COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA COMMITTEE ON RULES Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tuesday, October 21, 2025 10:25 a.m. PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN CINDY BASS, CHAIR COUNCILMAN MARK SQUILLA, VICE-CHAIR COUNCILWOMAN JAMIE GAUTHIER COUNCILWOMAN KATHERINE GILMORE RICHARDSON COUNCILMAN CURTIS JONES, JR.
250534, 250572, 250577, 250648, 250767, 250800, 250802, 250803, 250804, 250808, 250810, 250811 - - -
Good morning. This is the Committee on Rules. Members and guests will please take their seats and the meeting or the hearing is now called to order. Will the Clerk please take the roll.
Thank you. A quorum of the Committee is present, and the Clerk will know now please read the titles of the bills.
Bill No. 18 240063 is being held today. Bill No. , a Pennsylvania non-profit corporation, as the neighborhood improvement district management association for the District; approving a plan for and report concerning the District; authorizing the Director of Commerce, on behalf of the City, to execute an agreement with the Mayfair Business Improvement District, Inc. relating to the District; and reauthorizing the Mayfair Business Improvement District, Inc. to assess property owners within the District a special property assessment fee to be used in accordance with the approved plan; all in accordance with the provisions of the Community and Economic Improvement Act, and under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 250572, an ordinance An Ordinance amending Section 2-112 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "City Commissioners," by removing the powers and duties of the Department of Licenses and Inspections over matters relating to weights and measures; amending Title 9, entitled "Regulation of Businesses, Trades and Professions," by removing provisions relating to amusement devices, and weights and measures and making related technical changes; and amending Title 19, entitled "Finance, Taxes and Collections," by eliminating provisions related to amusement licenses and weights and measures registration; all under certain conditions. Bill No. 250577, an ordinance repealing in its entirety the following Ordinance, approved December 23, 2024: Bill No. 15 240964-A02 (authorizing the City of Philadelphia to organize an authority to be known as The Arena Services District Authority, pursuant to the terms of the Pennsylvania Municipality Authorities Act, all under certain terms and conditions). Bill No. 250648, an ordinance to amend the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by changing the zoning designations of certain areas of land located within an area bounded by North Street, Broad Street, Wallace Street and 15th Street. Bill No. 250767, an ordinance repealing in its entirety Bill No. 240415 (approved July 19, 2024), entitled "An Ordinance to amend the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by changing, changing the zoning designations of certain areas of land located within an area bounded by Island Avenue, the Delaware Expressway and Bartram Avenue. Bill No. 250800, an ordinance amending Title 14-602, entitled "Use Tables," by prohibiting drug paraphernalia sales in certain industrial districts, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 250802, an ordinance amending Title 14 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Zoning and Planning" by revising and clarifying certain provisions and making technical changes to text that has expired, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 250803, an ordinance amending Section 14-524 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "/FDO, Fourth District Overlay District" by clarifying allowed uses, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 250804, an ordinance amending Title 14 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Zoning and Planning" by amending certain provisions of Chapter 14-500, entitled "Overlay Zoning Districts," by creating the "/UCO, University-Community Overlay District," and by making related changes, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 250808, an ordinance amending Title of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Zoning and Planning" by revising and clarifying certain provisions and making technical changes to text that has expired, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 250810, an ordinance amending Title of The 11 Philadelphia Code, entitled "Zoning 12 and Planning" by clarifying certain 13 provisions related to mixed income 14 housing, revising the quality standards for affordable units within mixed income developments and making related technical changes, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No.
250811, an ordinance to amend the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by changing the zoning designations of certain areas of land located within an area founded by Ardleigh Street, East Sedgwick Street, the SEPTA Chestnut Hill East Line and East Gorgas Lane. There are no other bills under consideration today.
Thank you, Madam Clerk. And I do want to recognize the presence of Councilman Isaiah Thomas, who has joined us. We will now have the Clerk call the first panel to testify on Bill No. 250534.
Phillip Green, Senior Manager of Business Advocacy at the Commerce Department. (Witnesses approached witness table.)
