Thank you.
Okay, Chair.
We have 33 attendees and counting, so you can proceed as you wish.
Good morning, everyone.
My name is Bill Bergman, and I will be chairing this morning's EBA hearings.
With me is our Vice Chair, Ismail Shahid.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
Our Board Member, Thomas Holloman.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
And also, LeBaron Leonard Palmer from Development Services is going to serve as our alternate
Board Member.
Good morning, Mr. Chair.
And present also was Hillary Emerson, our attorney, and our executive director, Tanya Sunkett.
Here's our virtual format.
Be advised the proceedings are being recorded.
The video will be available by contacting tanyasunkett at phil.gov.
For the benefit of our court sonographer, we ask attorneys and witnesses to identify themselves before testifying.
If you're participating by phone and you wish to testify, press star nine to raise your hand
and star six to unmute. To enter an appearance statement, call 267-270-5548. Leave your email
and the address of the property in question. And finally, the question answer box on the screen
is now for comments or testimony. All comments should be directed to our executive director,
Tanya Sunken. Let's look at our schedule for today. Okay, let's see here. Number
one, MI 2022-004-677-7256, Saybrook. Jennifer LLC is the listed owner. We had a request for
continuings for this case. Is there anyone in the audience
from Saybrook Avenue? Jennifer, LLC.
Good morning, Chair. This is Yvette Benton.
I'll be your co-host for today. I see no hands at this time.
Okay, so
7256 Saybrook Avenue. This is the third
listing. We still don't have the documents. We told the third party they had to be here today
to request a continuance. I vote to dismiss. Thomas Holloman, my vote is to dismiss.
Ishmael Shahid, my vote is to dismiss.
Thank you.
MI 2023, 002-181-362 Claremont Avenue. That case is continued.
Number six, MI 2023, 005-07-2172 East 1st Street. That case is continued. And number nine,
MI-2023, 002-232-5162 D Street, that case is continued.
Are there any comments relative to the cases that have been continued?
I see no hands at this time, Chair.
Are there any other requests for continuances?
Chair, we have Vern Anastasio with his hand up.
mr anastasio please unmute yourself good morning mr chair morning council could you just for the
record state your name and spell please for the stenographer sure it's verne anastasio
a-n-a-s-t-a-s-i-o and i'm representing the owner uh of the uh project that i'm just about to talk
about okay good do you swear a firm to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth
yes sir what case 98 55 busselton avenue
i've just been retained this week uh to put together the evidentiary exhibits and present the
uh to put together the evidentiary exhibits and present the case so if i could please get a short
continuance i'd appreciate it let's see what number is that hillary that's number 14 mr chair
that one we had no exhibits third listing all right uh so mi 2022 004 553 98 55 to 89 busselton
avenue cases continued mark must be tried next time thank you very much thank you for calling
it anytime are there any other requests for continuances
i see no additional hands at this time chair so we have a few cases that we do not have exhibits
Number seven, MI 2023, 000459, 3200 Fanshawe Street, Eugene Lasky.
This is no exhibits, second listen, less second listening.
Mr. Chair, there may have, that's the only name that we have, but there may have been a tenant.
there was an expediter involved and there may have been a tenant who was interested
um all right so 3200 fanshaw street is there anyone at all in the audience relative to that
i see no hands at this time chair so mi2023 000 459 3200 fanshaw street this is the second
listening. No one appeared last time. There was an expediter who tried to withdraw the case. I vote
to dismiss this. Thomas Holloman, my vote is to dismiss. Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is to dismiss.
Number 14. MI 2022. Oh, I'm sorry. Number 12. MI 2022-004-558-1143 West Somerset Street.
Blinda Daugherty is the owner applicant. No exhibits. This is the third listing.
Mr. Chair, this is Taylor. Sorry, I just want to note for the record that at the previous two listings, the applicant did request continuances, but we have not received a request this time, as well as no exhibits.
Thank you. Anyone in the audience?
I see no hands at this time, Chair.
Okay, so MI 2022-004-558-1143-West Somerset Street. We have no exhibits. Third listing. I vote to dismiss.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is to dismiss.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is to dismiss.
Okay. And also number 15 MI 2023, 000729-6331 to 41 Caster Avenue. This case has been withdrawn.
and also MI 2022 004-588-6336 Algard Street. This is the third listing. The owner-applicant
has indicated he would like to withdraw this. We still don't have a letter. Is Colin Shawcress
in the audience.
Chair, I see no one by that name
and there are no hands up.
Thank you.
So MI 2022-004-588-6336
Algard Street, third listing.
I vote to dismiss.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is to dismiss.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is to dismiss.
Thank you. We're going to go to our add-ons. MI 2023-003-765-1625 North 18th Street. The vote in this matter is being rescheduled to Wednesday, November 8th at 2 p.m.
we're going to start with number two mi 2023 002 188 29 17 to 21 west sedgley
dorothy hamill is the attorney there's a letter of support from strawberry manson cdc with
unenforceable provisos
dorothy hamill could you please raise your virtual hand
she's coming back in as a panelist now chair
Good morning, Mr. Chairman, members of the panel, my name is Dorothy Hamill,
Serlin, Lesser, and Benson, 123 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, 19109. I'm here presenting
on behalf of the owner of Sedgley Avenue. Just for the record, could you spell your name for
the court sonographer? Sure. H-A-M as in Mary, I-L-L, first name D-O-R-O-T-H-Y. Do you swear
a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing
but the truth? I do.
Could you identify your client
or relationship to this property?
Client is William
He is the owner of
Rubric Management, LLC,
which is the owner of the property.
Our vice chair has just a few
questions for you.
Sure. Good morning, counsel.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal
and stipulate to its accuracy?
Have you emailed in all the required documents that is needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing?
I did not do it five days in advance.
We only had our RCO hearing on Thursday, and we got the letter of support Monday, and I had emailed it Monday.
day, I think there were some issues with my email going through, but I believe the board has
everything. Yes. Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
Share your screen.
We see it. Okay. So the property is 2917
to 21 West Sedgley. This is a rendering
of the outside of the premises. Attached
is the refusal.
There were two reasons for the refusal. Let me move that over.
One is that
no more than one principal building is
permitted to be located on the property and three dwellings
is not permitted on the property.
We applied for the variance.
Here's our tax clearance, proof of ownership.
This was our, we had a meeting. This is our
information that we, the inquiry form that Strawberry
Manson requested in advance of the hearing, which we provided to them. We had, as I mentioned,
this is proof of mailing for all of the notices to the neighbors. We had our meeting, as I
mentioned, last Thursday, and the community was in support of the project with, as you mentioned,
there were a few provisos, one of which, one is there are, and I'm going to share because I had
some trouble getting my pictures, all of my pictures onto the, into the presentation. But
this is the outside of the property. And you can see there are two street trees that are located
right outside the property. The neighbors in the meeting had concerns because these trees,
you know, may not be healthy. There may be some blocking of view when you're coming down the
street or coming out of the street. We had said that we would contact the neighbor, we would
contact the city, have somebody come out, evaluate the trees, and if necessary, have the trees taken
down and more appropriate smaller street trees put in or have them trimmed back. So the project,
the proposal is there's an existing structure on the property which was previously
Used as a garage. We think that the prior owner was attempting or was planning to turn this into a residential structure because there is separate water, gas and electric. That never happened.
used as a garage.
