McKean Street, an open courtyard that then leads back to this larger R parcel. And I've got some
other photos that will articulate it better for the board. You can see here 1715 McKean is this
You can see here, 1715 McKean is this space here.
space here. The R.
The R parcel picks up after you go through this small opening.
There's a courtyard and then a building behind that is now being proposed for a variety of uses.
And the board actually, I believe, has applications for this address for the next three weeks as different tenants are coming into this space.
This is the building here.
and to give a better sense of this courtyard this is the it's it's the old um abbott's dairy
building and so you've got 1715 front here there's a dog daycare that's in this front portion of the
space and then this open courtyard that goes back to the entrance to the r building back here and
what's proposed is for one of the spaces within the r building to become the body art studio this
is just another picture looking from the back of that little area out towards McKean Street.
Photograph of our posting and photographs of McKean Street as you look to the right and left
of the property. Right now, the space, it used to be home to a cabinet manufacturing business.
The owners of the building manufacture the cabinets. They're in the process of moving
their manufacturing facility elsewhere and then renting the space out. So it's a very raw space
right now. The plan is that this is going to be partitioned off and will become the tattoo studio
if the board allows us to proceed. This is the floor plan of the space. You can see the entrance
off the lobby here. It's a small space. There's a drawing area, a tattooing area with a sink
and a bathroom. It's a very intimate artist space. It's not a large tattoo shop that's going to have
lots of customers queuing up, waiting in line, things like that. She may have other artists who
will join her here, but they're open by appointment only. There will be no walk-in service, so you'll
have to make an appointment through her to be able to visit the space. And so that really addresses
any concern about loitering or other crowd control-based issues for the parcel.
As the chair mentioned, we did meet with the RCO, and we have a letter of support here in the file.
Everybody who attended, including the near neighbors, was in support of the application.
They believe that the I-2 zoning of the lot creates its own hardship as applied to this
because of the zoning around it.
As you can see, everything else around the building is RM1.
So having the requirement that a buy right I-2 use go in here would be more disruptive
for the neighbors than a buy appointment only tattoo parlor.
And just to give the board a sense of Holly's work, before I ask her to adopt my testimony,
these are samples of some of her artwork taken off of her website.
As you can see, these are very detailed tattoos that really have a lot of fine line and artistry to them.
Holly, if you are in the virtual audience, can you raise your hands that you might adopt my testimony?
Thank you.
Holly, you're allowed to speak.
Hi, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court, sonographer?
Good afternoon.
My name is Holly Danese, H-O-L-L-Y-D-A-N-E-S-I.
You swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, counsel.
Thank you.
Holly, did you have a chance to hear my presentation this afternoon?
And do you adopt my statements as true and correct in your own if you've been given a longer chance to speak?
yes great uh questions from the board no mr chairman questions or comments more attorney
hillary emberson just briefly mr klein i just wanted to verify that the this this use is
proposed for suite 204 did i read that correctly yes all right thank you and i i did i have seen
some other things come in with other properties so i do want to make sure we distinguish
or other suites in this property.
Right, there's another larger application
of Borgal here about a brewery
that's going into the ground floor.
Yes, yes.
Okay, thank you.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
I see no hands.
Planning Commission.
Thank you, Chair Bergman, Sarah Bond
for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
The comprehensive plan recommends a zoning map change
to industrial mixed use under the recommended zoning the proposed use would be a special exception
the proposed use will not cause detrimental impacts to the neighborhood beyond what might normally be expected
The proposed use will not cause detrimental impacts to the neighborhood beyond what might normally be expected.
Therefore, the City Planning Commission recommends that the Zoning Board grant the variance.
MI 2024-000-311-1715R McKean Street, I vote yes, with proviso, use limited to Suite 204.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes, with proviso.
So, James Snell, my vote is yes with proviso.
Thank you.
Thank you, counsel.
Number two, MI 2023-002-231-3030 North 20th Street.
Peter Kelson is the attorney.
There's a letter of support from Allegheny West Civic Association.
CDR was required and completed.
Peter Kelsen is coming in as a panelist.
Good afternoon, Mr. Kelsen.
Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, members of the board.
Peter Kelsen on behalf of New Cortland Properties for the subject property.
Just for the record, Mr. Kelsen, could you spell your name so that...
Of course. It's Peter, P-E-T-E-R, Kelsen, K-E-L-S-E-M.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
And your client, again, could you identify your client one more time?
Is New Cortland Properties.
Okay. And Mr. Holloman has a few questions, sir.
Absolutely.
Mr. Chair. Good afternoon, counsel. Good afternoon. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
I do, with one exception, Mr. Holliman. We are not including any commercial use as part of this appeal and application.
That's part of our proviso plan and correspondence I've had with the board previously.
So everything else on the refusal I stipulate to, but because there will be no commercial use and that was part of the refusal, it's really a moot point at this point.
Thank you.