Phillip Green on behalf of the Commerce Department. Good morning, Chair Bass and members of the Rules Committee. My name is Phillip Green and I am Senior Manager of Business Advocacy within the Department of Commerce. I'm testifying in support of Bill No. 7 250534, to reauthorize the Mayfair Business Improvement District for an additional years. 10 Like many other Philadelphia commercial corridors, during the 1970s, '80s and '90s, Frankford Avenue had lost some of its former glory. Litter scattered the sidewalks, notable storefronts fell into disrepair, and Frankford and Cottman was more of a place to get through than a place in and of itself. In 2015, property owners in the Mayfair business community came together to establish a BID to reinvigorate the corridor. The BID established sidewalk cleaning services and help numerous businesses renovate their facades through Commerce's Storefront Improvement program. They also partnered with the city to plant dozens of trees and decorative tree beds installed by the BID and large planters now line broad sections of the corridor. When the Eagles won the Super Bowl in 2018 and again in 2025, the intersection of Frankford and Cottman erupted into joyous celebration, renewing the district's reputation as the place to be. In both instances, the BID's Executive Director, sitting behind me, Donnie, worked closely with the city departments to coordinate street closures, ensure crowd safety and assist with cleanup. I would like to point out that Mayfair Super Bowl celebrations are indicative of something much larger, that the hidden work of adequately-funded and well-managed BIDs like Mayfair BID are part of what has earned Philadelphia the 2026 FIFA World Cup, MLB All-Star Game, NCAA March Madness and other events of global and national significance happening next year. Mayfair BID and others like it are crucial partners and in no small part responsible for Philadelphia's rebound since the '90s back into the spotlight. Mayfair BID was reauthorized in 2020 with large support from corridor businesses. Now, they seek a 10-year authorization term to continue their mission of representing and supporting the business interests of the district. This 10-year term would allow them the funding stability and longevity to think long-term and implement projects with even greater impact. For these reasons and many more I, on behalf of the Philadelphia Department of Commerce, support the reauthorization of the Mayfair BID and I'm happy to take questions at this time.
Any questions from the panel at this time? (No response.)
Okay. Seeing none, Madam Clerk, if we can have you call the next witness to testify on Bill No. 18 250572.
For Bill No. 20 250572, will Karen Fegely, Acting Commerce Director, please approach the witness table. (Witnesses approached witness table.)
Karen Fegely, Acting Commerce Director. Good morning, Chairperson Bass and members of the Rules Committee. I'm here to testify in support of Bill No. 250572, which removes the scales and scanners license as well as the amusement and amusement devices license while still retaining the amusement tax. This is in support of Mayor Parker's Open for Business Executive Order. The Administration sought to identify sections of The Philadelphia Code that were ideal for simplification and code cleanup. In short, departments have deemed that these licenses are redundant, unnecessary and/or no longer in effect. And so, this legislation we're asking for simply removes any mention of these three licenses from all sections of the code. I'll explain a little more. Currently, the amusement license is required for any business that has to pay an amusement tax on admissions, such as carnivals, concerts and movies. The amusement device license is required for any coin-operated or mechanical machine. However, neither of these licenses are required for the actual tax collection. Removing them removes an unnecessary step, because relevant businesses are still subject to amusement taxes and they're still subject to the special assembly occupancy license. The scales and scanners license, separate category, has also been found to be unnecessary. The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture's Division of Weights and Measures already bears the responsibility of regulating and inspecting scales and scanners. Therefore, the city does not need to administer a duplicative license. Removing this license in totality was originally proposed in 2017 in the Regulatory Reform Report, so this legislation is just finishing some work we had started back then. The mission of the PHL Open for Business Initiative is to make Philadelphia more business- friendly and streamline city processes wherever possible. So we want to thank the Department of Licenses and Inspections for identifying this opportunity to clean our code and improve the ease of doing business. And we thank City Council for all of your support. Happy to answer any questions on this.
Thank you for your testimony. I know my colleague, Councilmember Squilla, Vice-Chair, has some questions, but I have one quick question on the scales and scanners, which it sounds like we're leaving up to the Commonwealth to actually provide those services or do those checks with businesses. And I guess my question is do they have the capability and are they regularly checking scales, scanners, you know, these sorts of things? Because I know that when we've tried to get them to do enforcement and to do inspection, you know, on a number of other things, they haven't had the capacity to do so. So are they up-to-date, do you know, regarding enforcement action?
I do believe so. We did some pretty deep dives. I mean, we didn't come to you with this just like off the top of our heads. We've done some research and ensured, checked, you know, all the different ways this could come into place.
Yeah. And the Department of Agriculture already -- this isn't a new thing we're asking them to do which is what you're saying, right. They've already been doing it, regulating and inspecting the scales and scanners. They also require registration for those who sell, install or repair devices, including scales. So their program is actually much more involved than anything we were trying to do anyway, which was just a simple registration. We didn't have an inspection program. So the state actually has a registration and an inspection program.
Okay. Not necessary for this particular hearing, but if you could or someone from your department could get to the committee just some information as to the question if the state is able to --
Correct. If you could just get us that information, that would be helpful -
-- before final passage. Thank you. Chair recognizes Councilmember Squilla.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Karen, yes, I agree. I think the coordination with L&I and Health, because usually when somebody has an issue or concern, they don't know who's enforcing it, right, so usually we have to figure that out. But L&I and Health have worked with some of our state agencies on other things, so hopefully that'll work smoothly still if there is a concern for enforcement. But were there fees associated with these permits or licenses previously?
I believe so. I'm sorry. I'm trying to scour my notes, but let me bring up -- come on up. They'll introduce themselves, Justine and Betsy. Betsy from L&I and Justine, my colleague.
Yeah. Just state your name for the record, I'm sorry and proceed.
Good morning. My name is Justine Bolkus, Senior Director for Business Advocacy at the Department of Commerce. There was a $50 fee. There is a $50 fee for the amusement license, $50 fee for the amusement device and a $50 fee for the scales and scanners.
