I should have probably tested this okay it's a lot harder than I thought folks
I'm gonna try clicking on it and see if it brings it up do you see documents on
my screen right now? Not yet. How about now? No. No, all right. No. Sorry, Don. I might have to play around with this later. I'm going to, let me ask you this. Do you have the documents accessible? If I can refer to the refusal, are you able to see it in your exhibits? No? All right. Let me try this one more time, folks.
So, Mr. DeMarco, once you hit share screen at the bottom, then click on the document
you wish to share.
Yeah, it didn't pop up, let me see, let me try it again.
It looks like I have to grant access, oh I see, here we go, that didn't work, dang it.
I'm going to try this again.
I don't know.
Sorry, folks.
I'm going to have to play around with that.
Anyway, let me try to do this without.
Sorry about this.
The refusal is simply a rear yard variance.
we're requesting permission to have six foot nine inches and nine
feet are required and it's open space which is the variances the minimum is
25 percent and we're asking for 15.6 percent so these are dimensional
variances the use is permitted these are single-family row homes consistent with
the block. They're minimal relief. The Hertzberg case standards applicable. The burden of proof
is a lesser standard. The issue is that the property has been there and the neighbors are
upset. And look, I understand why they're upset. I wouldn't want to have a property next door that
was unfinished for a long period of time but to be clear the the owner has operated pursuant to
valid permits one of them got revoked and there was a stop work order um we had to go to court
so the point i'm making mr chairman and members of the board the owner is paying the price for
the issues that he's had with different contractors he's had to change contractors
there's been some turnover, there have been some violations, but the zoning is holding up
the completion of the job with L&I. The zoning is the step that L&I keeps citing
as the reason why we can't finish the job. In my exhibit packet, I have engineer's letters
that state that the building is structurally sound, but we're sitting here with the stop work
order, and we're here for the use. We're here for the zoning. We're not here to blame the owner,
punish the owner, and make sure he's never able to finish the job. This zoning, these two minor
dimensional zoning variances are the last step in the process in order to get the building done
from what i understand from the neighbors the objection is not to the relief the objection
is they don't want to reward the developer for his mistakes and you know if we had sought these
You know, if we had sought this relief prior to constructing the frame or the footprint, it would probably not be a difficult case for you.
this relief prior to
construction
But because we have opposition, because there's been mistakes along the road with different contractors, this is why the case is a contested case.
But let's not forget, zoning is about use.
It's not specific to a certain person or conduct or owner.
it's whether the property itself suffers from an unnecessary hardship. I'm going to have my
clients verify some of the statements I've made in a moment but let me say this if we were to not get
the relief the foundation has already been poured. The foundation will have to be cracked open and
we'll have to start over from square one we would have to demolish the existing frame of the
building it would be a catastrophe and everybody has to start over from square
one which would be in nobody's interest so let me just turn my screen to dr.
Zaccone see if this works mr. DeMarco while you're doing that yes I'm familiar
with it obviously so I only live a couple blocks away okay could you just
for the benefit of the other board members and and everyone else uh give us the timeline i remember
when it was a it belonged to senator fumo many years ago when it was a a parking lot your client
purchased the property and when the purchase date when was it 17 16 not 10. oh i'm sorry november of
2010 the doctors answering november 2010. okay and could you tell us again i just want to walk
everybody through the timeline when did construction begin so we have actually obtained a zoning
permit and i'm sorry i can't seem to bring up my exhibits but the first permit was 2014
and september 9th 2014 was a zoning permit for a single family dwelling a building permit was pulled
March 23rd, 2015, for a single-family dwelling.
A second building permit, I guess that was the foundation permit, the permit I just mentioned.
The full building permit was pulled June 7th, 2017, single-family dwelling.
Then I think there was a change in contractors.
There was a break in the action, but another zoning permit was pulled, single-family dwelling, May 2019, and then an easy building permit for the brickwork, 11-27, November 27, 2019.
And in January or February of this year, there were violations and there was a stop work order.
So there's been permits issued by L&I all along the way.
The issue is one of the zoning permits had a footprint that did not include the variance relief.
so the current structure uh did not match the um the plans so the inspector said go get the
variance for the dimensional relief everything's okay but you're too deep and that is why that is
exactly why we're here today a two foot rear yard deviation from the code and an open space area of
about 10 percent um too deep is an understatement i don't mean that sarcastically it's well how does
the property at 11 43 at 41 i would guess how do you get access out in and out i mean there's
seems to be no room from the back of these properties for 1141 to have access out to
out to 12th street 1143 is the corner right corner right i'm sorry 1145 is the corner property
and how does 1143 gain access to 12th street
without crossing over the footprint of 1145.
So, again, I'm just curious.
I just can't see how it works.
Yeah, well, this is the condition.
Well, the condition that you're identifying is consistent with the other homes in the block.
It's the same issue.
There is no alleyway in the rear of...
there is no alley, there's no alleyway in the rear of, of either property.
