Philadelphia arena during its raucous 41-year history - aging and tattered, it fell victim to a rebuilding project.
Comcast-Spectacor officials revealed yesterday that the city's oldest major professional-sports venue will be demolished to make way for a proposed hotel, retail and entertainment complex at the Broad Street and Pattison Avenue site.
Ed Snider, who along with Jerry Wolman got the arena built in 1967, said the demolition likely would take place next spring, after the seasons of its pro sports tenants, the Phantoms and Kixx, who are not sure where they will play in the future.
"This has been one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make," Snider said. "The Spectrum is my baby."
Plans for the start of the ambitious project, known as Philly Live!, remain vague. A spokesman for the proposed developer, Cordish Co. of Baltimore, said the company was "still going through the permitting process and cost-estimating."
"Philly Live! is progressing very nicely," said David Cordish, the company's president.
Some have speculated that, given resident opposition to the proposed riverfront locations of two planned Philadelphia casinos, the Spectrum's footprint, in the midst of the sports complex, might be a better fit. That possibility was not addressed yesterday.
Council President Anna C. Verna, who represents the Second District, which includes the Spectrum, has backed the project. She urged the developers, whatever their plans, to keep her constituents in the loop.
Peter Luukko, the president of Comcast-Spectacor, said one of the building's current tenants, the American Hockey League Phantoms, might play some home games at the Wachovia Center. Because there aren't enough open dates to accommodate their entire home schedule - there will be conflicts with the 76ers and Flyers - they might be forced to play occasionally in another city, perhaps Atlantic City or Allentown.
It was hockey, more than any sport, that lent the Spectrum its identity, particularly the Flyers' Broad Street Bullies teams of the mid-1970s. Their reputation for toughness culminated in their controversial Cold War victory over the Soviet Central Red Army team that took place in the arena in January 1976.
"I hate to see it go. I have 10 years of memories there," said Bob "Hound" Kelly, who played with the Flyers from 1970 to 1980 and now works in the club's community-relations department. "But in the long run, it'll be better for the area because of what it'll generate. It'll make Philly a destination."
The building's last hockey hurrah came in 1998 courtesy of the Phantoms, whose fan base included many who supported the old Flyers but couldn't afford seats in the new building. Their playoff run woke up the Spectrum's echos.
"The fact that we were able to play in the Spectrum was pretty intimidating for teams to come in," said Flyers coach John Stevens, who played on those Phantoms. "We were able to piggyback on the tradition that had been established for years."
The Kixx' future remains fuzzier. Its Major Indoor Soccer League recently announced it was folding and attempting to reorganize. If the Kixx survive, they could be looking at an abbreviated schedule, Luukko said.
"The Kixx is a strong franchise, and we will be playing next year in a newly founded league," said team president Jeffrey Rotwitt. "We are in the midst of advanced discussions and will make an announcement in the coming month that will continue professional indoor soccer in Philadelphia."
Comcast-Spectacor, which also manages arenas around the country, was planning farewell events for the building, according to Luukko. He hinted that a concert by Bruce Springsteen, who has performed at the arena on numerous occasions since the early 1970s, might bring down the curtain.
"We are looking at the possibility of bringing a preseason Philadelphia Flyers game and a regular-season 76ers game to the Spectrum this year, along with many other special surprises," he said.
However and whenever its demise occurs, the Spectrum will long be recalled for its decades of events and the roster of local athletic stars who performed there - Wilt Chamberlain, Julius Erving, Bobby Clarke, Bernie Parent, Charles Barkley, Billy Cunningham, Moses Malone, Ron Hextall and Joe Frazier.
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