So that'll be less of an issue. Not that it's a big charge, but it's also about knowing what you need, what licenses you need. And every time there's a business starting up and we hit them later on down the road, oh, you don't have this license or you don't have this permit, right. So when will this go into effect if it passes City Council?
When would it go into effect -- I think -- I don't know that answer. I apologize.
We don't think it's going to require a lot of education or anything. This is really just taking away something that a lot of businesses don't know they need anyway.
But at some point, people are doing it now. So if there's a business that's open like by a certain date, they would have had to apply for it. Then once this is gone --
They just won't get that notice that they would, right, need to do it.
They don't have to renew it in the future. Thank you very much.
It would take a little bit of time. As far as when it goes into effect, we would have to -- like L&I would have to remove it -- we would have to remove all instances where it comes up in eCLIPSE or --
Because it's on eCLIPSE -- excuse me. I'm sorry. Don't mean to interrupt. It's on eCLIPSE right now that you need it when you apply for certain businesses, right. So at some point when they do apply, it's no longer going to be there, correct, and --
It is. So every year they would renew their amusement license, they would renew their scales. So starting whenever this date is, they no 7 longer would need to do that. I know it's savings of maybe $150 a year, which is not a big deal, but there's a lot of businesses that are in compliance and all of a sudden forget to renew one license or another, we go in and then we end up violating them and it ends up costing them more.
You're kind of hitting it, Councilman. It's not so much about the total amount of money. It's just like one more thing, right, and we hear this from businesses. I know that you all hear this from businesses, right. This sort of death by a thousand cuts kind of thing, right. So this is just cleaning up some stuff that's -- and it's, you know, in our permit navigator tool that we created with L&I and other departments where it tells you all the permits you need, you know, all the steps you have to take to open a business. It's just like, you know, one less thing that's really unnecessary and gets -- and it allows us also to focus on the things we really do care, you know, that we really can enforce and get to the point of what we want. Yeah.
Chair recognizes Councilmember Jones and then Councilmember Kathy Gilmore Richardson.
Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you, Karen, for what you preemptively do for commercial corridors, going out and giving them a heads-up along with L&I about how they can better comply with the city's rules and regs. So thank you for that. On the issue of gambling machines, we don't currently license, regulate any of that. We don't even know how many there are out on the street and I don't want them exempt from anything.
Unfortunately, these laws don't affect any of those so those folks weren't -- none of those -- these amusement device licenses didn't apply to those anyway.
And again, I just feel like it helps us focus, Councilman. I mean, that's what we're kind of advocating for, let's focus on those things that we care about, right, rather than confuse matters with some of these other things.
Because Katherine Gilmore Richardson has been laser-focused on trying to rein in some of our bad actors making sure that they comply. So I don't want this to fly in the face of her good works. You can say on a record that it does not?
No, it does not fly in the face of that. And we do appreciate all the work you're doing in this area. As the Commerce Department which supports businesses, we recognize that to support our business community we need to have ways to enforce and act against folks that are not, you know, good business neighbors.
Thank you, Councilman. Chair recognizes Councilmember Kathy Gilmore Richardson.
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. And thank you to my District colleague, Councilmember Jones, and to all of our colleagues who have been laser-focused on ensuring that we are working on this issue of stores that are selling drug paraphernalia and other items that may not have been approved for local community use. I wanted to go back to the legislation regarding removing the scales and scanners license. I understand that this is a code cleanup and that there's more code cleanup to come, which I think is important. However, it stated that the initial transfer of duties took place in 2009. So I wanted to notate for the record that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania via the Department of Agriculture has now taken on all of the enforcement for this matter; is that correct? I just want to state that for the record. And I only ask that because we had a great opportunity to meet with Governor Shapiro over the summer with Council President and very many colleagues here in Council. And I notated at that time that we do have a significant challenge with enforcement from the state, whether it's coordination with PLCB for stores that are illegally selling, you know, liquor-by-the-shot and may not have a grocery or convenience store attached. Same thing with some of the challenges that we face. Even in our Educational Housing District, relative to coordination with the City, PPD, L&I and PLCB, and I brought that up at the meeting on June 30th, and I know you remember that Councilman Jones. And I wanted to just notate for the record if we could get something in writing prior to the final passage of the legislation from the PA Department of Agriculture stating that they indeed do the enforcement for this regulation that would no 23 longer be in our city code so that we have a level of assurance and something in writing as a body regarding the work that they are slated to do, particularly here in Philadelphia. And then relative to the amusement license, I just wanted to ask a question relative to sort of types of events. And I get it, it's a difference between the amusement license and the amusement tax, right. And I think that education piece is important, and I appreciate you all notating that in the fact sheet that we received, because we wouldn't want businesses to think that suddenly they don't have to pay the amusement tax, because even though it's one of our smaller revenue generators, it still is significant for the General Fund. And so, with the removal of the amusement license can you just notate what type of potential activities would not need to get the license so that we understand that for the record, particularly leading up to 2026?
