The first floor, it's fully accessible, there's a wheelchair lift there, the showers are accessible
for wheelchairs, everything is wide enough for handicapped access.
and then on the upper floors again slightly larger one bedroom units as well
when you look to the renderings we have all brick facades
another additional bicycle parking out front there is bicycle parking inside the building
as well as required by the code again the facade similar height to the properties near us
trash storage area in the rear a fenced in rear yard with a zoning compliant fence
excuse me and the property basically conforms to the neighboring properties in terms of lot coverage
and other dimensional requirements it meets the height requirement for the area
again we're seeking this adjustment to the zoning to allow us to develop the greater number of
units that is permitted because the neighbor said that there is a lack of one bedroom studio units
in the area and there is a lack of accessible units in the area so it fills a need it's what
was requested at two separate rco meetings and several other meetings and we also have
um again the next door the immediate neighbor at 713 west cumberland street sent a letter saying
they're in full support of the project and we also have an additional petition from several other
nearby neighbors as well so um again uh this excuse me this will be a modern building with
modern conveniences, washer, dishwasher, washer, dryer, air conditioning. It will have sprinklers,
hardwired systems, et cetera, making it a safer building than many of the older buildings in
the community. It will allow for the development of this property, reducing the likelihood of
things like illegal dumping. There's a large school across the street from it. The variances
will not, the variances, if granted, would not adversely impact light and air to neighboring
properties uh will not overburden public facilities this is a multi-family zoning class
the variances will be the minimum required to develop the property
with that mr chairman i would like to call him robert sherman sure
mr sherman could you please i'm sorry i go name and spell for the court reporter please
robert sherman r-o-b-e-r-t s-h-e-r-m-a-n right you swear for him to tell the truth the whole
truth nothing but the truth i do proceed counsel thank you mr chairman robert did you did you hear
my statements? Are they true and correct? They are. And in developing this project, did you
seek and request and receive input from the nearby residents? Yes, we work closely with
the community. And finally, do you adopt my statements as your testimony? I do. I have
no further questions for Mr. Sherman, Mr. Chairman. Questions from the board? No, Mr.
no mr chairman no mr chairman questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands here planning commission
thank you chair sarah bond philadelphia city planning commission the proposed variance is
not necessary to enable viable economic use of this property therefore the city planning
commission recommends that the zoning board deny the variance thank you hillary was there
was there any uh provisos with this did i hear an amended there was an amended refusal mr chairman
we need does that have to be in there hillary or no um yes i did not realize there was an amended
refusal it was dated september 20th ms emerson okay so then if if this is being granted it does
It needs to be per the amended refusal dated September 20th, 2022.
So MI 2022-003-750-715 West Cumberland Street, I vote yes proviso per amended refusal 9-20-22.
I vote yes proviso for amended refusal 9-20-22.
Carol Tineri, my vote is yes with proviso. Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes with proviso.
James Snell, my vote is yes with proviso. Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is yes with proviso.
Thank you. Thank you.
So, number four, MI-2022-004-238-8445 Frankfurt Avenue. Melanie Lacey is the attorney. Letter of support from the Upper Holmesburg Civic Association with a proviso recommended.
Ms. Lacey is coming back in as a panelist.
okay good afternoon mr chairman members of the board
hi counsel could you state your name and spell for the court reporter
lacey that's m-e-l-a-n-i-e last name l-a-c-e-y right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth
the whole truth and nothing but the truth yes i do could you identify your client and their
relationship to the property? I represent the owner. That's North City Development Co.
And I'm accompanied by Paul So, who's a member of that owner entity, as well as Troy Seggers,
representative for the tenant for Zennius Dialysis Center. Okay. Our vice chair has a few questions.
Hi, good afternoon. Do you agree to wait the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its
accuracy? I do. Have you emailed the exhibit packet with proof of the ownership, tax compliance,
a copy of the refusal or referral photos under plans of the property five days in advance of
this hearing and have you met with the rco and do you have a letter yes to all of the above
okay great you may proceed and begin to share your screen thank you
can you see my screen
yes wonderful all right can you make it a little bit larger
okay so we met with upper holmesburg civic association on september 15th they submitted
a letter of support dated september 23rd which i'm displaying here as you can see 28 attendees
voted in favor of the application whereas no one voted in opposition and this is an application of
appeal to allow a dialysis center in the Holmesburg Shopping Center located at 8445 Frankfurt Avenue.
