on the block. And it would make sense that those 14 homeowners would support this project. And
that is true. They all do. Most of them do. But we also have 24 signatures. So there are people
on the block who have single family homes that also support this project. So with that, I would
rest and ask that my client be unmuted. And just note for the board that the request is in harmony
with what's going on on the block. It's in harmony with what the near neighbors want. I understand
the RCO. It looks at the overhaul neighborhood, but sometimes we have to focus that view narrowly
and look at what is it that folks on the block want. It's going to be five bedrooms. We're not
going to expand the footprint. If it were a single-family property, it would be five and
possibly six bedrooms. And there is a need for affordable rental units in the city of Philadelphia
as the Census Bureau has concluded.
So with that, I open the floor for questions
and ask my client to unmute himself
and adopt my testimony.
Mr. Duncan, can you raise your hand?
Duncan, I'm here.
Hi, could you state your name, please,
and spell for the court reporter?
And my name is Jackson Duncan, J-A-C-K-S-O-N, D-U-N-C-A-N.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
I certainly do.
Proceed.
Mr. Duncan, good afternoon, or good morning, rather.
Were you on the call when I presented this, your project to the board?
Yes, sir, I was.
And I just wanted to clear up a few things.
When you purchased the property, was it three units and did it contain three kitchens?
uh was it three units and did it contain three kitchens yes three three bathrooms three kitchens
fully uh um the problem was just the um the um place was so dilapidated from the squatters and
just it was there was not really much that would be salvageable and you provided those photographs
to me you had already demoed one kitchen and by the time you came to me for representation you
had them out the other two kitchens correct yes sir unfortunately yes there was um you know a lot
of folks were there there was uh you know they had been in the kitchen they were they were
manufacturing methamphetamines um and you know just there was nothing that could be salvaged it
was really bad they had been urinating and defecating all over the home so there was uh
it was really a hazard uh to not take everything out of there to be honest with you all right and
you did the groundwork of compiling signatures from uh most of the near neighbors on the block
correct i did i did and i missed you know some uh you know i lived in 1946 south 15th for five
years so it's since in my neighborhood now i live in levington snyder so um was able to everybody
in the neighborhood you know the folks that lends cleaners across the street the neighbors
they were just really thankful there was uh there was about 15 12 to 15 people who were
squatting in that home at the time. And, you know, there was issues with them. There was
an issue with, you know, them defecating on the front steps. We had seven different break-ins
from the time that we took over to where we had it completely, put steel doors up.
We dropped about 15 to 20,000 just to solidify the place and get it cleaned out. And we had to,
they were coming in basement windows. And the only real way was to demo the place out to get
them to stop, you know, continuously breaking in. But yeah, there was, there was, you know,
issues with them exposing themselves on the porch to neighbors, just really, really bad stuff. So
I think the board has a picture of that. Just one final, two final questions. Will you
perform all the maintenance on this building yourself? Absolutely. And I have, I actually,
you know i had uh one of my young men that works for me i clean up some of the neighbors um
sweep but just sweep up the street um you know like i said i'm around the corner so
uh any issues we have i'm right there and i you know i make sure that i know we have a block
party coming up and i'm you know i've volunteered to be a part of that so i'm just i think it's a
great neighborhood i love my time in 1946 um you know i'm four blocks at 11th and snyder so yeah
we'll take care of everything, make sure that everything's swept, take care of some of the
elderly neighbors on the block, and just make sure we're really contributing to this community,
because I think it's a great block, and I think it has the potential to really, really just keep
improving. One final question. You've heard my testimony. If you had the opportunity to testify,
would you adopt my testimony as your own and as true and correct? Absolutely, Hank. I really
appreciate you, and you've just been great to work with. Thank you, Mr. Duncan. Questions from
the board no mr chairman mr clinton one question for me for for you that third floor is not a whole
size right i mean is that going to be apartment on the third floor yeah that's going to be a
one-bedroom apartment okay all right thank you question
so it's like it's a lot smaller than the other two right absolutely yes okay all right
questions from the virtual or comments from the virtual audience
chair we have a merle friedman miss friedman you can unmute yourself and wait for the chair please
good morning miss friedman could you state your name and spell for the court reporter
uh merrill friedman m-e-r-y-l f as in frank r-e-e-d-m-a-n right do you swear or affirm
to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth yes proceed please
um what uh mr duncan stated was true the there was a a community of squatters living in that
building um and uh harassing people leaving needles and and empty bags of drugs outside the
house um i live a little further up the block so i wasn't aware of some of the more egregious
things he said but uh there's a few properties like that and i just was so grateful when i spoke
to mr uh duncan that he was going to take a lot of responsibility for the property that he was
He was going to screen tenants and that he had other properties in the area where he had done that.
So we had a record of that.
And, you know, I just would like to support this happening.
you know i just would like to support this happening we have a lot of duplexes and and
We have a lot of duplexes.
complex is on the block and and uh they vary some of them are wonderful and some are problematic
and the more of the good ones we can get in uh the better for all of our property values and for
our safety and i think that uh he will put in a good one so that's all thank you very much for
calling in. We appreciate your input. Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
Chair, we have T.L. Coleman, Mr. or Ms. Coleman. Could you please unmute yourself and wait for the
chair? Hi, could you state your name and spell for the court reporter, please?
hello my name is tamika coleman that's t-a-m-e-k-a last name coleman c-o-l-e-m-a-n
right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth
yes sir proceed thank you i work in housing i also happen to live
about three houses down and across the street
from the location,
I can affirm every single thing
that was said previously
about the issues with the previous tenants.
More than anything else,
because my livelihood is connected
to affordable housing,
I am extremely in favor
of adding affordable housing to South Philadelphia.
