Hi, Mr. Chair Verne Anastasio, representing the applicant.
We're notified by Mr. Squill's office that this would be a continuance.
Is that correct?
Which property is this?
I have several.
2005 South 4th Street.
Yes, please.
Okay, thank you.
So that case is continued.
this is the fourth list they want to mark this must be tried. So MI 2022-000-397-2005,
South 4th Street, case is continued, mark must be tried. Thank you. Thank you. And there was
another case that you mentioned for continuance, Mr. Chair, North 22nd Street. I did. I did. Yep.
We have that marked attorney moving party. I understand that. For the record, and I do just
need to put this on because my client has asked me to do so unless it is uh absolutely required
and the board is prohibited from hearing this case today uh we did in fact go through a portion of
the cdr review we mr anastasio excuse me this is hillary i understand your client would like that
on the record but we already discussed this via email the board cannot and you can forward my
email to them the board cannot hear the case until the civic design review process is complete
that has been the standard rule with the of the board for years understood no exceptions
fair enough i wanted to put it on the record but not even for me i get it no no exceptions so
thank you what i am asking is that my email to attorney emerson just be placed into the record
Well, that's fine. Thank you. Thank you.
Number seven, MI 2022-006-735-4031 Spring Garden Street.
No exhibits. Second listing.
Council Member Gautier has taken a position of opposition.
Jeffrey Young is the attorney. Mr. Chair, this is Hillary.
Sorry, we received a late request this afternoon for continuance
and that matter from attorney Jeffrey Young.
Okay, so MI 2022-006-735-4031 Spring Garden Street.
Cases continued.
Mark must be tried.
And then number four, MI 2022-006-562-4229 Otter Street.
Sherman Toppin is the attorney.
This is the request for the withdrawal.
This case has been withdrawn.
Okay, we're going to go to number five first.
MI 2023-002-510-1240 South 10th Street.
Demetria Davenport is the owner, applicant pro se.
Letter of non-opposition from Council Member Squilla.
Letter of non-opposition from the RCO, which is the Passion Square Civic Association.
letter of non-opposition from the RCO, which is to pass young square.
Hi, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Sure, Demetria Davenport, D-I-M-I-T-R-I-A, last name Davenport, D-A-V-E-N-P-O-R-T.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Our vice chair has just a few questions for you.
This application is for visitor accommodations in the same building with all other uses as previously approved.
No sign on this application.
The proposed visitor accommodation is prohibited in the RSA 5 zoning district.
And our vice chair has a few questions.
Good afternoon.
Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that are needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing?
I have, with the exception of the one document that I sent to Hillary this morning, which was the non-opposing letter for the Civic.
Understood. Please proceed and share your screen.
Thank you.
um mr chair i'd like to start with just stating that i am as as already stated i'm requesting a
variance to obtain a visitor's accommodation license um to comply with the new laws for um
for hosting for airbnb um my property is located in the east pass yonk area neighborhood where i
have resided for the last 24 years. It is a duplex. It's owned currently as a duplex, and I live in
the unit on the second floor, and I rent the first floor. So for 22 years, I was a long-term
renter and with long-term tenants. The last two years, I have been doing short-term and mid-term
rentals and have been doing it successfully without any issue or without any complaints
from the neighbors.
And so what I'm sharing with you is just my platform through Airbnb just to show you
that I have a great rating.
I have over 59 reviews showing that the unit is well cared for and taken care of.
And as stated, I have not had any complaints from my neighbors or any issues with the unit in terms of nuisance or anything like that in the community.
I did submit the non-opposing letter from my civic organization, was the Pasch Young Avenue Civic Association.
association. And it was not opposed. I think there were two people, two neighbors who did
give opposition. But from the committee, I had no opposition with the property. I'm just
trying to share some additional documents that I have so you can actually see the unit.
Okay, sure. Thank you.
I apologize, I'm just getting that out.
Your share screen at the bottom, the green button.
Yeah, I just have to make sure I have the right.
I'm looking for making sure I have all the documents.
I thought I had all the documents open in my file and I don't.
Here you go, it's coming up.
Can you see that?
We need you to just show us some photos.
Click on that.
I believe that they are in, but let me see.
I thought I was showing them.
Oh, here we go.
Okay, here you are.
Can you see the unit now?
Okay, great.
This is the rental unit?
This is the rental unit.
It is a bi-level duplex, and so I rent the first, and bi-level being that the unit does have two levels.
So this is the first level.
This is your living room where you see it's a very spacious unit, high ceilings, well furnished, full kitchen.
Noted by those photos, there is it's a one bedroom unit.
So with a full washroom here, the winding steps here takes you to the second level where it is a one a one bedroom unit bathroom.
So only on the second level, you just have one bedroom and a bath there.
again it's well furnished
it's been this gives you
something to lay out
in terms of square footage
it's 1200 square feet so it's a pretty
sizable unit
so that gives you some
some some there's some additional pictures so you can see a better view of the kitchen the living
additional
pictures so you can see a better
um it is in terms of security it is um it is um self-accessing meaning that i do have
I have a panel on the front where our neighbors, where those coming in and out are able to access it.
In addition to doing short-term rental, I've also did some mid-term rental.