We think that the prior owner
So the plan is there are two existing here, there are two existing properties, one building, two residential properties that have been redone and are rented.
The plan would be to turn this building into a residential property.
I've provided the plans. As you can see, the layout will be, I think this is the best layout to see.
The unit will be approximately 800 square feet.
There'll be a bedroom, laundry room, bathroom, full kitchen along the back wall, open living space, closet, and the property has, there will be lights.
there'll be windows in the front of the property three windows plus these are
existing bringing in these three lights windows excuse me are existing this
window will be put in with a new door currently the property as you can see
there is an existing this is the entrance to the garage there is a curb
cut here. The thinking is that this is not really an appropriate use. Garage is not really
an appropriate use on this street. The neighbors had raised issues along those lines of traffic
and having a car actually backing out onto the street,
which you can see here.
There's nothing over here, there's parking along here,
but West Sedgley is a fairly well-traveled street
and using the property for a garage
doesn't really seem to make sense.
This is the existing property
and the garage attached to it. This is a down view of the property from the street and
this is another view down the street. So the property would be offered for rent at a below
market rent of approximately between $9 and $9.50. We thought because it is also a ground floor
unit, it would give the opportunity for, you know, an elderly or perhaps physically challenged
person to have an opportunity to rent what would be a nice apartment and be able to stay
in the neighborhood. As I mentioned, the Neighborhood Association was in support
of the project because currently it is a, you know, it's only being used
really for the storage of, as you saw in the picture, an occasional motorcycle. It's a dark
corner along the street. So putting in
lights, having it be a
residence that would, you know, bring some life to that
corner and have activity seems to be the best use
of the property. So do you have your letter from your RCO?
Yes, it is. The letter is
in the, what's in my package here?
let me see
our mansion
apologies
it was
originally
see a lot of letters
went out
let me see
hold on I can
let me
what was the vote
Uh, it was unanimous. Okay. And, uh, again, the, uh, the trees seem to be the biggest issue. And, um, you know, we were, we're certainly open to doing whatever needs to be done, getting the city out.
it was unanimous
there was, you know, a little bit of a disagreement with respect to getting rid of the curb cut or
keeping the curb cut. Some people thought keeping getting rid of the curb cut would be better
because it would open up another parking space. Other people thought that maybe that wasn't such
a great idea because then it, you know, keeps less parking, doesn't increase parking on the street.
Why don't you bring your client on and have your testimony adopted?
He's, if you could hold on just a moment, he's having a little trouble logging in.
So let me, I'm calling him right now.
I'm just going to put, I'm just going to mute for a moment.
Thank you.
and also
Yeah, I'm sorry.
On mute.
He's, uh, do you, he's, uh, he's logging in again now.
He got cut off.
He's logging in now.
so I can either we can wait for him or if you want to hear somebody else and then
bring us back after the next one I don't want to waste no listen to me okay he's
listen to me sure you're an officer of the court we will accept the testimony questions from the
board no chair no Mr. Chairman questions from our counsel Hiller Amberson just a brief comment
And Mr. Chair, Ms. Hamill, the part three of your exhibits still haven't come through.
So if you can try to maybe break that down and send it again so that we have the photos and all of the photos and plans for this case, that would be great.
I'm sorry.
We've had issues with everything coming through.
I apologize.
I will do that when I hang up today.
Hillary, can we vote?
Thank you.
Hillary, can we vote?
Yeah, no, that is fine.
It's not a problem.
we just need to have everything on the record questions or comments from the virtual audience
chair we have craig meladozian with his hand up
he hasn't been allowed to speak okay
mr meladozian please unmute yourself
I know this is not his area.
Mr. Beladozian?
Sir, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes. Good morning. My name is William. My last name is VISS. V-I-S-S.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, told you with nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Proceed, counsel.
Mr. Viss, you've heard my testimony. Do you agree that my testimony is true and correct, and do you adopt it as your own?
uh true and correct and do you adopt it as your own yes i do
Yes, I do.
thank you questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no one with their hands up at this time chair okay uh planning commission
thank you chair bergman and good morning david facto f e c t e a u with the city planning
commission. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, sir, I do. Proceed, sir. Thank you, sir. Mr. Chairman and board members, the comprehensive
plan recommends no change to the residential single-family zoning at this location.
This property is at the end unit in a row that was built all at once. It's the only unit with
an attached garage. The garage and two dwelling units date to 1943. The appellant seeks to convert
the garage into a separate dwelling unit while eliminating off-street parking the eliminated
elimination of off-street parking will bring the property closer into conformance with the homes
on the rest of the block face however the home is already legally non-conforming with two dwelling
units the addition of a third dwelling unit will increase the property's non-conformance
there is no unique physical condition of this property that would warrant this kind of a change
the city planning commission recommends the board deny the proposed use variance for a third dwelling
unit. Thank you. MI 2023-002-188-2917-21 West Sedgley Street, I vote yes. Thomas Holloman,
my vote is yes. You have your votes, counsel. Thank you. Thank you very much. Have a nice day,
everyone. Okay. Okay. We're going to go to number eight. MI 2023, 002-234-839 Bainbridge Street.
Roger Perry is the attorney. There's a letter. Excuse me, Mr. Chair. We've had a request to
actually go to number 17 due to time constraints of the attorney in that matter. So we could
actually go to number 17. That would be great. Thank you. Okay. MI 2022 004-563-2005-07 Sargent
Street. Ronnie and Major is the attorney. There is, let's see here. There's recommendation
organization of support from East Kentian Neighbors Association.
Okay, Council Rania Major.
Rania Major, can you please raise your virtual hand?
She's coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good morning, everyone.
I'm going to be on board on behalf of 2007 E. Sergeant III.
Could you state your name and spell it for the court reporter?
yes again it's rania r-a-n-i-a major m-a-j-o-r
do you swear from tell the truth the whole truth nothing but i'm counsel
yes and i'm counsel i'm aware i'm aware okay um could you identify your client in relationship
to the property yes san iago is the property owner
okay our vice chair has a few questions
good morning counsel do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy
i'm going to waive the reading of the refusal yes
and do you have a reason not to stipulate to the accuracy
of the refusal because yeah it was used as commercial properties prior to this
so to the extent that it doesn't have that in the refusal i object otherwise the rest of it i accept
understood have you emailed in all the required documents five days in advance of this hearing
they were all emailed in between yesterday and the day before all right thank you please proceed
and you can share your screen okay i'm not sure how to do this on my phone but i will try um
so basically this is i really don't know how to do it on here
hi chair this is tanya i just wanted to suggest that um the phone would not be able to be used
hi chair this is
to share the screen with the whole audience if it's another route you would like to go it's your
call thank you uh council you're gonna have we're probably gonna have to continue this
and you're gonna have to use a computer the next time okay your honor i'm in court mr chairman i'm
court on a previously scheduled trial um but i am trying to get this through today it's it's
ours is pretty simple here's here's what the issue is um i i i think i know what the issue is and i
see it but we would need a presentation with photos and things of that nature so um so let
Let me see if I can get.