All right, I'll grant you that, I'll grant you that.
Right, so our properties to our, if you're facing the property,
the properties to the right have the same issue.
This is just, you know, it's because you have a triangular block there.
The homes of the triangular street is, what is that street?
Titan. Oh, Lynn. Lynn Street. Lynn Street. There's a diagonal street. This is where
Paschonk comes in and it creates a lack of ability to have alleyways. So these are conditions
consistent with the rest of the block. I'm going to try to share my screen. It was poorly designed
in my opinion, but that's beside the point. All right. Right. Well, the home itself isn't just a
typical rectangular no i mean but they would have made yard space and they went too far out but
that's it did go too far the structures are up i understand that but but mr chairman keep in mind
the the dimensional variances that we're looking for it's two it's two feet two feet three inches
so i would submit to the board that the depth is a is a de minimis now the open space a little bit
different but if you look at the other properties on the block a lot of these properties have built
out and if i'm sorry i can't seem to get this right but you look at my overhead you look at
the other neighboring properties um they're all built out very few have real rear yards property
i understand that the the board can't see any plan so i'm just trying to and i have a conversation
about how that property does so i have a if i could just i have a mac and i think that's part
of the my laptop is a mac and it doesn't connect me all right let me show you anyway continue don't
worry about that i mean i don't have much else but you can we're not going to be able to see it that
way no okay forget it sorry forget it all right but we need to stand let me put the doctor on to
verify my testimony dr zaccone name and address william's account uh 1208 castor street philadelphia
of Pennsylvania, one night.
Doc, please spell your name for the record.
You can speak loud.
You can take your mask off.
I'm sorry.
Last name is Zaccone, Z-A-C-C-O-N-E.
Thank you.
Do you swear and affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Thank you.
Dr. Zaccone, did you hear all the factual testimony I gave
to the board today in my summary?
Is it true and accurate as far as the facts go,
and do you accept it as your testimony?
Does anybody have any questions of the doctor?
Any questions?
All right.
Tanya?
Tanya, anyone else, anyone online to testify?
Yes, we have Tony.
Oh, I have one.
I do have one more person to just to verify one more thing.
Thank you.
Go ahead.
Thank you.
Sorry to interrupt.
I have Mr. Matea here.
Name and address.
Anthony Matea, 2907.
Did you hear my testimony that if we were not to receive the variances, the foundation would have to be,
first of all, are you involved with the construction at the site?
As of now, yes.
As of now.
And if the variances were not to be granted, would you have to actually remove a portion of the foundation
and rebuild the entire house?
Absolutely.
And that would be an extreme cost to Dr. Zucone?
Do you accept the other facts that I mentioned in my summary as true and accurate as far as you know?
Thank you.
Go ahead.
Thank you.
Thank you.
All right, Tanya.
Okay, we have Tony Cho.
You can unmute yourself and speak.
Hi, my name is Tony Cho.
Can you hear me okay?
Yes, and please spell your name for the stenographer, please.
Tony, T-O-N-Y, last name Cho, C-H-O.
I live at 1133 Asker Street, a couple of doors down.
Yeah, Mr. Cho, do you swear and affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Thank you. Please proceed.
I just want to ask, so the neighbors, we submitted a letter quite a while ago from the initial hearing a couple months ago.
I was wondering if the board has received that letter and the materials that went along with it.
Tanya, would you happen to know if there's any letters in the file from the neighbors?
Is that the letter from the passing square or is it letters from just near
neighbors? We collectively put together a letter and had some attachments with a
timeline and a spreadsheet of the current open violations on the property. Thank
you. No, I wouldn't. Where was it submitted?
No, I wouldn't. Where was it submitted?
This was submitted before the last continuance, which, forgive me, I don't remember, it was
like February or so, I guess I want to say, March, right before everything shut down?
Oh, so no, we wouldn't have copies or anything from the hard copy, fine.
Okay. Is there an ability for me to share my screen?
Yes, it's okay. Yes.
I think this is actually
Mr. DeMarco's screen
Okay, great
Let me just
Can you see my screen?
Yes, Mr. Cho
Can you just back away from your mic a little bit?
Sure, I'm sorry about that
Can you see my screen now?
We have your screen
Okay, so this is one of the attachments that
We submitted along with the letter
I'm not going to show you the letter
Because you're not going to read it through on your screen
but you know this is a little bit of a history of the properties both at 1143 and 1145 as you can
see this goes back to 2014 um and obviously um mr chairman you said you live near the property you
know exactly what it looks like you know the conditions of the properties as it's been sitting
around um has been horrific so you can see the trash uh located here um the trash and the fencing
that continues to pile up against it you know this is what you know we the neighbors have been
putting out with for for many many years um let me just scroll down back here if you see this
picture down here at the bottom may 2018 you're talking about you're trying to get sense of what
the the backyard uh looks like that's the combination of two of them um you know that's
the the debris and the trash that's been going back there and obviously you can see there is