And I know the screening process inside and out, because, again, it's part of my livelihood.
And the screening process that's being put forward is comprehensive.
So there doesn't appear, at least in my opinion, both personal and professional, to be any danger of bringing in any unpleasant elements,
especially in comparison to the people that we had in there before and there are multiple
multi-family homes on the block so i do not see the um logic of resistance to it
okay thank you very much for calling in we appreciate your input is there anyone else
in the virtual audience
TRF see no other hands at this time planning commission
thank you chair Bergman Ian Hegarty for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
members of the board the comprehensive plan recommends no change to the existing RSA 5
zoning at this location however we do believe the applicant has supported their hardship claim
with evidence of prior use as a multi-family dwelling and consistency with existing multi-family
use on this block the city planning commission recommends that the board grant the variance
thank you mi2022 002 221 2113 south 15th street i vote yes harold tennery my vote is yes
thomas holland my vote is yes james snell my vote is yes
Thank you. Number 14, MI 2022-002-382-1246 Marlborough Street.
Zen Jin is the attorney. Letter of opposition from the Fishtown Neighbors Association.
Applicant has submitted a petition of support signed by 41 neighbors.
Mr. Zen Jin is coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good morning.
Good morning.
Could you state your name and spell, please, for the court reporter?
Zen Jin, Z-H-E-N, last name J-I-N, 1617 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Suite 1838, Philadelphia
PA 19103, here on behalf of the applicant.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Could you identify your client and the relationship to the property?
Yes, my client owns the property. It's actually owned by the family, last name S-A-L-I-A-J. I believe the two of the family members may be present today to answer questions at the end.
Our vice chair has a few questions for you.
Good morning, Mr. Jin. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy?
Have you emailed the exhibit packet with proof of ownership, tax compliance, refusal, referral, photos, plans, five days in advance of this hearing, and have you met with the RCO, and do you have a letter?
Yes, to all questions.
Okay, great. You may proceed and begin by sharing your screen.
Thank you. I'm going to share with the board the information that was previously submitted.
Thank you. I'm going to share with the board the information that was previously submitted.
Can everyone see my exhibit?
We can.
Thank you.
So we have submitted a copy of the refusal, opposition letter from Fishtown Neighborhood Association, petition of support from some of the neighbors, photos, plans, and relay documentation.
This application is for the use of the property as a triplex in an existing structure.
However, it is located in an RSA 5 district.
The property itself at one point was abandoned and requires a lot of work at this point to
bring it back fully to its intended use.
In this case, my clients bought the property with the intent to use it as an investment,
and therefore they had brought forth a triplex use application.
The RCO essentially opposed it, although not all neighbors opposed it.
The votes did not come out all against my client.
However, the opposition basically focuses on the issue that some of the near neighbors have asserted that it was not used as a multifamily housing.
recently there was a worry about the density and property management would be done actually by my
client's daughter who is a licensed realtor and she would be managing through her realty which
actually has its own rental and management branch so while she herself's not a experienced manager
in that sense. She would be guided by experienced individuals to help manage the property. The
property itself, not all neighbors are, again, against the idea of a multifamily. The property
will be brought back to a usable condition. While it looks fine on the outside, the interior does
need a lot of work. My client actually went around the neighborhood and reached out to
neighbors and obtained a pretty substantial list of signatures, which are not against the idea of
the multifamily. However, we do agree that at the community meeting and ultimately their vote is
against a multifamily use here. So this property is located near the corner, but it's not a corner
property. On the one side, it does have a duplex. On the other side, it is a single family.
The area is zoned single-family, but there are some multifamily uses in the area as well.
However, this is not a complete block of multifamily as in some other cases.
So the use itself is not completely inconsistent with the area, but it is not the predominant use in the area.
Our proposal is very simple.
This is a decent-sized property with three floors.
And the goal here is to simply have each floor as its own individual unit.
The total number of bedrooms will be six with two bedrooms on each floor.
And that is essentially the proposal that is before the board.
I do have my client here who can verify my testimony,
and we're happy to answer any questions from the board or redirect to any exhibit.
Why don't we have one of your clients adopt your testimony?
Sure. If I can ask that, I believe it is, I don't want to mispronounce their name. It is
Morella or Liren should be here. Could either of you raise your hand virtually to be identified?
Mr. Jim, we have someone with the first name Luann. Is that one of your clients?
Yes, that is as well.
Okay. Ms. Luann, can you unmute yourself and wait for the chair, please?
Kai, could you state your name and spell for the court reporter, please?
Hi. Actually, my name is Adisa. I'm also one of the owners. It's spelled I-D-I-S-A, last name S-A-L-I-A-J.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Proceed, counsel.
Thank you. Did you hear my testimony and see the presentation that was made before the zoning board?
Yes, I did.
And can you verify that the information is true and correct and adopted as your own testimony?
Can you also verify your, is any other of your family member also present to verify the ownership?
Yes, Dad is here. His name is Luan, as stated in the Zoom meeting.
great thank you um questions from the board no mr chairman
no mr chairman no no mr chairman no mr chairman
council is it currently uses single family home it's currently not used um uh chairman it's
actually vacant at the at the present okay all right they're in the process of uh fixing up the
property all right thank you um questions or comments from the virtual audience
chair we have someone by the name of robert everett mr everett you can unmute yourself and
wait for the chair please i'm here all right good morning could you state your name and spell it for
the court reporter please yes first name is robert r-o-b-e-r-t last name everett e-v-e-r-e-t-t
do you swear for him to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth
i do proceed sir all right uh just for full disclosure i'm a fishtown neighbor and i am
one of the zoning committee members who reviewed this case and was okay meeting uh nothing to