Well, here's what here's what here's what I'll do.
Yes, sir.
I'm going to go on to another case and I'll call you back another half hour.
So there's nothing else I can do.
OK, well, here's the issue.
Without me being where I'm at right now as a participant, I have no way of trying to get documents up.
OK, so then the case is going to be continued.
Can someone call me about the date so that this doesn't happen again?
We will make sure you know what the next date is, okay?
So MI 2022-004-563-2005-207 East Sargent Street, that case has been continued.
We will be in touch, counsel.
Okay, here, let's see here.
Okay, number eight, MI-2023-002-234-239 Bainbridge Street.
Roger Perry is the attorney.
There's a letter of support for the Queen Village Neighbors Association and a letter of non-opposition from Council Member Squillett.
Chair, Roger Perry is coming back in as a panelist now.
I'm here.
Morning, Mr. Perry.
Could you state your name for the record and spell for the court stenographer?
Roger Perry, R-O-G-E-R, last name Perry, P-E-R-R-Y, attorney for the owners of this property
and applicant.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Could you identify your clients and their relationship to the property?
Yes, the owners of the property are Andrew Cohen and Blair Lyons Cohen.
They're owners and occupants of this single-family home.
Okay, and our vice chair has just a few questions for you, sir.
Good morning, counsel.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy?
Yes, we do.
Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that's needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing?
Yes, we have.
Thank you.
Please proceed and share your screen.
Does that come up?
Yes, sir.
Green button at the bottom.
Yeah, I've clicked that.
And there we go.
You're coming now.
It's coming up.
Gotcha. Thank you. Okay, so let me make a free presentation and then let you know
what the issue is. This is a request for a consolidation of 239R and 239
Bainbridge Street. In conjunction with this consolidation, the parties are asking to do
a partial demolition of this little front
and making an addition at the fourth floor.
It'll be easier, I guess, to see with the photographs.
The refusal ended up, let me go back to Uber.
The refusal was in conjunction with the consolidation.
There is a large raised rear deck in the property
which covers part of the rear yard. And the refusal was based on that coverage. The open
area was only 13%, whereas 25% should be provided. But with the rear deck area, there's
plenty of open area. That may go down to, and as you see, there was a, okay, here's,
Um, and as you see, there was a, okay, here's the photos.
Okay. This is the posting of the property. This is 239, uh, Bainbridge has posted. Uh, this is
the adjacent property. This is 239, adjacent property. So this gives you a good idea of, uh,
the parties have requested to remove this area and put a small fourth floor addition.
That is not part of the refusal, but because the open area on the property is too small,
that triggered the refusal for the open area. This is the rear yard area. You can see there's
a deck here that covers this area, and the deck is open. This is 239 R Bainbridge Street at the
rear and although the deck which is here is open because it covers the under area this is the deck
at the second level the open area is technically too small being only 13 but indeed the parties
as owners have this as an open area in addition to this small rear yard area so there's an adequate
you know open airspace and so forth the decks here you come down to 239R so we feel that there's
probably adequate, not probably, but there is adequate open area for this property. And that's
the only refusal at this time. The document is submitted to the board, including all the notices.
And as the chair has noted, let me turn this back.
We have a letter of support. We met with the Queen Village Neighbors Association, and they
actually support the project and ask for the variance to be granted. So it's going to
continue as a single family. We submitted, this is the property here, we submitted plans. It won't
be extending beyond the adjacent property at the fourth floor. So I don't think, well, I know it
won't have any adverse impact on the public health, safety, or welfare. This is a submission of the
plan showing where the addition will be on the fourth floor. The facade will be in conformity
with the adjacent properties, the tax clearance provided, zero tackles, and so forth. So we feel
that the variance in conjunction with the review by Queen Village Neighbors Association should be
granted in this matter. Perry, why don't you bring your client on, please, and we'll have your
testimony adopted sure uh andy if you're there can you raise your hand
i see no hands at this time chair no somebody's there or they were a minute ago
is anybody there on 239 bainbridge either andy or uh mrs or blair
there's an andrew cohen with his hand up okay i will allow him to speak hello can you hear me
hi hi mr cohen could you state your name and spell please for the court stenographer
hi yes good morning my name is andrew cohen a-n-d-r-e-w last name c-o-h-e-n
right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth
yes proceed counsel thank you uh andy did you uh hear uh my presentation in terms of the intended
use uh the consolidation with the fourth floor edition i did okay can you adopt that as true
and correct uh as if you had testified uh yourself yes oh thank you okay 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
i see no hands chair planning commission thank you chair bergman and board members good morning
david vecto with the city planning commission the comprehensive plan recommends no change to
residential multifamily zoning at this location the appellant seeks a dimensional variance for
occupied area triggered by the creation of a newly consolidated lot and construction of a rear deck
the proposed variance will not injure the use of adjacent properties and so the city planning
commission recommends the board grant the proposed dimensional variance for occupied area thank you
Thank you. MI 2023-002-234-239 Bainbridge Street, I vote yes.
MI 2023-002-2350.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes.
Adishno Shaheed, my vote is yes.
You have your votes, counsel. Thank you.
Okay, thank you very much. Have a good day.
Okay. So number 10, MI 2023, 002-206, 2300 South 23rd Street. Tracy's salary is the attorney. There's a letter of support from West Passion Neighbors Association.
They have been promoted to panelists.
Thank you.
good morning chairman and members of the board good morning counsel could you state your name
please and spell for the court stenographer yes Tracy Soller it's t-r-a-c-y last name is Soller
s as in sam a-u-l-e-r right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth and
nothing but the truth I do could you identify your client the relationship to this property
yes i'm representing the owner of the property phone tang our vice chair has just a few questions
good morning counsel do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate towards
accuracy i do have you emailed in all the required documents that is needed to proceed
with this case five days in advance of this hearing i emailed them just shy of the five day mark
understood please proceed to share your screen thank you we're here today um to request a
variance let me share my screen one second you request a variance of the property located at
2300 south 23rd street this is a corner property um i have the exhibits here
the property is currently zoned as a single family home i'm going to go through the history
of the zoning on this property it was actually a two-family home with a variance from 1985
up until my client mistakenly rezoned it as a single family property
um if i bring you down to the zoning history here where you can see it was a two-family home
through um from 85 until currently she had a problem with the retaining wall in the back and
had to do some repairs and when she went down to try to figure out what was going on she was told
that, or she understood that she had to change it back to a single family home. And so that's
what she did. And that was a mistake. It was supposed to just stay a two family home. The
the property, I will just show you a couple of photographs real quick.
there's no construction proposed and there haven't been any changes
structurally or anything since it was the two family in 85 we have the front entrance here and
then there's another entrance on the side street we did notify the community of the meeting and we
We met with the West Pass Young Neighbors Association on September 11th.