The property is on CA2, and we're here because it falls within the Northeast Overlay District.
That district requires ZBA approval for all medical office uses, and as you can see,
there are no other reasons for this notice of refusal.
So the shopping center is bound by Frankfurt Avenue at the front, Walker Street at the rear,
Blackiston Street, and Ash Brummer Street. And Fresenius will be the new tenant of the vacant
commercial space that was previously leased by Rite Aid, which is located between Advanced Auto
Parts and Dollar General. And here are some photos of the property and surrounding area.
I think my computer is freezing. Hold on. Okay.
And for context, Fresenius is an established international company with 36 clinics in the
greater Philadelphia area and five clinics here in the city. They're seeking to open this new
location to serve the Northeast because the closest location in West Kensington is close
to maximum capacity. So this is particularly important because dialysis is a life-preserving
treatment, and patients who don't have access to these centers can't get discharged to outpatient
care and must rely on hospital treatment. Therefore, Presenius will be an asset to the
community and filling a gap in local treatment options. That more or less summarizes the
presentation. We'd be happy to address any questions that you may have, but I conclude by
saying that it meets the standards for variance relief because the dialysis center will occupy
an existing commercial space. There won't be any increase in congestion in public streets. There
is adequate parking to accommodate the service. The proposed use and hours of operations are
consistent with the surrounding tenants along Frankfurt Avenue. And lastly, the applicant
specialization in only every once in a while you freeze up oh really you just you freeze up and
you stop so are you hearing me we hear you now we didn't hear you but yeah we hear you now
We hear you now.
We didn't hear you in a couple minutes, but we hear you now.
did you hear my conclusion
Did you hear my conclusion?
How about, would you want to have the owner or your client adopt your testimony?
So can the panel please, can you please promote Paul So, that's spelled S-E-O, to the panel?
Mr. So, please unmute yourself.
You're free to speak.
hi can everyone hear me yes could you state your name please and spell for the court reporter
of course my name is paul so uh last name s as in sam e o right do you swear or affirm to tell
the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth yes proceed counsel uh hi paul did you
hear my testimony it sounds like some of it might have um froze out but uh we we have we had most of
But, Melody, we saw when you froze a few times, but we're good.
All right.
Did you see the testimony that I provided to the board this afternoon?
I did.
And do you affirm that my presentation was accurate?
And do you adopt the testimony as your own?
Great.
Thank you.
Melody, before I put this out to questions, I noticed the Upper Holmesburg Civic Association
at Proviso, use limited to an outpatient dialysis facility.
Is that okay?
uh that is that is okay okay questions from the board no mr mr chairman no mr chairman
questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands chair planning commission
thank you chair sarah bond philadelphia city planning commission
The proposed use will not cause detrimental impacts to the neighborhood beyond what normally might be expected.
Therefore, the Philadelphia City Planning Commission recommends that the Zoning Board grant the variance.
Thank you.
MI 2022-004-238-8445 Frankfurt Avenue, I vote yes, proviso.
Use limited to an outpatient dialysis facility.
Carol Tenere, my vote is yes with proviso.
Thomas Holloman my vote is yes with proviso James Snell my vote is yes with proviso
thank you counsel thank you
number five MI 2022 003 978 2253 Ingersoll Street
murder fellow is the attorney when she gets on i'm going to talk about i'm going to read
into the record seven cases and we'll hear them all at once
okay and mr chair these will be the ones yes it is it is yes okay
and just to clarify for the record mr chair um mr shaheed is recusing himself
from the set of cases that Ms. Verlinger is presenting.
Good afternoon.
If the administrator could also promote Darwin Beauvais as a panelist,
he's going to be joining me today.
Mr. Beauvais.
Mr. Beauvais is coming back in as a panelist.
he could be promoted to panelists okay thank you
all right could you state your name and spell for the court reporter please
Sure. Meredith Verlager, F-E-R-L-E-G-E-R, Dilworth-Paxson, 1500 Market Street, Suite 3500E.
