they have been promoted to panelists
yes all right i know we can see you now too all right yeah i'm i'm currently in the car on the
way to my daughter's uh dance recital rehearsal so i apologize that i'm not at home um but that's
where i am i'm not driving you're not driving okay that's that's an important part okay um
so um mr hartnett there's a lot that's been testified to what are the areas that you want
to focus on in your testimony um so i did submit a statement and just to be cognizant of time i can
be as brief as you would like um excuse me there excuse me apologies gentlemen um i didn't i don't
believe mr hartnett was sworn in oh i thought i was i'm sorry i thought i did but okay we'll do it
again do you swear or firm to tell the truth the whole truth is nothing but the truth yes sir
Proceed.
Mr. Hartman, let me go through some of your statements then,
because since you're in the car, you may not be able to review it in front of you.
I got a little piece of paper.
Okay. Oh, okay.
Can you – how many of the community meetings were you present at?
I believe I was present at all but one due to an illness of my children.
and um with all the times that you spent um with other neighbors and and with the applicants and
with uh the elected officials um what theme did emerge from all of those meetings and in your
mind um i i just feel that there was a lack of trust that has been established um there's not
been a lot of transparency um any any kind of questions that we have tried to um participate
in has been met with um either through the filter of of a lawyer or um you know it's met with with
a lot of opposition um and it it's been very frustrating especially because when we do get
some clarity on something things change um and it's just it doesn't feel very secure um it doesn't
feel as though um the community is really and this is my experience that the community has
has been well received by the applicant like i just feel like it should be the opposite i feel
been well received by the applicant. I just feel like it should be the opposite. I feel like
like the
we should be able to receive them and bring them in. And it just, that relationship has been so
contentious. And is the relationship between the community and the applicant something that's
important to you looking at this facility? Yeah. I mean, especially for myself, you know,
I'm right there. I would need to feel secure in knowing that my concerns are listened to,
that I'm not negated in what my experiences are. And I don't have that feeling. I don't
have that feeling of rapport. I don't have that feeling of trust. It makes me fearful,
to be frank it makes me fearful about what what could happen so you went to a lot of meetings
with these with the development team for this project right yeah i i was at the original
january meeting um i think i did miss one i went to the meeting with squilla i went to um
another one of the rco meetings um i feel like there was another one i can't put my finger on
it at the moment um but i i've tried to be be involved and be you know an active member in this
just just to even get answers and and and feel like there's some transparency about what's going
on so you know the um the the members of the zoning board haven't been at these meetings um
it'll be important for them to understand your experience so how would you describe the level
of candor and openness
to the concerns of the community
by the members of the development team
in all the meetings that you had?
It's been very contentious.
It feels like, you know,
for example,
a question that we are near neighbors
asking about this.
um having having a reply from emails that that's you know seems seems very aggressive um i i i wish
there was a way that i could you know quote if i had thought about it to write it down um
to quote what was said but it just doesn't seem like the the concerns of the community has been
It doesn't feel like the concerns of the community have really been addressed.
So for you personally and for your family, what kind of rapport, relationship, response are you looking for when something like this facility opens up next door to you?
I mean, accessibility to the response to any concerns.
um and i don't just just that we can participate at all in in what is happening i i just don't
feel like there's any and i don't want to put it this way i don't feel like there's any legal
recourse for us i don't feel like there's any um any way to to connect what our experiences is
to the people that are supposedly the experts that are trying to run this.
If you had gotten a different response from these real estate people
who are behind the 3R Ventures or from the people on the treatment team,
if you had gotten a different response than you did,
would you have a different feeling about this facility?
Would you be for it?
and i can't say with certainty that i would be for it but i would be far more open um you know
it's and it really okay for me i will say personally the thing that really drives me
is my fear is the impact the negative impact that this is going to have on a community
and really truly ultimately the people that are trying to get care at this facility that
the really, really vulnerable, and people trying to form their new identities, find their new
lives. They are so vulnerable, and they are putting trust into these people. I have not
felt that trust at all. I have not established any form of trust. I am fearful that there will
be more harm done to the people that are seeking care, and that is really what drives me of trying
to stand up and speak out against this because it's i am not against treatment i i just i cannot
get behind the applicants just time after time feels like they're doing the bare minimum
just time after time feels like they're doing the bare minimum that is not fair it's just not fair
did you feel at any point that they respected you or your neighbors and your concerns no
do you have anything more that you wanted to add i i mean respect to time i don't have anything
more um i'm willing to to submit the cross if that's appropriate at this time yeah hi mr bovett
thank you um mr harnett um you you signed chris nevins's petition right yes sir okay um you you
mentioned earlier or what i kept hearing from your testimony was you if if things were more amicable
with with between you and or your neighbors and the applicant i'm objecting that you're putting
words in his mouth and that's not correct but it's the question the question is is that what
am i correct with that i'm sorry you're gonna have to rephrase that here cut out a little bit
So it wasn't even an objection. So, so what I was trying to say, it sounded like your testimony was saying if you had a better relationship with the applicant, things may have been better, because there would have been better open lines of communications. Am I correct?
That's what I stated, yes, sir.
Yeah. So did did. Do you have that open line of communication with the members of the RCO?