So my understanding is the way the system is set up right now, anyone that's applying for a special assembly occupancy license has to first get an amusement license, even though they don't -- it's not an actual like exact match. This would just remove that step, that first step. These businesses that do, you know, carnivals still get a separate carnival license. That's any type of an entertainment venue still has to get a special assembly occupancy license. So this truly was sort of just a duplicate extra step in the process. There's no one that's just getting an amusement license and not getting any other type of special license. Does that make sense?
Received. So basically because of the types of events, there is also an additional corresponding license that the organization, individual company would need to receive. So the amusement license was sort of on par with a commercial activity license, so to speak, but just for amusement purposes?
As a natural first step. You know, everybody has to have a commercial activity license no matter what.
Received. Okay. So let me use this as an example because I'm sure this is on everyone's mind. With BG, Brandon Graham, resigning with the Eagles today, I'm just thinking of this example. Eagles, what would they have to do?
Mm-hmm. I'm just thinking of that off the top of my head as an example.
They would still need the special assembly and occupancy license.
Okay. But they wouldn't need to receive the amusement license, as I will say, the second pre-qualifier because the commercial activity license would be the first, right?
Okay. Received. All right. Thank you very, very much. And I think that communication from the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture would be important for us to --
-- have a relative assurance regarding their intention around enforcement.
Thank you. Okay. Any additional questions from the panel? (No response.)
Seeing none, thank you very much. Is there anyone else here to testify on Bill No. 250572 whose name we have not called? (No response.)
Okay. Seeing none, Madam Clerk, please call the next witness to testify on Bill No. 250577.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. (Witness approached witness table.)
Good morning, Councilperson Chair -- sorry. I have to put my glasses on. I thought I was going to be able to do it without. Good morning, Chairperson Bass and members of the Rules Committee. I am Paulo Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I am here to testify on Bill No. 250577, introduced into City Council on May 29, 2025 by Councilmember Squilla. Bill No. 250577 would repeal in its entirety the following ordinance approved December 23, 2024, Bill No. 14 240964-A02, which authorizes the City of Philadelphia to organize an authority to be known as the Arena Services District Authority pursuant to the terms of the Pennsylvania Municipality. Authorities Act, all under certain terms and conditions. We support this legislation and thank you for the opportunity to testify.
Thank you very much for your testimony. Any questions from the panel? (No response.)
Seeing none, is there anyone else here to testify for Bill No. 250577 whose name has not been called? (No response.)
Seeing none, thank you very much for your testimony today. Madam Clerk, please call the testifier for Bill No. 250648.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Good morning. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I'm here to testify on Bill No. 250648, introduced into City Council on June 12, 2025 by Councilmember Young. Bill No. 250648 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by changing the zoning designations of land located by North Broad, Wallace and 15th Streets in the Spring Garden neighborhood of the Central Planning District. The proposal is to change the current ICM-X, Industrial Commercial Mixed- Use, the zoning, of the property at 642 North Broad Street to CMX for Commercial Mixed-Use. The headquarters for the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging is located in this historic building facing Broad Street. The zoning change will enable PCA to convert the 79,000 square foot former factory at the rear of the property into 66 units of affordable housing for senior citizens along with a senior center open to the public. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 8 No. 250648 at its public meeting on July 17, 2025, and recommended the bill for approval. I'll be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you very much for your testimony. Any questions from the members of the committee? (No response.)
And seeing none, thank you very much. Is there anyone here to testify on Bill No. 250648 whose name has not been called? (No response.)
Okay. Seeing none, thank you very much for your testimony. And, Madam Clerk, please call the next witness to testify on Bill No. 250767.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Thank you. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I am here to testify on Bill No. 250767, introduced into City Council on September 18, 2025 by Councilmember Gilmore Richardson for Council President Johnson. Bill No. 250767 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by repealing in its entirety Bill No. 2 240415 (approved July 19, 2024) to change the zoning for an area bounded by Island Avenue, the Delaware Expressway and Bartram Avenue in the Eastwick neighborhood of the Southwest Planning District. This bill repeals Bill 9 No. 240415, which changed the zoning designation of the property at 8800 Tinicum Boulevard to I-2 Medium Industrial. Bill No. 250767 returns the zoning designation to CMX-3, Commercial Mixed-Use, consistent with the zoning recommendations of the Philadelphia 2035 Comprehensive Plan. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 20 No. 250767 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended the bill for approval. I will be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you very much. Any questions from members of the Committee? (No response.)
And seeing none, is there anyone else here to testify on Bill No. 250767? (No response.)
