COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING COMMITTEE ON PARKS, RECREATION and CULTURAL AFFAIRS - - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tuesday, October 19, 2004 10:10 a.m. - - - - BILL 040613 - An Ordinance authorizing the Commissioner of Public Property, on behalf of the City of Philadelphia, to acquire by purchase, condemnation, or other means, an easement in the vicinity of Poquessing Park... PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN, Chair COUNCIL PRESIDENT ANNA C. VERNA COUNCILMAN FRANK DICICCO COUNCILMAN W. WILSON GOODE, JR. COUNCILMAN DARRELL CLARKE - - - - V A R A L L O Incorporated Litigation Support Services Eleven Penn Center 1835 Market Street, Suite 600 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 215.561.2220 215.567.2670 I N D E X BILL 040613 KAREN LLOYD BORSKI, Fairmount Park Commission...................... KENNETH SIPOS, Public Property...... 3 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613
Good morning. This is public hearing of the Committee on Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs to hear public testimony on Bill No. 040613. Joining us this morning are my colleagues, Councilman W. Wilson Goode, Councilman Frank DiCicco, and Madam President Anna Verna. We will now ask the Clerk to read the title of Bill No. 040613.
Bill No. 040613, an ordinance authorizing the Commissioner of Public Property, on behalf of the City of Philadelphia, to acquire by purchase, condemnation, or other means, an easement in the vicinity of Poquessing Park, and upon completion of the City's acquisition of the easement, incorporate such easement into Poquessing Park and place the easement under the jurisdiction of the Fairmount Park Commission.
Thank you. We will now ask Karen Borski from the Fairmount Park Commission and Ken Sipos from the Department of Public Property to 4 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613 please join us and offer your testimony. State your name for the record.
Good morning. I am Karen Lloyd Borski, Executive Director of the Fairmount Park Commission.
We're going to ask you to speak extra loudly because of some technical challenges we want to overcome. So talk directly into the mike. Thank you.
Good morning, Chairwoman Reynolds Brown and Members of the Committee on Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs. As I said, my name is Karen Lloyd Borski, I serve as Director of the Fairmount Park Commission. I am here today to testify in support of Bill 040613, an ordinance 19 authorizing the Commissioner of Public Property, on behalf of the City of Philadelphia, to acquire by purchase, condemnation or other means, permanent easements to four certain parcels of land with the buildings and improvements thereon, situated in the vicinity of Poquessing Creek 5 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613 Park, McNulty Road and Townsend Road, all under certain terms and conditions. This bill will permit the City to acquire an easement across four parcels of land in the vicinity of McNulty and Townsend Roads. Two of the parcels of land which the easement will traverse are owned by PAID, and the other two parcels are owned by Origlio Beverage Distributors. Both PAID and Origlio are donating the easement across their respective parcels, at no cost to the City. Acquisition of the easements and future development of a recreation trail are priority projects of the Poquessing Creek Park Trail Master Plan, completed in 2001 by the Fairmount Park Commission. The easement will enable the Park to develop a recreation trail between Poquessing Creek Park, Benjamin Rush State Park and the Parkwood Recreation Center. The easements and future trail will provide an amenity and recreation source for employees of the Byberry East Industrial Park and Parkwood community residents. Upon completion of the City's acquisition, the easements will be 6 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613 incorporated into Poquessing Creek Park and placed under the jurisdiction of the Fairmount Park Commission. The Commission supports this measure and, accordingly, I respectfully ask that City Council approve Bill No. 040613. I also ask that the rules be suspended so that the ordinance may be passed upon the second reading at Council. Thank you. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Thank you. Any questions for Karen Borski of the Fairmount Park Commission? (No response.)
Very well. We will now move to hear from Ken Sipos of Public Property.
Good morning, Chairwoman Reynolds Brown and Members of the Committee on Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs. My name is Kenneth Sipos, and I'm a Real Estate Specialist with the Department of Public Property. I'm here today to testify in 7 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613 support of Bill No. 040613. This bill will permit the City to acquire an easement across four parcels of land in the vicinity of McNulty and Townsend Road. Two of the parcels the easement will travers are owned by PAID, the other two are owned by Origlio Beverage Distributors. Both PAID and Origlio are donating the easement across their respective parcels at no cost to the City. Acquisition of the easement will assist Fairmount Park in developing a recreational trail between Poquessing Park and Benjamin Rush State Park, and upon completion of the City's acquisition of the easement, incorporate the easement into Poquessing Park and place the easement under the jurisdiction of Fairmount Park. The Department of Public Property supports this measure, and accordingly, I respectfully ask the City Council to approve Bill No. 040613. I also ask that the Rules be suspended so that the ordinance may be passed upon the second reading of Council. 8 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613 Thank you. I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Let me also indicate that our colleague Councilman Darrell Clarke has joined us in this hearing. Councilman Clarke.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning. PAID is donating one of the properties to this particular development. Where did PAID and how did PAID originally come in possession of the property?
It's part of Northeast Development Industrial Park from the get-go. PIDC owned land.
I think this was part of the Byberry parcel. We gave it to Byberry to build Byberry Hospital. And then when they de-commissioned parts of Byberry Hospital, they gave it back to the City, and we transferred it back into Fairmount Park for development into an industrial park.
Thank you, Madam Chair. 9 10/19/04 - PARKS - BILL 040613
Any other questions for members of the Committee? (No response.)
That concludes testimony on Bill No. 040613. This, therefore, concludes our public hearing. - - - - 10 COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC MEETING COMMITTEE ON PARKS, RECREATION and CULTURAL AFFAIRS - - - - Tuesday, October 19, 2004 - - - - Public meeting conducted by the Committee on Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs, held in Room 400, City Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the above date, to consider action on the following: BILL 040613. PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN, Chair COUNCIL PRESIDENT ANNA C. VERNA COUNCILMAN FRANK DICICCO COUNCILMAN W. WILSON GOODE, JR. COUNCILMAN DARRELL CLARKE 11 10/19/04 - PARKS - PUBLIC MEETING
We will now move into a public meeting. I'd like to ask Councilman Clarke, can we have a motion on Bill No. 040613, which includes a suspension of the Rules.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I move that Bill No. 10 040613 be reported out of Committee with a favorable recommendation, and a request for suspension of the Rules to allow reading at the next Session of Council. (Duly seconded.)
Bill No. 040613 has been moved and properly seconded. All in favor say aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, and Bill No. 040613 will be reported out of this Committee with a favorable recommendation, and with a further recommendation that the Rules of Council be 12 10/19/04 - PARKS - PUBLIC MEETING suspended to allow first reading at our next scheduled Council meeting. This concludes the meeting of the Committee on Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs. I want to thank everyone for their attendance. And a huge thank you, President Verna. Thank you for your interest. (Council adjourned at 10:18 a.m.) - - - - 13 C E R T I F I C A T I O N I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia of Tuesday, October 19, 2004, were reported fully and accurately by me, and that this is a correct transcript of the same. RE: COMMITTEE ON PARKS, RECREATION and CULTURAL AFFAIRS _________________________ Lisa C. Bradley, RPR