They submitted a letter in support of the variants to just legalize the use back to
the two-family home that it was.
We have copies of the notice to the community here and proof of mailing.
And then this is the letter of support from the community meeting.
I also have to submit proof of ownership, which is here, the deed.
And then the final exhibit is the tax clearance for the owner here.
Thank you, counsel.
Could you bring your client on and have your testimony adopted?
Fung, if you can raise your hand on the Zoom so that you can speak.
Ms. Soller, what is the name of your client?
Fung, P-H-U-O-N-G, Fung Tang.
Fung Tang, can you please raise your virtual hand?
Chair, I see his name, but he's not raising his hand.
There it is.
He just put it up.
Okay, thank you.
Hi, Fung.
Yes, hi. Good morning.
Yes, hi.
Good morning.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court synopsis?
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, I am Phuong Tang. My first name is P-H-U-O-N-G. My last name is T-A-N-G.
You swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Proceed, counsel.
Thank you. Hi, Phuong. Did you hear my testimony today?
Yes. And is it true and correct? And do you adopt it as your own testimony?
Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chair. No, Chair. Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Not at this time, Mr. Chair. Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
Chair, we have Belinda Doty with their hand up. They have been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Hey, good morning. Could you state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes. Belinda, B-E-L-I-N-D-A. Dally, D-O-U-G-H-T-Y.
You swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Are you a neighbor?
Miss Dowdy are you a neighbor
are you a neighbor
I'm sorry
he has all two devices
which is causing feedback
what were you going to say Hillary
yeah Mr. Chair
Miss Dowdy is the owner applicant
in case number 12
1143 West Somerset Street
yeah we already dismissed we dismissed that case mr chair what's that because no one we
dismissed that case because no one appeared and it was the third listing and no exhibits all right
yes the case has been dismissed thank you is there anyone else in the virtual audience
relative to this case on 23rd street here i see no hands at this time planning commission
Thank you, Chair Bergman and board members. Good morning. David Effecto with the City Planning Commission. The comprehensive plan recommends no change to the residential single-family zoning at this location. The appellant seeks to legalize a two-family dwelling. The City Planning Commission recommends that the board grant the proposed use variance for two dwelling units.
Thank you. MI 2023-002-206-2300 South 23rd Street. I vote yes.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is yes.
Thank you, counsel. You have your votes.
Thank you.
Number 11, MI 2023, 002-113, 301 East Westmoreland Street.
Joseph Biccaro is the attorney.
There's a letter of support from the 7th Ward RCO with provisos.
Mr. Vaccaro is coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good morning. How are you?
Good morning, Counsel. Could you state your name and spell, please, for the court stenographer?
Good morning. May it please the board. My name is Joseph Vaccaro, V-A-C-C-A-R-O, attorney for the applicant, Eduardo Fernandez.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
What's your client's relationship to the property, sir?
He is the tenant.
Okay. Our vice chair has just a few questions for you.
Thank you.
Good morning. Good morning, Counselor. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to a bankruptcy?
Yes, I do.
Have you emailed in all the required documents?
Yes, I did.
All right. Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
Sure. Thank you very much. And just let the record reflect here that Mr. Fernandez is on, he is in on this conference.
However, since he does not speak English, I would ask that the board adopt my presentation as if it were his testimony.
Okay, can you see my packet of documents?
We do.
Okay, I'll just start from the top.
This is an application, although this was an application for the sit-in restaurant and
the retail sale of foods and beverages and groceries on the same lot with all other uses.
Sale of foods and beverages and groceries on the same lot with all other uses as previously approved.
Following up on the meeting with the Seventh Ward RCO, as the board had mentioned, the provisos, this would be an application or construed as an application for a grocery store selling cold sandwiches and coffee with no hot foods and certainly not the sit-in restaurant.
We have the refusal. We have the commercial lease identifying Eduardo Fernandez as the tenant. The lease is from October 26, 2022, and it would expire October 31, 2027 with a one-year renewal period and subsequent renewal periods.
The hours of the store would be from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. from Mondays through Saturdays with reduced hours on Sunday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
It would be a two-mile grocery store. I'm scrolling down past the lease so I could get to the photographs and to the rendition.
Here we have the letter of support from the 7th Ward RCO.
As I had described earlier, as to what the neighbors would support, here's the notification of the RCO meeting with the proof of mailing.
And here's the rendition showing this is the view of the proposed store on B Street, and this is the view on Westmoreland Street.
Corner, corner lot, corner property. Nobody can live there. The contours and its structure do not permit RSA 5 single-family residents at that location.
Rendition shows where the entrance would be for the customers. And here's a rendition of the inside of the store, if I could zoom in.
You have a kitchen area in the back, freezers area with a storeroom, accessible bathroom, deli case, two aisles with shelves with the counter area.
Again, customers would be coming in from the corner where I'm pointing my cursor.
Scrolling further down to support our position that this lot is not conducive to single-family living, here's a photograph of the poster for today's hearing.
Again, additional photographs of the posters for today's hearing with the main entrance.
Here's a side entrance.
and they're trying to clean this up and make it look like a store that could be an asset to the
community. Task clearance certificate for my client. And look through the neighborhood.
The Google Maps would show that at the intersection of Kip and Westmoreland,
And Google Maps would show another store of the type that my client is applying for, but it's Mr. Fernandez informs us that that store has been closed, that spot is closed.
So there's no active store a block away at the intersection of Kip and Westmoreland.
The next nearest store from this location would be at Bee End, Ontario, and there are also no stores a block going down toward Allegheny.
So, in a neighborhood that's in need of grocery stores and additional food options for the residents, this location would be of great benefit to the neighbors.
Any questions?
Could you confirm that you briefed your client on all aspects of this case?
Yes, I did.
And he's also confirmed me as to what's going on at Kip and Westmoreland, the empty store.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
I thought I was off mute.
No, Chair.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
um mr chair i would just ask the um board to hold the vote on this for a week because i need to
forward to hold the vote on this for a week because i need to because the sit-down restaurant
because
use is being taken out but i don't know if there should be like a prepared food shop or takeout
restaurant use a principal use as well or if that is just going to be accessory to the grocery store
use so i i would just need to get clarification on that from the applicant and ellen i i think
before we vote on that so we can be clear as to what we're voting on sure okay questions or
comments from the virtual audience. Chair, we have Sloan Folks with his hand up.
They have been unmuted and allowed to speak. Good morning, Mr. Folks. Good morning, Chairman
Bergman, ZBA Board. My name is Sloan Folks, S-L-O-A-N-E, F-S-N-F-I-E-R-O-L-K-S,
Office of Council Member, representing the Office of Council Member Katia Lozada.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, sir.
So I was just going to, our office did supply a letter of non-opposition, but it was based on the community stipulations regarding accessory restaurant.