Seeing none, thank you very much for your testimony. Madam Clerk, please call the next witness to testify on Bill 15 No. 250800.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Thank you for being here. State your name for the record. Proceed with your testimony.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I'm here to testify on Bill No. 250800, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by Councilmember Phillips. Bill No. 250800 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Code by prohibiting drug paraphernalia sales in certain industrial districts throughout the city. Drug paraphernalia sales are allowed in the I-3 Heavy Industrial District and require a special exception in the ICM-X, Industrial Commercial Mixed-Use, and I-2 Medium Industrial zoning districts. This bill will remove the special exceptions and leave I-3 as the only zoning district in the city where drug paraphernalia sales are allowed as a primary use. Drug paraphernalia sales will continue to be allowed as an accessory use in all Pennsylvania licensed medical marijuana dispensaries, of which there are 5 located in Philadelphia. The 6 Philadelphia City Planning 7 Commission considered Bill No. 8 250800 at its public meeting on 9 October 16, 2025 and recommended 10 the bill for approval. I'll be 11 happy to answer any questions at 12 this time. 13
14 Thank you very much. 15 Any questions from 16 members of the Committee? 17 (No response.) 18
19 Seeing none, is there anyone else here to testify on Bill No. 250800? (No response.)
Okay. And seeing that there's none, Madam Clerk, can you please call the next panel we have to testify on Bill No. 800 -- I'm sorry. Question from Councilmember Majority Leader Kathy Gilmore Richardson.
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Thank you so much, Paula, for your testimony and for the recommendation. I just wanted to put on the record that I am thankful and grateful for the continued work of Councilmember Phillips and also Councilmember Bass and myself on this issue around these drug paraphernalia stores, grocery convenience stores, and just wanted to uplift the work of Councilmember Phillips. Thank you very much.
Okay. All right. Any other questions from the panel now? (No response.)
Seeing none, thank you very much for your testimony on Bill No. 5 250800. Is there anyone else here who would like to speak on Bill No. 250800? (No response.)
And again, seeing none, Madam Clerk, please call up the next person to testify on 250802.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Thank you. Good morning. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
Good morning. I'm Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I'm here to testify on Bill No. 250802, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by Councilmember Jones. Bill No. 250802 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Code by making technical changes to certain provisions of the FDO, Fourth District Overlay, in the Wissahickon neighborhood of the Lower Northwest Planning District. The bill removes a demolition moratorium from the zoning code enacted in December 2023. That purpose was to give the Historical Commission staff and the neighbors time to create a historic district in the Wissahickon neighborhood. The moratorium has expired and the bill 22 requires the removal of the moratorium from the zoning code. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 2 No. 250802 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended the bill for approval. I will be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you very much for your testimony. Are there any questions from the Committee? (No response.)
So I never want to stop the Planning Commission when they actually agree with us, so I'm not going to ask a question. I'm going to let it go. Thank you so much, Director.
Thank you. Any other questions from the Committee? (No response.)
Okay. All right. Well, thank you so much for your testimony on Bill 7 No. 250802. Is there anyone else here to testify on Bill No. 250802? (No response.)
And seeing none, Madam Clerk, please call forward the next witness to testify on Bill No. 250803.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Thank you for being here. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I'm here to testify on Bill No. 250803, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by councilmember Jones. Bill No. 250803 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Code by amending Section 14-524, the FDO, Fourth District Overlay District, by clarifying allowed uses. This bill will amend the FDO, Fourth District Overlay District, by clarifying allowed uses within the commercial review areas that regulate commercial uses. Licenses and Inspections requested this change to provide more clarity to code users and examiners in issuing permits. The Commercial Review Areas Code Section currently requires special exception approval for specific uses. The legislation will add the term "retail sales" to the beginning of consumer goods and food, beverages and groceries. This addition to the text is intended to clarify that the section regulates only the sale of such goods, not their repair or production for these use types. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 11 No. 250803 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended the bill for approval. I'll be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you very much for your testimony. Any questions from the Committee? (No response.)
And seeing none, is there anyone else here to testify on Bill No. 250803? (No response.)
And seeing none, thank you very much for your testimony. Madam Clerk, please call the next witness to testify for Bill No. 250804 -- oh, pause on that. Please call forward the next bill, 250808. We're going to come back to 804. There's a lot of testimony on that one so we're just going to run through the quick ones for now and come back to that. So please call forward the next witness to testify on 250808.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Thank you for your time today. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I am here to testify on Bill No. 250808, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by Councilmember Squilla. Bill No. 250808 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Code by making technical changes to certain provisions of the CTR, Center City Overlay District, in the Wash West neighborhood of the Center City Planning District. The bill 16 removes two code sections from the CTR, Center City Overlay District. Councilmember Squilla introduced these sections in February 2016 to enable a project along Broad Street. That project does not move forward and these code sections have expired. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 2 No. 250808 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended the bill for approval. I'll be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you very much for your testimony. Any questions from the Committee? (No response.)
And seeing none, is there anyone else here to testify on Bill No. 250808? (No response.)