So in my engagement with the RCO, I had sent a communication to the RCO president and it was received and replied fairly contentiously.
um and then any attempts that i had made to um connect to people at the meeting i mean
you were there the meetings were pretty pretty busy um i felt pretty dismissed um i believe at
the first meeting i was told i was being out of pocket um when i was just trying to express my
concerns um it just any reaching out for clarity was was met um in a in what i perceived to be a
pretty hostile man but but but my question is and i think you answered it did you feel that way
going through dealing with the rco and from what i understand i believe you agree with that statement
i'm sorry the answer is no his testimony was that he did not feel comfortable with the rco
yeah that's exactly what i wanted so yes he did not feel comfortable with the rco all right
i don't think those were his words but we'll stick with them right you weren't comfortable
with the rco well the rco okay i'm i'm on cross right right so did you also reach out to the
councilman i had sent an email yes the councilman schooler yes so they were and was that warm and
fuzzy at all uh that was pretty factual in his response letting us know that he was
either I forget his response but all right and I thank you for that so if if and and I know this
is the answer is probably no but I'm not going to assume are you familiar with the development
process in Philadelphia are you asking me if I'm an expert in the development process
no i'm asking if you're familiar i would say no okay so it if if if an applicant has to seek
uh some sort of zoning relief from the zoning board i'm objecting that this calls for speculation
and it's fact you don't even know my question yet but you're asking for speculation and that's
No, you don't even know my question yet. Right. Let me ask my question and you can object. Right.
So the applicant has to make it, has to file an appeal to get zoning relief.
And when he or she starts that process, she has to go in front of the front of the registered community organization.
So, nine times out of 10, anytime you see new development going on in the neighborhood, it's going to come before the RCO. Are you familiar with that?
I'm not. I'm not familiar with the processes. At any point in time, did you feel that that the applicant could have walked away from the RCO and just come directly to you?
I'm not. I'm not familiar with the processes.
I'm sorry, I'm not really understanding it, but are you asking if I withdraw?
It's OK. It's all right. No further questions.
Just a brief redirect. Mr. Hartnett, from your understanding, could Councilmember Squilla fix any problems that were happening at the facility after it was opened up?
That's speculation. There is no facility opened up.
You are proposing a facility. If that facility opens up, would Councilmember Squilla be in charge of fixing the problem?
does he think councilman squilla could fix the problem once it's opened up yeah you have no idea
what the what the problems are you have no idea what the future is like so so steve steve steve
i i i think we can skip that question i i think all right are you done you have any more questions
for the only the only the points that darwin uh that was trying to make was that there were other
people at these meetings who could have helped mr hardnett but the point mr chair is that only the
people who are running this facility can address any problems and either fix them or ignore them
or or do something in between and that's that's the point i wanted to make okay thank you are you
done yes all right no more witnesses am i correct no more named witnesses that is correct all right
questions thank you thank you we appreciate it thank you questions from the board no mr chairman
no chair questions or comments from our attorney hillary emerson
not at this time mr chair questions or comments from the virtual
audience and tell me how many hands are there
chair we have seven hands up okay first one has been allowed to speak first
hi could you please state your name and spell for the court stenographer
yes my name is shannon bobin s-h-a-n-a-n b-o-b-o-n do you swear affirm to tell the truth
the whole truth and nothing but the truth i affirm are you a neighbor i am uh i live at
535 Mifflin which Google Maps is okay I know where it is yeah thank you are you in favor of the
project or against it against there's been a lot of comments made relative to it is there anything
different you can offer uh just that I am on Mifflin Street which is not Moore Street it's
it's a block over yeah um and the other and I will affirm what one of the other testaments
testimony already stated was that the parking is atrocious in this area so that even though I
don't live on Moore Street I often have to park in and around 5th and Moore Street in fact the
only reason I even know of this project is because around midnight a few nights ago I had to park
right in front of this facility and I saw the orange sign I took the picture and decided to
sign on today all right because you know I was parking alone at midnight and even though I don't
live on Moore Street not within 250 feet I have to park there and I often have guests my young
nieces in their 20s my nephews and their teens and they also have to park in that area and the
fact that they would have to park in this area you know 11 12 midnight whenever they get done work
and walk to my house uh it's just i don't feel safe my neighbors don't feel it would it would
be safe uh thank you and don't thank you thank you for taking the time to close we appreciate
Next hand.
Larry has been allowed to speak.
Could you please state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Larry Boone.
Could you spell your name, please, Mr. Boone?
Yes. L-A-R-R-Y-B-O-O-N-E.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, sir.
Are you a neighbor?
I live at 531 Ferdinand Street.
Okay. All right.
All right.
Are you in favor or against the project?
In favor.
And could you, you've heard a lot of comments relative to the project.
Could you tell us why?
Excuse me.
Can you repeat that question again?
You said you're in favor of it.
And I said, there's been a lot of testimony for and against it.
Could you offer something, a reason why that you're in favor of it?
Oh, yes. I've been a neighbor, a resident of this neighbor for 53 years.
Oh, yes.
I've been a resident of this neighbor for 53 years.
And my brother lived on that block, the 500th block of Moore Street.
I have a business at 4th and Wharton.
And so I'm a member of this community for 53 years.
And I run a program for the young youth.
And so, listen, right there what they're talking about, it needs some improvement.
Period.
and destroy. Like a lot of witnesses
says, it's an eyesore. And no one even said, like, who's living in
there right now? What's going on in there right now? And they didn't make
no complaints about what's going on in there right now.
And so if they really cared about the
community, they would be on board. All right.
Thank you for taking the time to call us. We appreciate it. Next hand.
Krista has been allowed to speak.
Hi, could you please state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Hello, my name is Krista Estrada, spelled C-H-R-I-S-T-A-E-S-T-R-A-D-A.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, told truth, nothing but the truth?
Are you a neighbor?
Are you for or against this project?
Against.
There's been a tremendous amount of testimony relative to this project.