Your solicitor, Hilary Emerson, already spoke to our issues, so I don't have anything else to add.
Thank you so much for taking the time.
Thank you very much.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience that has a comment?
Chair, we have Norman Wooten.
They have been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Good morning, sir.
Could you state your name and spell it for the court stenographer?
Mr. Wooten, please unmute yourself.
my name is norman n-o-r-m-a-n uh wooten w-o-o-t-e-n do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the
whole truth and nothing but the truth i do are you a neighbor sir uh no i'm not but i'm for i'm here
for another case but i'm familiar with the area and i just wanted to know uh the it's a school
across the street from it uh um what is it stetson and i want to know uh why that wasn't
mentioned or you know is that going to be a problem or anything like that but then again
you did say he was going to hold off on the vote so i just want to put that in the record all right
thank you thank you for taking on time to call us and we appreciate your comment anyone else in the
virtual audience here i see no other hands at this time planning commission do you want to
vote now or do you want to wait till we'll go ahead and put it on the record and thank you
sure thank you uh so chairman and board members david effecto city planning commission the
comprehensive plan recommends a change in zoning at this location from residential single family
to commercial mixed use the proposed zoning would allow the proposed activity by right
the city planning commission recommends the board grant their proposed use variances for
retail sales and multiple uses on the lot. Thank you. Thank you. Council, we're going to
hold this vote. If we can have the answer by next Wednesday, we will vote at 930 a.m.
Okay. Thank you. Thank you. All right.
Number 13, MI 2023, 000460, 1515 Morris Street.
Nicholas George is the attorney.
There was a meeting on 5-22-23 by the Point Breeze Community Development Coalition.
At this point, we have not seen the letter.
The applicant provided a petition in support.
from 26 neighbors.
Chair, Nicholas George is coming back in as a panelist.
The petition did not list the property address for the proposed project.
Good morning, Mr. George.
Good morning, Chairman.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court's stenographer?
Yes, Your Honor.
It's Nicholas George, N-I-C-H-O-L-A-S.
last name george g-e-o-r-g-e i'm also here uh here keith we'll just lean in so they can see it
uh my name good morning my name is keith well when you testify we'll get to you okay sir but thank
you um mr george do you swear or affirm to tell the truth told you nothing but the truth
uh yes and you could you just uh tell us who your who your client is and the relationship
to this property yes my client is keith lamb he is the owner of 1515 morris street okay and our
Okay. And our vice chair has a few questions, sir.
vice chair has a few questions sir good morning
Good morning, counsel.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy?
I've emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that is needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing.
I have. I have not received the letter from the community.
I'm curious if it was sent to the zoning board directly.
At this point, we do not have it.
So we can proceed with the case, but we may hold the case for a vote until we receive the RCO letter.
Understood. Whatever you'd prefer. We're ready to proceed.
All right. Please proceed to share your screen.
All right. Please let me know if you would like me to increase the size at any point because it's hard on my end to see it.
All right. So this is 1515 Morris Street, ZP22-011994. The property, it's a corner property. It's on the corner of 15th and Morris and the 1600 block of Hicks Street.
It is zoned CMX1. Historically, the historical use of the property is three units with a residential, I'm sorry, excuse me, the historical use of the property is three units with a commercial space in the front.
Um, here's the, the, here's the, um, property certificate for, for the, uh, for the, for
the property.
Um, so we met, we met with the, we met with the RCO in, in May.
Um, so that, that just to, just to go over the refusal and we've, we've since, we've
since, um, modified the proposal, but the, the initial, the initial, uh, plan was to
build a, a, um, four, four residential units with one commercial in the front as a, as
a, as a, um, hair and nail salon for, for self-grooming.
Um, the, so the, the initial refusal was for, um, we were proposing a hundred percent
lot coverage um no rear yard and um the increase from uh three units the increase from three units
to four units we met with the um rco in may um we were able to and there was some concerns about the
The development as proposed, one of the concerns was trash, where we would store the trash
and the size of the development.
We also, there were some concerns too as to the petition that we had circulated because
much of the support that we initially got was on the was on the 1700 blocks of hicks and um and
and there were some concerns from neighbors on the 1600 block of hicks as to sort of the size
of the development and you know what what what we had what our plans were at the at the property so
one of the concerns that the neighbors wanted us to address was the the the improvement of the
building facade, new windows, putting a new front door in the front, and improvement in
general of the building.
So the plan that we now are presenting to the board is consistent with the current historical
use of the property to have three apartments with the commercial space in the front.
Um, the, the, the, the provides plans basically maintains the current lot coverage.
Um, it maintains the, the, the nine foot historical rear yard and the current proposal does not
expand the building's footprint.
Um, it does not expand, um, the existing lot coverage.
So this is the, this is the, this is the proposed change here.
As you can see, no change to the lot.
The reason why a variance is needed is because the building as it currently is situated has 87% lot coverage and the zoning code has a requirement of 80% lot coverage with a corner CMX1.
one. So this picture shows you basically what the addition would look like. It's a vertical
So this picture shows you basically what...
addition going up, and then it's consistent with the height requirements in the neighborhood.
It's basically the vertical addition would be consistent with the other neighboring properties
on Morris street. Um, and then similarly, um, as when, when Mr. Lamb discussed the property with
the neighbors on the, this is the 1600 block of Hicks here. Um, you know, the neighbors were
concerned about the frontage. They wanted, um, new windows, removal of the grates, a new front door,
um, and improvement of the property, new windows along the side as well. And, um, that's the goal.
The goal is to improve this property to make it look better. And as I stated, the variance is needed because of the existing lot coverage at the building.
Mr. Lamb has also developed a property across the street. This is directly across the street.
This is directly across the street. And this is what Mr. Lamb has done across the street.
It was a similar improvement. He improved the windows. He improved the facade.
And now it's a it's a it's an asset to the neighborhood with all new front doors and all new windows.
And basically, Mr. Lamb seeks to do the same at 1515 Morris.
Just to go through the plans a little bit.
so this this would be the the hair and nail salon on the on the front floor with a with an ada
accessible restroom in the back there is a ground floor there would be a ground floor door as well
for access for for handicap accessibility into the the commercial space and then the proposal
is on the second floor you have two brand new one unit bedrooms and then on the third floor
is a is a is a is a brand new three bedroom unit with two bathrooms and a full-sized kitchen and
and dining area and living space.
We have submitted the taxes are paid.
Here's our tax certificate and then here's the here's an updated printout showing that
the balance is zero. As I stated previously, we were able to get the support from various
neighbors on the 1600 block of Hicks. And the new proposal is consistent with what the immediate
neighbors, with addressing the immediate neighbors' concerns and the improvement of the property and
the improvement of the facade. And I'm happy to answer any questions the board might have
at this time. So why don't we have your testimony adopted, okay? Sure. Mr. Lamb,
do you agree that my testimony... Hold on, hold on, hold on. Mr. Lamb, could you state your name
and spell it, please, for the court stenographer? Yes. My name's Keith, K-E-I-T-H. My last name,
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth
the whole truth and nothing but the truth
Proceed counsel
Thank you your honor
Mr. Lamb did you hear my testimony
and understand it today
Yes I did
Do you agree that it was accurate
Do you adopt my testimony as your own testimony
Counsel so I understand
you initially wanted four dwelling units
and the nail salon on the first floor.
