corridor out. Photographs of the property. Again, we're not changing the footprint of this property
in any way. We're just updating it to its previous use as a two-unit dwelling. And then here's the
hearing notice posting or proof of it. And then here is Aspen Street to the right of the property
and that's been street to the left of the property. And our plans and drawings, again,
pretty simple floor plan. You go into this porch area, you have a vestibule area, you go to the
right, that's unit number one, that's a one-bedroom, one and a half bath. You go up a flight of steps
and there's a bi-level for the second and third floors and that's a three-bedroom, two bath
on the second and third floors. And then our meeting notice, we met with the community
this month August 17th we had a significant outreach to the community in terms of the mailing
proof of these are the addresses we mailed to proof of mailing to those addresses
our application for appeal that we filed on behalf of Hidmona Inc
our deed showing that Hidmona Inc is the owner of the property
and our Certificate of Tax Clearance.
With that being said, I would ask that Efron virtually raise his hand.
He is one of the principals of this company.
Sir, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Please raise your virtual hand to wait to be sworn in.
sir could you state your name please and spell for the stenographer
do not sing any hands what is the name again may i ask
do not sing any hands what is the name again
ephraim i'm gonna apologize if i butchered a name uh techley gorgigas
oh there he is i see him
hi sir could you state your name and spell it for the court stenographer
they might be having some technical issues with their
Mr. Nachamson you're an officer of the court
we will accept your testimony
thank you Mr. Chair
questions from the board
no Mr. Chairman
no Chair
questions or comments from the virtual questions or comments from the virtual audience
i do not see any hands mr chair planning commission thank you chair bergman and board
members good afternoon david vecto with the city planning commission this property was rezoned in
2017 in a neighborhood zoning map change in accord with recommendations in the comprehensive
of plan and with the support of the community there is no unique physical condition or circumstance
of this property that would prevent it from being used in conformance with the zoning code
the city planning commission recommends the board deny the proposed use variance for two dwelling
units thank you mi 2023 002 333 39 38 aspen street i vote yes thomas holliman my vote is yes
james now my vote is yes ishmael shaheed my vote is yes mr knockerson please stay on
mi 2023 002 355 6104 market street um
so there's a letter of support from achievability and there is also a letter of
recommendation
for this to be a temporary variance
or if not
there would be no support from
Councilmember Gauthier and then the applicant
also provided a petition and support signed by
approximately 24 neighbors
Mr. Nockmson could you identify your client please
yes my client is the owner of the property
winfeld uh investments llc and in the virtual audience uh is its member len cheng right and
our vice chair has a few questions for you good afternoon council do you agree to wait the reading
of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy i do have you emailed them all the required documents
and exhibits that are needed and required to proceed with this case five days in advance of
this hearing? Yes, we have. Thank you. Please proceed to hear your screen.
All right, so we're here to present 6104 Market Street. This is currently zoned as a CMX2 property
where we have a permit for two residential units and one commercial unit. The essence of this
zoning variance request is to swap out the commercial unit with the residential unit,
and that's why we're here today. So first, we'll review the notice of refusal,
then the letter of support from Achievability, the coordinating RCO. Not only did we get the
support of the community group, but we also got significant support by nearby neighbors,
and you'll see that by way of the petition. You'll also see that this property has a past
of a non-residential use.
So before we received a zoning permit
to allow for two residential and one commercial,
at one point, this property was fully residential.
While it was only single family in nature,
it still was fully residential.
So it's not out of character to have this property
be used solely as residential.
Then we'll review the maps of the area.
I mean, it's basically on the L,
like where Market Street is.
So we have ample public transportation.
The issue we have today with this property and many properties in close proximity to
here is that the commercial corridor is struggling.
And part of the reason why it's struggling is the lack of density in this part of Philadelphia.
And what we're going to show through our presentation that it's not uncommon to allow
for full residential use, including on the ground floor in a multifamily nature in this
So what we're asking for is not out of character and doesn't stick out like a sore thumb.
So what we're asking for is not out of character and doesn't stick out like a sore thumb.
So given the history of this property as fully residential and given that there are other properties that are residential on the ground floor and given that there are multiple empty storefronts, including ours, which we cannot rent out, you know, we're asking this board to grant this variance.
And we'll talk about the temporary nature of it, which, again, is not something that would typically this board would grant just because the cost involved in converting this commercial unit to a residential unit.
Then we'll review maps of the area, photographs of the property.
We also have interior photographs.
You'll see what the condition of this property as a whole was before we cleaned up the residential aspects of it.
We'll also talk to you a little bit about Len Chang and his organization. Not only is he well-versed in managing properties, residential properties throughout the city of Philadelphia, their business model is focused almost entirely on affordable housing.
The other two residential units are affordable units.
If this board grants this variance, the third unit on the ground floor is going to be an affordable unit.
This community needs affordable units.
That's why they supported this project amongst all.
Plus, there's all these empty storefronts there.
We'll review the plans and drawings.
We'll have the RCO meeting notice, improved mailing end notice, our application for appeal that we filed on behalf of Winfield Investments, LLC.
fee, our deed to the property showing Winfield Investments LLC as the owner, and our certificate
of tax clearance. Again, at the conclusion of our presentation, I would ask that Mr. Chang
virtually raise his hand, be sworn in, and I have a few questions about my presentation.