Okay. And seeing none, Madam Clerk, please call the next witness to testify on Bill No. 250810.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Good morning. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I'm here to testify on Bill No. 250810, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by Councilmember Bass for Council President Johnson. Bill No. 250810 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Code by clarifying provisions related to the mixed-income housing bonus and will apply citywide. The bill 17 revises the quality standards for affordable units and mixed-income developments and provides further clarity on how the amount of payment-in-lieu calculation is determined. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill No. 250810 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended the bill for approval. I'll be happy to answer any questions at this time.
7 Thank you for your testimony. 8 Any questions from the 9 Committee? 10 (No response.) 11
12 Seeing none, is there anyone else 13 here to testify on Bill No. 250810? 14 (No response.) 15
16 Okay. Seeing none, Madam Clerk, 17 please call the testifier for Bill 18 No. 250811. 19
Paula 20 Brumbelow Burns, Director of 21 Legislation for the Philadelphia 22 City Planning Commission. 23
Good 24 morning. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
I am Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I am here to testify on Bill No. 250811, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by Councilmember Bass. Bill No. 250811 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by changing the zoning designation of land located in an area bounded by Ardleigh Street, Sedgwick Street, SEPTA Chestnut Hill East Line and Gorgas Lane located in the East Mount Airy neighborhood of the Upper Northwest Planning District. This bill will change the zoning from RM-1, Residential Multi-family, to RTA-2, Residential Two-family, to reflect the existing two-family use on the majority of the affected properties in the RM-1 zoning district. The allowable number of residential units is based on lot size and this permits between and units per parcel 5 within this bounded area. 6 The dimensional 7 standards for RTA-2, which permit 8 two-family use in attached 9 structure rowhomes, would create 10 nonconformities for the existing 11 structures on the affected block. 12 The Planning Commission recommends 13 changing the proposed zoning 14 designation to RTA-1 to fit the 15 existing use and form of the 16 structures. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 19 No. 250811 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended the bill for approval with a proviso. I'll be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you very much. Are there any questions from the panel? (No response.)
Okay. And seeing none from the committee, is there anyone here who would like to make a statement on or testify on Bill No. 250811? (No response.)
And I do want to recognize the presence of Council President Kenyatta Johnson. Okay. Seeing none, Madam Clerk, please call the next panel for Bill No. 250804 -- and before we do that, Chair would like to recognize Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.
Thank you, Madam Chair. And good morning, everyone. I am grateful to Chairwoman Bass and the rest of the Rules Committee for the opportunity to hear Bill 250804, which creates a new zoning overlay in my Council District. This overlay proposes more community engagement and government review for a scenario that is becoming increasingly common in Philly and across the nation, universities selling or decommissioning properties adjacent to residential properties. It is an indisputable fact that college campuses significantly impact the communities that surround them. As higher education undergoes its most significant change in our lifetime, we must ensure that land use decisions are made with their communities in mind, and recent actions by multiple universities prove this will not happen without legislative action. That's why I introduced this overlay and why I'm asking that the Committee vote it favorably today. I know there is misinformation out there about this bill so let me be super clear. My overlay does three things: It mandates an RCO meeting, a Planning Commission review, and bans preemptive building demolition without building permits for new construction. That's it. This bill doesn't cripple anyone's property values. It doesn't change any zoning maps. It doesn't change permit reviews for existing campus uses or when a college wants to build a new building, it doesn't restrict anyone's use or density rights. It adds more eyes and more transparency to land use decisions for major properties that change entire neighborhoods. The idea that this could ever be wrong is simply preposterous. Today I'm offering amendments to my bill that clarify its intent and address concerns raised by the city's Law Department. The main trigger in this overlay is now when permits are filed on campus properties for uses that are not campus-related. We've also streamlined and clarified the role of the Planning Commission in this overlay, which I think is very important because they are our lone city agency tasked with taking a holistic view of our community's long-term growth, and one for which there is ample precedent in the code already. The bill also has safeguards when it comes to the review timeline and offers the ability to combine RCO meetings if the applicant already triggered a requirement through ZBA or ZDR. I am confident that this Committee will see my overlay as a straightforward process that promises stability, equity and shared prosperity. I'm hopeful that with the help of this overlay, institutional transitions in West Philadelphia can create opportunities that strengthen neighborhoods, support economic development and foster a healthier, more resilient future. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Any additional comments from the Committee? (No response.)
Okay. All right. And seeing none, please state your name for the record and proceed with your testimony.