Am I right?
That's correct.
And then you've dropped it to three dwelling units
and the nail salon.
That's correct.
And the three units is consistent
with the historical use of the property.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
LeBaron?
LeBaron?
No questions, Mr. Chair.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Not at this time, Mr. Chair.
Questions or comments from the board?
I'm sorry, from the virtual audience?
I see no hands at this time, Chair.
Planning Commission. Thank you, Chair Bergman and board members. Good morning, David Fecta with the
City Planning Commission. The comprehensive plan recommends no change to the commercial mixed use
zoning at this location. The appellant requests a revised proposal for three dwelling units in a
single family zone with ground floor commercial space and dimensional relief to document existing
site conditions. The property has documented history as three apartments and a ground floor
business dating to at least 1949 the city planning commission recommends the board grant the proposed
use and dimensional variances thank you uh hillary i want to hold this for like maybe a week to see
if we can get a letter from the rco whether we get a letter or not we'll vote on this next wednesday
at 9 30. sounds good mr chair okay mr george should i um is it helpful for me to attend
to attend or it's the the vote is basically procedural the vote the vote's going to be
closed except from what we hear from the uh from the from the rco thank you what what we hear or
don't hear i should say okay okay thank you mr thank you
Number 18. MI 2023-002-192-112 Ellsworth Street. Alec Sokoloff is the attorney. There's a letter of opposition from Penn Sports Civic Association, and there's a letter of opposition from Council Member Squill.
The applicant has put in a letter signed by nine neighbors.
Oleg Sokolov is coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good morning, Chair Bergman, members of the board.
Good morning, Counsel.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Absolutely. Oleg Sokolov, O-L-E-G, S-O-K-O-L-O-V, Rabinovich Sokolov Law Group, 1700 Market Street, Suite 1005, Philadelphia PA, 19103.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Could you identify your client, the relationship to this property?
Yes, I'm here on behalf of the applicant and owner of the property, Ms. Gabrielle Dicci.
Okay. Our vice chair has just a few questions.
good morning council do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its
accuracy uh good morning mr shahid i do have you emailed then all the required documents
and exhibits that is needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing
i have thank you please proceed and share your screen thank you very much
all right is that visible to everyone it is sir wonderful um thank you members of the board for
your time as i said oleg sokolov on behalf of the applicant we are here as a result of a refusal
issued on april 3rd 2023 we are requesting a variance to be able to use this property for
the purposes of visitor accommodation, which is restricted in the RSA 5 zoning.
I'll quickly go through the exhibits. Actually, I'll give a little background. Ms. Dietschy
purchased this property in June of 2022. Ms. Dietschy works in facilities management for
commercial properties and at the time intended to live at this property full-time. However,
However, her work duties have caused her to travel, unfortunately, more than she is at home.
Therein lies the reason for this request.
So I'll quickly take you through the exhibit packet.
Here's the deed to the property.
You see purchased in June of 2022 prior to the new Airbnb regulation going into effect.
Tax clearance.
Here's a picture of the property.
you can see that it's one of about four or five similar or you know properties that were
constructed together. You can see that the property is meticulously maintained. Ms. DiGi does
You can see that the property is meticulously maintained.
Ms. Ditchie does use the property.
She did use the property prior to some new work duties that occurred in about March or April of 2023, when she did go ahead right away and put in this application.
But she does still currently use this property when she's in Philadelphia.
Unfortunately, you can see on the zoning map here,
the blue area is not the property.
I wrote it in here in 112.
If you can see that just to identify that it's a mid block property
with some commercial uses and some industrial mixed use,
commercial mixed use uses on the same street.
Our project information form.
Our appeal application.
Proof of mailing.
Photos of the zoning posters posted at the property, RCO notice mailer, as Mr. Chairman
stated, we did meet with the RCO on October 2nd.
It was an in-person meeting.
I think it was not very well attended by members of the community, and it's difficult to say
that an entire community has an opposition given the minimal attendance at this letter. However,
Ms. Dietschy does have a number of letters of support from people on her block or the adjacent
block, those neighbors that would most be impacted by this request. At this time, may I-
Counsel, we noticed that four of them were signed by the same person. Is that he owns four
properties on the block uh it appears so okay
at this time i'd bring uh my client ms dc on to to adopt my testimony
and do you have the letter there from the rco you know i do uh the letter was
sense if i may just pull it up this letter was only provided um i believe on monday so it it was
not part of the exhibit packet i did forward it on it was forwarded on by the rco as well if you
would like me to bring it up i'd be happy to try to bring it up just for the i just need to go into
my email if you'll allow me.
Sure. Take your time.
Courtesy. Thank you.
Okay. And here it is.
A little flower.
Oh, my apologies.
That's okay.
Yeah, one of the issues discussed was parties and potential for this property to be a nuisance.
Obviously, some of the press regarding a couple Airbnbs in the Philadelphia area that have had some issues impacted the neighbor's position as to this.
However, I would say that this property is in no way analogous to the properties that have had parties.
This property is not conducive to parties.
This property is offered at a number of nights minimum stay to preclude that.
Ms. Dietschy also has a number of technological devices in the property to ensure that nothing of that type would occur, for instance, sound monitoring, the ability to monitor how many people connect to the network, so as to monitor how many people just go in and out of the house.
the same thing for the keypad lock, which is electronic. So every measure has been taken to
try to mitigate any possible concerns that the RCO would have. We also discussed with the RCO
putting Ms. Dietschy's contact information directly in the window so that if there are
any issues, they could directly reach out to the owner of the property to deal with them.
And my understanding is the council member took a position against it, too.
That I was only informed of that chair upon you stating so, but I imagine opposition from council members.
Yeah. Given I had not received that letter.
Right. Why don't you bring your client?
Right. Why don't you bring your client?
Thank you. Ms. Dicci, could you raise your hand, please?
Thank you. Mr. Ditchie, could you raise your hand, please?
Gabrielle Dicci has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Good morning. Could you state your name, please, and spell for the course stenographer?
Gabrielle?
Ms. Dietschy, please unmute yourself.
Ms. Benton, just to confirm, it's star nine to unmute from a phone.
Is that correct?
She appears to be unmuted.
Good morning.