And so I've hosted a number of nurses, traveling nurses that come into the area, as well as some students who currently I am hosting a student at Jefferson University.
And so it is a safe area, an area that's well-traveled in the community, and people enjoy it because it is around the corner from Patent Geno State. It's also accessible with public transportation. And so I've been quite successful in terms of being able to provide short-term rental and would like to continue to do so with the proper licensing.
Thank you. Thank you very much. Questions from the board?
no mr chairman no chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
do not see any answer mr chair planning commission uh ron bednar first name ron
r-o-n last name bednar b-e-d-n-a-r do you swear referring to tell the truth the whole truth
nothing but the truth i do proceed run comprehensive plan recommends no change
the existing residential single-family zoning.
The applicant has not shown
that the property cannot be possibly used
to a strict conformity with the zoning code
and that a variance is therefore necessary
to enable a viable economic use of the property.
City Planning Commission therefore recommends
that the request for variance not be granted.
Thank you.
MI 2023, 002-510-1240 South 10th Street, I vote yes for a temporary variance that will expire 9-1-26.
Thomas Solomon, my vote is yes with Proviso.
James Hill, my vote is yes with Proviso.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is yes with Proviso.
Thank you.
thank you you have your votes thank you all right number one MI 2022 006-596-1708 West Erie
Dan Mita is the attorney for the owner um there's a letter of support
from the 13th Ward RCO and Councilwoman Bass has taken a position of non-opposition
Thank you.
Hi, Mr. Mita, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, thank you, Mr. Chair. Thanks for your grace while I work through the
technological transition. Okay. My name is Daniel Mita, spelled M-I-T-A, with Dwayne Morse, LLP,
here representing LXR, LLP3, comma, LLC. Do you swear, Firm, to tell the truth,
the whole truth, nothing but the truth? Yes, I do. Our vice chair has just a few questions for
you, sir. Good afternoon, counsel. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate
to its accuracy? Yes, I do, Mr. Vice-Chair. Have you emailed in all the required documents and
exhibits that are needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing? Yes.
Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
thank you mr vice chair
are you down at the bottom i am yeah i'm about pulling up right now
okay great
uh mr chair ladies and gentlemen uh of the board uh thank you for hearing us we're here as stated
for 1708 West Erie Avenue, Philadelphia PA 19-140. We are appearing in front of you for
zoning relief relating to the property, which is currently zoned as RSA 5.
relating to the property which is currently zoned as rsa5 residential zoning the relief requested
is for a variance in connection with three units the property is currently constructed and situated
as three unit multi-family just by way of background our client acquired the property back
in March of 2018. They appealed to the ZBA back in 2019, and in February of 2019, received
approval from this body for the same variance with the same set of facts. Just to kind of
reiterate, the property was purchased as a three unit building. It was only post acquisition
because it was part of a portfolio that diligencing and pulling the appropriate licenses for the
subject property, it was identified that there was not a zoning license, which then led to the
zoning permit and our clients understanding that the property was not properly zoned, hence
proceeding with achieving zoning relief, which they obtained back in February, 2019, as noted
earlier, zoning permit was pulled back in July of 2019, number 91509. And as there were no changes
being done to the subject property, and it was already in use for the three units, and there was
really no work other than some general upkeep and cosmetic refreshments being done, the client did
not proceed with pulling a CO. Fast forward a little bit to the following year at the initiation
of the pandemic. By the time the client was able to, in order to pull the license, get the lead
paint inspection done, the time period had lapsed in order, the six-month period that is, in order
to obtain the CO. Hence, when the client went back to get the zoning license of October of last year,
L&I issued the refusal, noting the lapse of the zoning approval, which is why we are brought back to you today.
We went back before the RCO and fielded a number of subsequent questions.
And you'll see in Exhibit 15 of our packet, there's an RCO letter of support with Provisios dated August 18, 2003.
I'm very glad to go through recitation of the balance of exhibits that were transmitted.
But I trust you'll find they satisfy their requirements, the submittal requirements of our application.
If you have some photos of the property, why don't you show us the photos?
Absolutely. So I'll jump ahead to tab eight, which will be photos of the subject property.
I'm sorry.
here we go so this is uh you can see a photo of the front of the property and the rear of the
property these are the uh pictures of the streets in which it's situated intersection west area at
north 17th and on your left the neighborhood across the street 1708 west area which demonstrates
is a showing of mixed and multifamily units
and single-family dwellings.
Next photo, properties adjacent on your left
and on the right and intersection
of West Erie Avenue, North 17th Street.
I can proceed with showing interior photos
if you'd like, Mr. Chair.
Everything separated, electric separated and all that?
Yes, sir.
The utilities?
please? Yes, they're separately metered. Okay.
Some floor plans, interior visuals of the units. These are preoccupancy, post ownership. So they
reflect the work that our clients did to the units, two of the units prior to tenants moving in.
see new appliances granite countertops tile backsplash part of what floors throughout
there's the spacious units and this is just a google maps uh which indicates with the red dot
uh where the subject property is situated in the general context the neighborhood
there's other multiple units on the block
pardon me mr chairman there's other multiple family units on the block
correct that's our understanding that's right okay all right um do you want to
Correct. That's our understanding. That's right.
Okay. All right. Do you want to bring your client on?