Right. Do you swear a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
I sure do.
Mr. Beauvais?
Well, we can move along without him, and if he's able to get in, we'll go back.
I'm going to read them all into the record, and I understand you're going to have an opening statement, right?
That's correct.
This is case versus case number five is MI 2022-00-3978-2253 Inglesall Street.
Number six, MI 2022-00.
MI-2022-004-682-2038 Ridge Avenue.
Number seven, MI-2022-004-845-2000 Ridge Avenue.
Number nine on my list, MI-2022-004-228-2016 Ridge Avenue.
number 10 on my list mi2022 004649 2042 to 44 ridge avenue number 11 on my list mi2022
004874 2414 nassau street nassau street and number 15 on my list
MI-2022-003-749, no, I'm sorry, wrong one, here it is, number 15, MI-2022-004-920-1409-North 21st Street, that's all the cases.
My understanding, your client is the Philadelphia Housing Authority?
our client is penrose um and okay okay all right i'll explain the relationship all right so so
first our vice chair has a few questions for you hey meredith do you agree to leave the reading of
the refusals and stipulate to their accuracies on all of the cases yes with the exception of
1409 north 21st street there are two errors on that refusal which i will address in our presentation
Okay, and that is number 15, whatever number it is.
Okay, have you emailed the exhibit packet with proof of ownership, tax compliance, a copy of the refusal or referral, photos under plans of the property, five days in advance of this hearing, and have you met with the RCO, and do you have a letter?
Yes, for all of the cases.
Okay, great. You may proceed and begin with sharing your screen.
Thank you. And Mr. Chairman, while I share my screen, I see that Darwin is now in, if you'd like to swear him in while I share my screen.
I most certainly would like to do that.
Mr. Beauvais, could you state your name and spell for the court reporter?
Darwin Beauvais. That's Darwin, D-A-R-W-I-N.
Beauvais is B as in boy, E-A-U, V as in victory, A-I-S, as in stam.
I'm at 1500 Market Street, and I'm with the law firm of Dilworth Paxson, representing Penrose, who is the applicant in this matter.
Do you swear a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
That's all I do, so that is in the firm.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, members of the board.
Again, Meredith Verliger and Darwin Beauvais with Dilworth Paxson.
We're here today representing Penrose.
Now, the property owner is the Philadelphia Housing Authority, who entered into a master redevelopment agreement with Hunt Development Group, LLC.
In 2017, Penrose became a member of the Hunt family of companies after they successfully closed on a strategic alliance, whereby Hunt acquired a minority interest in Penrose.
Now, as a part of that transaction, Hunt secured a long-term interest in Penrose's future development activities, while Penrose assumed responsibility and oversight for a substantial portfolio of the projects in Hunt's pipeline.
So that explains the connection between Penrose and the property owner, PHA.
Our architect on all of these cases is Wallace Roberts and Todd, and the civil team is Mid-Atlantic Engineering Partners.
do have representatives from both the architecture firm and the engineering firm if there's any
detail questions that we do not address in our presentation today.
I'll start like you suggested with an introductory statement and then we can move along to each
individual property. So as the board knows this concerns seven addresses on your list today.
I'll first give an overall introduction and then from there at the board's discretion I might
suggest that the board hear from the council president's office. I understand that Kareem
Grooms is waiting in the virtual audience and that his statement would cover the project
overall. So when I conclude my introductory statement if the board would like it might make
So when I conclude my introductory statement, if the board would like, it might make sense to let him jump on and give the council president's take on the projects.
make sense.
The proposal before the board today is being pursued by Penrose and represents phase three of the sweeping redevelopment of the Sharswood-Blumberg neighborhood.
The board has heard similar variance requests for several prior phases of this exciting revitalization proposal.
This project has received expressions of support from the City Planning Commission,
as well as received a letter of non-opposition from the Coordinating RCO Brewery Town Sharswood
Community Civic Association. I submitted to the board individual and lengthy exhibit packets
for each of the proposed applications. Given the length of the exhibit packets, I've also prepared
a separate presentation that's up on the screen that will be slightly easier to walk you through.
However, please note that the full exhibit packets include all of the required documentation