Gabrielle?
okay um
counsel you're an officer of the court we will accept your testimony um
questions or comments from the board no mr chairman
no mr chairman questions or comments from our attorney hillary emerson
not at this time mr chair um questions or comments from the virtual audience
chair we have david rosenblatt they have been unmuted and allowed to speak
good morning sir could you state your name please and spell for the court sonographer
david rosenblatt d-a-v-i-d r-o-s-c-n-d-l-a-t-t do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the
whole truth and nothing but the truth. Yes, I do. Are you a neighbor? Yes, I am. I live at 115
Ellsworth Street. Okay, please proceed, sir. Okay, first of all, I'd like to say that I'm already
burdened by the properties across the street because there's something with them that's
never been corrected, which is that the setback was never observed. So they already loom higher
than they should be and i'm pretty much uh in darkness six months out of the year because of
the properties so they're already in a private nuisance but that's just the side but moving
yeah concentrating on concentrating on that yes sir listen one minute what i want you to do is
to concentrate on the request for visitor accommodation i'm saying yes i'm saying yes
I just want to throw that in. So there are measures that they say they're going to take to preclude any nuisance.
It's very hard to stop a party. You know, if that's going to happen, we're already overburdened with parking around here because a lot of the places, even though they have garages, they own multiple cars.
So it's it's you know, it's going to be a private nuisance to me and to my neighbors.
And I walked around and I gave out notices because the zoning notice, it was shown on the door.
It was moved and it was put sideways in the alcove.
So it was very hard to see. So it wasn't conspicuous.
So not a lot of neighbors even knew about it besides the meeting.
That's an issue.
And his list that the lawyer showed where you pointed out that it was the same person signing these letters of recommendation.
I assure you that given time, I could provide significantly more signatures of people that do not want this thing.
And people that I've talked to going door to door do not want this thing.
And you already know that City Council and the Neighborhood Association are against it.
Thank you.
Thank you for taking the time to call us in.
We appreciate your input.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience who would like to talk?
Chair, we have a caller with the phone number ending at 3540.
Caller, please unmute yourself and wait for the chair.
Good morning.
Could you state your name and spell, please, for the court stenographer?
hello follow with the phone number ending in three five four zero please unmute yourself
okay is there anyone else in the virtual audience are you able to hear me this is
Gabrielle Dicci.
Oh, we hear you now.
Oh, we hear you now.
Okay, thank you.
Okay, thank you.
Do me a favor.
Do me a favor.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Could you state your name, please?
Gabrielle, G-A-B-R-I-E-L-L-E.
Last name is Ditchie, D-I-T-C-H-E-Y.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Counsel, do you want to have your testimony adopted?
If I may just, prior to that, add one thing in response to the original neighbor's statements.
Chair, this issue of parties, while it's been in the news and has created issues at some Airbnbs, I would just like to point out that it is in no way as a result of Airbnbs.
Any tenant or any owner of a property could host parties.
And in fact, if it's the same long term resident, they can do so over and over again with, you know, without any repercussions.
And in the case of an Airbnb, if you do have somebody having a party, that person will never do that party again because they won't be renting it again.
So I would just like to kind of address this issue.
And I understand it's been in the news and some very unfortunate situations have come out of this.
but we've also had some very unfortunate situations occur at parties that were not at
Airbnb. So I think it's just getting a little bit lost in the news, basically. So thank you.
But at this time, Ms. Neach, have you heard my testimony here today?
Yes, I have.
And would you adopt it as your own?
And is there anything you'd like to add for the board to consider?
no i certainly appreciate the time and you know i think the the biggest thing is you know ensuring
that i am a respectful you know neighbor um and i would take you know all protocols you know very
seriously to me it's a responsibility whether you're renting or you know using short-term rental
um you know and to me you know that property is an investment of my hard work and i do not want
parties or nuisances happening in that property and impacting my neighbors. So again, I appreciate
the time and certainly respect any decision made. And Ms. Dicci, would you accept a possible
proviso of this being just a temporary granted variance? I would, yes. Okay. Thank you very
much, Ms. Dicci. Thank you. Other questions or comments from the virtual audience?
chair we have a jim moylan mr moylan please unmute yourself and wait for the chair
good morning mr moylan could you state your name please and spell for the court stenographer
yes it's jim moylan m-o-y-l-a-n right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth
nothing but the truth? I don't. Are you a neighbor? Yes. Okay, please proceed, sir. So two levels. I'm
a near neighbor. I live on the 100 block of Federal, so directly opposite of where this is
being proposed. I'm also a member of the Pennsport Civic Association. I disagree somewhat with Mr.
Sokoloff's contention that it was poorly attended. The people that were in attendance were near
neighbors who would be directly affected by this variance request. And they had significant
concerns and direct interest into the effectiveness of what would occur here in relation to their
own homes. Also, as stated in our letter, and as the board is very familiar, when a variance is
requested, there generally needs to be some notable hardship designated here. And we don't
perceive that one has been justified in this case as an investment property that possibly has gone
not the route that the owner had intended and is now trying to find a way to alter the use of the
property, but not necessarily in alignment with the existing neighborhood. Mr. Sokoloff, do you
you have any questions? I don't at this time. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Moylan. Is there
anyone else in the virtual audience? Chair, we have Joan Duckenfield. They have been unmuted
and allowed to speak. Good morning. Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court
stenographer? Yes. My name is Joan Duckenfield. That's D-U-C-K-E-N-F-I-E-L-D. Right. Do you
where firm to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth i do are you a neighbor
yes i am and matter of fact the back of my house you know face is i am on federal street one two
three federal and the back of my house you know butts up against that row of houses on ellsworth
which went well so i mean these are um these are
which went well so i mean these are um these are high they're like four-story town homes
I don't know.
and it's kind of it forms like a canyon between the back of the ellsworth and the back of the
federal street homes and when somebody does have a party which you know we we expect uh residents
to do that we all do but it's not a consistent thing but when that does happen it's like a sound
canyon it's pretty loud in the back of our homes so that that's you know a really concern for me
um and this house um i understand with state it was not conducive to being a party house because
of all the technology and all which requires you know somebody to stay on top of it um but it has
a patio it has a um a balcony and it does have a roof deck so you know there's a lot of opportunity
for outside parties, which, you know, again, we're not, you know, it's a very quiet neighborhood.
We enjoy this neighborhood. It's a resident. I know it was mentioned that it's a commercial
mixed use, but it really is a residential neighborhood, even zoned that way, as I understand
it. Anyway, that is, and I do want to also say that I was at that meeting at Pennsport,
And there are quite a few of us there, at least nine or 10 people, at least, that I can count, that were concerned about this. So, yeah, I agree with David that if we wanted to get signatures, there'd be quite a few in addition to the Pennsport Civic letter. Thank you very much.
Mr. Sokoloff, do you have any questions?
Yeah, Ms. Duchenfeld, I appreciate you calling in and thank you for your comments. I just have one question for you. The parties that have occurred in the neighborhood, have those been at Airbnbs or at long-term renters' houses? Do you know by any chance?
um long-term renters okay and my point was mr sokoloff is that you know um you you know we
just don't want to add to that now a long-term renter or a resident i don't believe would have
a party every week or every two weeks or even every month that's not been our experience but
it could happen in a term in terms of a short-term rental is is my concern thank you thank you
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
Yes, Chair.
We have Alicia McDonald.