Did you email all the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
I did, yes.
please proceed and share your screen
I'd like to promote
Mr. Martin Grigorski
who's going to help me share the screen if I could
okay sure
they have been promoted to panelists
thank you so much
thank you
Mr. Chairman, members of the board, the subject property, let's go to the refusal if we could.
Subject property is zoned I-1 industrial.
If you look at the site photographs that are contained in your package, Marty, let's go to the overhead, please.
You will note that this site is vacant. It has been vacant since 1980. Subject property was acquired by the Redevelopment Authority via condemnation, and we are working with the Redevelopment Authority as a redeveloper to develop this site, as I'll mention in a few moments.
The site is fairly large. It contains about 53,600 square feet of lot area.
And if you look at the zoning map that's part of the package, you'll see that the property is really surrounded by mixed zoning.
There is industrial. Most of that is vacant, but there is some active industrial.
And directly adjacent on two sides of the property, we have at 21st Street, across 21st Street, residential, RSA 5, and across Toronto as well, RSA 5.
The application before you members of the board is to create a brand new four-story building containing a total of 48 new residential units that will be utilized for senior affordable housing.
Again, we're working with the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority on this project.
Again, we're working with the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority on this project.
The site will contain 33 parking spaces.
Units will be one bedroom.
Six of the units will be fully accessible located on the first level.
Two will be accessible for the visually impaired.
The balance will be adaptable and visitable.
The unit sizes will range from approximately 600 square feet to about 670 square feet.
The project will be supported at a 50 percent AMI level, average medium income, supported by low income housing tax credits, as well as rent subsidies as part of the affordability component.
We will provide a community room, community kitchen as well. Trash will be stored inside the building internally. I would have the board note, and Marty, maybe we can put the renderings up if we could, that the building has been oriented in terms of its main entrance to basically abut the residential buildings that exist across Toronto Street.
So it's welcome. And it's it's enlivening the streetscape and residential meets residential, which we felt is very important.
As I indicated earlier, and I have guaranteed the PRA, I would say this multiple times, there will be no commercial use located at this property.
And if there is commercial use, it will be a separate application to the board.
And again, our proviso plan notes that that has been withdrawn from the application.
As the chair indicated, we had meetings with Allegheny West.
They are supportive of the application.
Design review was completed.
The hardship to the property members of the board is pretty obvious.
There is no viable industrial use in this area, certainly not for this site.
This application will remove and remediate blight.
It will activate the area and also create an essential affordable housing component to the community, especially for seniors.
It will allow a viable reuse of this vacant lot, which, as I said to you earlier, has been vacant since 1980, in accordance with not only the urban renewal plan for the area, but also in accordance with the Planning Commission's comprehensive plan.
If the board has any questions, our architect is in the room, the developers, representatives are in the room, and we'd be happy to answer any you may have.
Thank you.
Mr. Kelsey, you want to bring someone on that would adopt your testimony that developed the baby?
Mr. Unger, if you're available, could you please raise your hand?
John Unger has been allowed to speak.
Mr. Unger, could you state your name, please, and spell for the stenographer?
John Unger, J-O-H-N-U-N-G-A-R.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, counsel.
Thank you. Mr. Unger, are you affiliated with New Cortland?
Yes, I am. I'm the Corporate Counsel and Director of Planning for New Cortland.
Thank you. And you heard the statements that I've given the zoning board a few moments ago. Is that correct?
Yes, I did.
Did you hear all of the presentation that I made?
Yes, I heard the entire presentation.
Would you adopt that presentation as your own and make it your testimony?
Yes, I do.
And you affirm that testimony as well, correct?
Yes, I do.
I thank you very much.
All right.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
No, Chair.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
i just wanted to excuse me clarify a couple quick things because on the on the original
refusal said there there would be two structures erected now only one structure is proposed um
but all of the the 33 parking spaces are still there right and um is there still an off-street
loading space or is that for the the proposed commercial use that's now no longer there
That is no longer there. So you are correct, Hillary, that the 33 spaces are available and will be supportive of the residential. And there is no commercial. And I think that's answering your questions.
I think that's answering your questions.
Yes. No, thank you very much.
No, thank you very much.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
Chair, we have Charles Richardson with a hand raised.
They have been allowed to speak.
Good afternoon, Mr. Richardson.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the stenographer?
Good afternoon, Mr. Chair.
Charles Richardson, R-I-C-H-A-R-D-S-O-N, Office of Councilwoman Cindy Bass, room 508 City Hall.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed.
The Councilwoman is very supportive of the granting of this variance.
Thank you for your time and call this.
Is there anyone else in the verse audience?
The number ending in 3552 has been allowed to speak.
Could you please state your name and spell for the stenographer?
This is Adrienne Fernandez.
Can you hear me okay?
Yeah, I can.
Adrian, spell your name for the stenographer, please.
My last name is spelled F-E-R-N-A-N-D-E-Z.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed.
Our letter of support was sent in late.
We support this project, and we just have four provisos that I want to read into record.