I'm sure he may want to even interject because of his experience with this property.
So our notice of refusal, again, this is a CMX2 property. We're allowed three units as of right,
two residential, one commercial. And we just want to swap out the commercial unit with residential.
We've had this property fully functioning as a two plus one since 2017. And quite honestly,
it's just been a disaster from the commercial standpoint. We have not been able to keep a
viable commercial tenant in there. And this has been going on for over six years. How expensive
this process is how long this process is you know you know in spite of that my client is willing to
you know has been willing to forego like um having any rent there and honestly he couldn't get rent
there even if he wanted but he has two refusals uh the first is um you know you can't have commercial
residential on the ground floor of a commercial that's refusal number one and you know again
Again, we're just shy to allow for three units residential, forget about swapping it out,
and that's the second refusal.
We're only allowed two residential units, we're asking for three, and we don't meet
the lot size requirements of that.
But again, we're trying to swap out the commercial for residential.
Cheapability, again, we met with them at a well-attended meeting, and they support this
project, and they specifically referenced the petition.
We did great, you know, community outreach, even prior to the community meeting, it was important to Mr. Chang to show the community that he did that outreach. And, you know, again, given the property's history, given that there are other vacant lot of vacant commercial spaces on this commercial corridor, given that some of those other ground floor units are also residential, I think came into play for their support.
And then again, just showing that in 2000, before we owned this property, this was solely a residential property, had no commercial component whatsoever.
And then maps of the area. Again, we're CMX2. There's actually bordering on CMX3, which would probably allow for this use.
And then we were behind on RM1. Our lot size is $1,121. So if this was an RM1 property, this would be allowed as a right.
And then photographs of the property. Here we are in the neighborhood. Proof of posting for today's hearing, the hearing notice. And then you can see Market Street to the right of the property, Market Street to the left of the property. You can even see from these pictures, there are some non-commercial units on the ground floor.
So we canvass the neighborhood. These are the first floor residential neighborhoods in close proximity to us. 6108 Market Street, 6106 Market Street, 6048 Market Street. Actually, strike that. That's a vacant lot. 6044 Market Street, 6042 Market Street, 6040 Market Street.
6044 Market Street, 6042 Market Street, 6040 Market Street, 6032 Market Street,
6030 Market Street, 6028, 2622, and then 6018-20 Market Street.
All ground floor residential.
And then here are the vacant commercial spaces, 6126-32, 24, 6100-02, 6050, 6056, 6012, 6006-08, 6106-6108.
And a few of them have been vacant as far back as 2012.
well. So interior photos, this is what the property looked like before my client purchased it.
It was in shambles. And this is the pictures now of the residential, the legal residential units
above. He takes great pride in this work product. Again, his business model is affordable housing.
And he would, you know, he would include this unit also within that business model.
and then our plans and drawings it's just a simple floor plan um you know you walk in you
have an open area with a living room and you have a bathroom and it looks like you have two bedrooms
and then we met uh with the community on june 29th uh you know we had a significant amount of
people who received our mailing here's those addresses proof of mailing to those addresses
or application for appeal
on behalf of Winfield Investments
or deed,
which shows that Winfield Investments
is the owner of the property
and certificate of tax credits.
With that being said,
I would ask that,
well, before that,
in terms of having a temporary variance,
it's going to cost my client,
and forget about the legal fees
and the time lost
in this property, this unit being vacant.
It would cost my client,
it's going to cost my client $20,000 to $30,000
just to renovate this one unit
and convert it into a residential unit.
Given the rents that my client charges,
he estimated, and he helped adopt my testimony as his own,
that it would take two years of rents
to equate, to equal the cost involved
in converting that unit.
So any temporary variance would make it unmanageable to actually, you know, continue on with this process.
We just don't want a vacant commercial space.
And we're saying that the grounds exist for us to convert that into residential.
With that being said, I would ask that Mr. Chang virtually raise his hands.
Sir, could you state your name and spell, please, for the court stenographer?
Sure. My name is Leonard Chang, L-E-O-N-A-R-D-C-H-A-N-G.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, sir.
Proceed, counsel.
Yeah, Mr. Chang, you heard everything I had to state today.
And is it true and correct?
And do you adopt it as your own testimony?
And in particular, regarding the temporary, any temporary proposed variance,
It would be economically unmanageable for you to agree to such.
Correct.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
Mr. Chair, I have a Nanette Hill with her hand raised.
If I don't know, I'm going to speak.
Hi, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Hi, my name is Leonette Hill.
Did you hear that clearly?
I did.
Could you spell it, please, for the stenographer?
The spelling is L-E-A-N-N-E-T-T.
My last name is Hill.
The last spelling is H-I-L-L.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Are you a neighbor?
Proceed.
Um, so my name is Leanna Hill. I am a lifelong community resident of West Philadelphia.
There is no denial that our business and commercial corridor is struggling. However,
as a community leader in West Philadelphia, we have been working with our elected officials as
well as Achievability to pretty much improve the corridor. And if Mr. Chain was involved with the