I'm Paula Brumbelow Burns, Director of Legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. I'm here to testify on Bill No. 250804, introduced into City Council on September 25, 2025 by Councilmember Gauthier. Bill No. -- and this is as the bill was introduced. Bill 12 No. 250804 amends the Philadelphia Zoning Code by creating a new overlay in the University Southwest Planning District. This bill 16 establishes the University Community Overlay District in the University Southwest Planning District to regulate the transfer development or demolition of college and university-affiliated properties. It aims to ensure community input in alignment with city planning goals when institutional land of 5000 square feet or more changes ownership or use. The bill also mandates Planning Commission Review neighborhood engagement and restrictions on demolitions to prevent vacant lots and preserve the character and the ability of campus areas. In reviewing the bill as introduced, we have significant concerns regarding this bill. The legislation creates a new review process that is not based on the zoning district or an additional geography alone, but on who owns the property which raises legal issues. It also raises questions on how the properties will be identified within the permit application process to determine if it is required to follow the additional layer of reviews. Lastly, it creates a new type of review for the Planning Commission public meeting by adding additional temporary members, which again raises legal issues. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission considered Bill 8 No. 250804 at its public meeting on October 16, 2025 and recommended that the bill be held for an additional 45 days for further review and potential amendments. Because we want to thoroughly review the amendments offered today, we respectfully request that this bill be held in Committee today, given the City Council cannot vote on this bill until after the next Planning Commission meeting in November. I will be happy to answer any questions at this time.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to let the members of the Committee know that we've worked on amendments that we feel adequately address all of the Planning Commission's concerns as well as Law, and I sent that out in a memo to the Committee.
In a case like this, you mentioned legal questions. Can you elaborate?
On the legal questions with zoning, zoning runs with the land of the property. It doesn't necessarily become dependent upon the owner of the land. And so, if Councilwoman Bass owned a property today and it was a bookstore and she sold it to you and you decided you wanted to continue the bookstore or you said I don't want a bookstore, I would like an art supply store, as long as it's in the same use classification it doesn't have to necessarily go back because there's a new owner of the property. And so, what the concern that the Law Department had told us was we can't necessarily base zoning on who owned the property or who owns the property. It's on how the applications for the use permits come in. And so, that was where our biggest question on the issues was.
In any way, and I don't know if you're able to answer this, in any way could this devalue the properties in question?
But I think it's the purpose, I believe as the Councilwoman stated, was to add a layer of review, and the review for the Planning Commission to make sure that it's in the spirit of our Comprehensive Plan, and I believe harmony was the word used, but in harmony with the Comprehensive Plan. And so, our Comprehensive Plan and zoning should be relatively aligned, especially since we have done large remappings in this area in the past.
Yes, that area is relatively -- since we did the district plan, most of that area has been addressed in zoning updates, zoning map updates.
Thank you, Councilman. Chair recognizes Councilwoman Gauthier.
Just wanted to respond to my colleague. The bill is no longer based on a change in ownership. The bill is based on the land use and a definition called university campus, so it's based on land use, not ownership.
Any additional questions from the panel? (No response.)
And seeing none, Madam Clerk, please call the next panel to testify on Bill No. 250804.
Panel 2, Pamela Andrews West, Powelton Saunders Park RCO; Jacqueline Owens, Committee person for the 27th Ward; Renee Howard, 48th and Woodland Advisory Council; and Deborah McCarty, Powelton Village Civic Association.
Yes, absolutely. Chair recognizes Council President Kenyatta Johnson.
I just want to take a moment as a moment of personal privilege to welcome back former Commissioner Deborah McCarty, who's always an advocate of all things great, not only in the City of Philadelphia, but most importantly in our neighborhoods. And so, I just want to thank you for your presence and just wanted to acknowledge you for all your hard work you have done on behalf of the City of Philadelphia, and it's great to see you. Thank you. MS. McCARTY: Thank you.
Thank you for being here. Thank you all for being here.
Please state your name for the record and proceed with your testimony.
My name is Pamela Andrews and I am here on behalf of West Powelton Saunders Park RCO to testify in support of Bill No. 250804. First of all, I want to thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share a few thoughts with Council about the importance of Councilmember Gauthier's proposed bill. I will be brief. The bill is very important and greatly appreciated by residents who live within its boundaries. We feel what's important to remember is that academic campuses are inherently connected to the residential communities adjacent to them, so it makes sense that there be a special process in place for when these campuses change, given how much that seems to be happening of late. In this unique situation when campus properties are decommissioned, it is important that communities have a seat at the table because our futures are interconnected. This is not about one university nor will it change any of the day-to-day real estate operations. Developments that are staying part of the campus will still have the same process they've already always had. In requiring community engagement and Planning Commission review, Councilmember Gauthier's bill ensures that there is a clear process in place that promotes stability, equity and shared prosperity. Thank you so much.
And thank you for your testimony. Can we have you state your name, ma'am, for the record and proceed with your testimony,
Yes. Good morning. My name is Renee Howard. I would like to thank you, especially Councilperson Gauthier for the opportunity to speak today. I'm here to present a cautionary tale of woe how a stable community can disappear without anyone realizing it happened. What happened to my neighborhood and its seven, eight generations of residents should never happen to another community in the city of Philadelphia. My neighborhood is located in the southernmost part of Southwest Philadelphia. We're along Woodland Avenue. We're backed against the railroad tracks and the Grays Ferry Bridge. Another boundary at one time was Sealtest Breyers. Yes, I grew up with all the ice cream I could eat. But the pride of my neighborhood stood proudly at the corner of 46th and Woodland Avenue. Its rich history goes back to the late 1800s with the last building erected in 1957, Alexander Wilson School. Some of its famous alumni include world-renowned landscape artist and first Black full professor at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Louis B. Sloan, Mrs. Joan Myers Brown, we call her Auntie Joan, founder of Philadanco, and also the late great Senator Hardy Williams all grew up in my area and attended Wilson School. But I'm here to tell you today, more importantly, the school was always the focal point of my neighborhood. Wilson was our neighborhood polling place. It was where all the parent and community meetings were held. It was also the city-designated neighborhood emergency shelter. However -- oh, excuse me. Also, the schoolyard was where all the neighborhood kids played. The guys played on the courts. Girls played hopscotch, jump rope, whatever. Kids ran around the yard. Some of the more adventurous kids would climb the gate and get on the roof and jump off and it was also home to the Dreaded Green Lady. So you knew at night there was a certain time you had to be out of that schoolyard. But the gym was also open at night as a safe haven for neighborhood kids to play. Now, we'll start with the timeline. 1998, University of Sciences, which used to be College of Pharmacy purchased Breyers Seal -- excuse me, Sealtest Breyer's property. And it stood there for a minute, nothing happened and they began building on it. It didn't affect my community too much because it was on a border that we rarely crossed much anyway. But eventually around 2012, my community started hearing whisperings that University of Sciences was expanding and wanted to purchase the property that Alexander Wilson School was located on for expansion. We as a community were reassured more than once by the university and every area politician in office at the time that they had no interest in the school. In 2012, parents and community were notified that Alexander Wilson was closing, not because of low test scores, city or statewide test scores, not because of the building conditions, not because of the safety of the school. We were told it was low enrollment. It was never substantiated. And if anyone looked at the time, the school board was suffering from low enrollment all the way around the board, the entire city. The community, my community, we fought valiantly but it was to no avail. No one knocked -- no one came when we knocked. And Alexander Wilson school closed in 2013. Now, here comes -- this is the part where my neighborhood really starts to go downhill. It was determined by the Board of Education that the kids that attended Wilson School would now attend Lee School. Wilson is at 46th and Woodland. 2 miles away. It wasn't a bad school, so most of the community members thought, okay, maybe it won't be so bad. 5 miles, which meant no child in my neighborhood was eligible for bus service, which meant any child from Wilson from preschool to 7th grade would have to manage at least seven major highways or long streets to get to school. What started happening was most of the parents decided we can't do this.
The school that was the next school in our area was already overcrowded, so that wasn't a viable choice. So what happened is most of the parents or the families with children started moving out the neighborhood. Then what happened. We got an increase in developers who were interested in the single family homes so they started purchasing up everything, every piece of dirt in my neighborhood and building on it. Now, we're here, 2014. The University of Sciences announced that they would be purchasing the property that Wilson School stood on. This is the same entity that told us less than two years ago they had no interest at all in this property. So here we go again. They said the supposed use was for student housing and mixed-use. So now we're sitting here with an empty school building, no families, scattered senior citizens and people who just probably couldn't afford to move out the neighborhood. So in 2016 after much grumbling from the neighborhood, the university finally shared their plans. They met with the community and shared their plans for the now abandoned, weed-strawn Alexander Wilson School. The next few years in my community and my small neighborhood was traffic, construction, dust, noise, large machinery wreaking havoc in my neighborhood. Next, during this time the university began a community engagement group. We met regularly. We were bamboozled into thinking we were being kept abreast of the university's upcoming plans for my community and its campus. So you can imagine in 2022 we were surprised and dumbfounded when we realized -- when we found out that the university would be merging with St. Joseph. Then a year later in '23 we were surprised and dumbfounded again when we watched all the University of Science signs come down in St. Joe's scope. The community engagement group continued to meet with St. Joseph, who promised they would be nothing like University of Sciences. They said they would include the community on all their decisions and planning-making. Well, after much engagement and many now empty promises we are here in 2025. Our present day in my community is St. Joe's has sold out an entire community while looking us right in the eye. Unchecked university policies and weak zoning laws destroyed my community, leaving nothing but unkept promises and so much uncertainty. I just pray that you make the necessary changes so that the City of Philadelphia, which is the City of Neighborhoods, doesn't become the city of universities that do whatever they want to communities. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Good morning. Please state your name for the record and proceed.
My name is Jacqueline Owens. I'm the Committee person in 27th Ward, 15th Division, which a lot of this is occurring. I'm a homeowner. I've been in the community for more than 40 years and we can't do nothing about what's gone. But what I'm praying and hoping is that all the work that our Councilperson did to put this bill through to fight for us, because she listened to our cries, she listened to our fights and we fought and we fought, and I think the bill is worth being passed because we are tax-paying citizens, we are hard-working citizens and we should not be allowed to be sold down the river. We enjoy the campus. Amen. We enjoy the students, okay. We are a diverse community. But hear our cry this morning. We're here because we have worked, we have went to meetings, we have been involved. We are voters. We always work and we want them to please pass this bill today because we deserve that as citizens, as voters and as taxpayers. Thank you.