I will allow her to speak.
Good morning.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Good morning.
Hello, can you hear me?
Hello.
Yes, I can.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Alicia, A-L-I-C-I-A, McDonnell, M-C, capital D-O-N-A-L-D.
All right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Are you a neighbor?
I am a neighbor.
I'm on Federal Street directly behind the applicant, and I'm a concerned neighbor.
Oh, hold up.
Hold up a minute.
Are you for or against the project?
I am against the project.
And could you, could you tell us if there's anything that you would want to say that hasn't been said already?
Basically just being a concerned neighbor who's directly behind.
I'm sorry.
No, no, no.
Excuse me, Chair.
I'm sorry to interrupt, but she wasn't sworn in.
I'm sorry.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, told the truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed.
Tell us, tell why you're against it.
Okay, yes. Yes. Oh, I also attend the Civic Association meeting that we had. So I thought
it was well attended, especially for the people who are being directly affected by this. I do
oppose this changing of the zoning, being that, you know, for me, I also bought this townhome
recently. And to me, this is my home, as well as my investment, but more of my home. I'm here
all the time, full time. And I am concerned that if it's changed and become an Airbnb,
that it will disrupt the fabric of the neighborhood and particularly a person who is
directly who lives behind it and having different people who can pretty much stare into my kitchen,
stare into my living room for me is more also of a safety concern. So having
different individuals coming in at, you know, whatever time is a security or a safety concern
for me. Thank you very much for taking the time. Mr. Sockloff, do you have a question?
No questions, Chair.
No questions, Chair. Thank you. Is there anyone else in the virtual audience? Yes, Chair.
Thank you.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
Yes, Chair.
Patrick Fitzmaurice will be allowed to speak.
Hi, could you state your name and spell, please, for the court stenographer?
Good morning.
My name is Pat Fitzmaurice, P-A-T-R-I-C-K-F-I-T-Z-M-A-U-R-I-C-E.
All right.
Do you swear, affirm, tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
You're the head of the Penn Sports Civic Association.
Am I right? You are correct, sir. Do you tell us your position on this case?
Sure. I'm just the president of the RCO. I am not a nearby neighbor.
Okay. Thank you. I would just want to incorporate our letter by reference. I think it reflects
accurately our position and concerns with the application. And a lot of what's already been
said today, we would echo. I think a lot of it is also reflected in our letter. In an effort to not
be duplicative, I just wanted to put a few things on the record. I didn't see what the text of the
support letters say. I didn't have a chance to see them on the screen, but it's not clear to me that
they reflect some of the concerns that were voiced by neighbors and certainly not the concerns that
were raised in a public forum, which is what the RCO process is designed to facilitate.
I would also disagree that the various efforts mentioned to prevent provincial nuisances are actually prevention.
I think there are more reactions or reactionary to address nuisances as they arise.
I think parties are only one of the issues that was mentioned in our letter and mentioned at the meeting.
There are also concerns with the residential character of the neighborhood being changed by what is effectively a hotel.
um and the other thing i wanted to note um was the mention of a proviso um any proviso wouldn't
actually cure any of the issues that have been raised by the neighbors um so with that i appreciate
everybody's time thank you thank you very much um mr sokloff do you have any follow-up
none of this time sure thank you okay thank you anyone else in the virtual audience
there are no more hands here okay planning commission thank you chair bergman and board
members good morning david vecto with the city planning commission the comprehensive plan
recommends no change to the residential single family zoning at this location 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 visitor accommodations thank you mi 2023 002 192 112 elsewhere street i vote no
thomas holliman my vote is no ishmael shahim i vote is no thank you counsel
is there anyone in the virtual audience who has a case that has not been called yet on the 9 30 list
I see no hands. Oh, I'm sorry, Chair. A hand went up, Belinda Doughty.
I will allow you to speak.
Excuse me, Mr. Chair, we already spoke with Ms. Doughty.
Ms. Doughty, please contact the office for more information. The information was provided to you in the chat.
Okay. Is there anyone else in the virtual audience whose case is not?
No more hands, Chair.
Thanks, everyone. I appreciate it. See everyone at 2 p.m.
All right, Chair. Thanks, everyone.
Be safe, Ish.
Perfect. Thank you.
Bettina, I'm going to start right in, okay?
That's fine, Chair. We have 41 attendees.
All right. Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Bill Bergman, and I will be chairing this afternoon's EBA hearing.
With me is Thomas Holliman, our board member.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
James Snell, our board member.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
LeBaron Leonard Palmer, who is from Development Services, serving as our alternate board member.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
Our attorney, Hillary Emerson.
And our executive director, Tanya Sunket.
Here's our virtual format.
Be advised, the proceedings are being recorded.
The video will be available by contacting TanyaSunkett at phil.gov.
Benefit of our court stenographer, we ask attorneys and witnesses to identify themselves before testifying.
If you're participating by phone and you wish to testify, press star 9 to raise your hand and star 6 to unmute.
To enter an appearance statement, call 267-270-5548.
Leave your email and the address of the property in question.
And finally, the question and answer box on the screen is not for comment or testimony.
And finally, the question and answer box on the screen is not for comment or testimony, and any comments should be directed to our Executive Director, Tanya Sunken.
Let's look at our schedule for this afternoon.
number one mi 2021 004 541 251 rift district is mr orphanetes in the in the in the audience
mr orphanetes if you're here please raise your virtual hand
chair they have been unmuted and allowed to speak okay thank you
can you hear me mr chairman good afternoon mr orphanetes could you state your name for the
record and spell for the court reporter certainly david orphanetes o-r-p-h-a-n-i-d-e-s
i understand for 251 ripka street you're requesting a continuance could you
please give us some information on that sure um we uh this project uh is a uh calls for the
subdivision of an existing lot into two lots and to construct a single family dwelling on each of
the lots um the property is located on ripka street as you can surmise from the address 251 ripka
uh oddly well as you know the prop this one as you may not know this property is in the
maniunk area as you do know everybody knows very hilly right so ripka street um where this
particular property is located it's it's extremely hilly we have a refusal for steep slopes um and
the rip portion of ripka street that our property fronts on actually dead ends uh it comes off a
wildy street and then dead ends at the bottom of a hill then goes and our prop is you coming up
ripka off a wildy we're at the end on the left there are five through four or five i think four
homes single family homes each with a uh driveway and parking um to the right as you head up and
then it is a very steep hill that's all wild undeveloped just like our property at the top
of that there's a development project that's uh townhomes that extend uh towards hermitage street
There's a cul-de-sac and then Ripka Street continues. The city plan shows doesn't show any of those existing conditions. The city plan shows Ripka going straight through from Wildey Street to Silverwood.
And the reason this is relevant is that right now, because of the existing topography and because of the extent of the paving, when I say extent, how far Ripka Street is paved, our project calls for these two single family dwellings to be set back off of Ripka Street.
It's actually a steeper grade, our property off of Ripka Street.
That's where the steepest slopes are.
Our houses are at the flattest portion.
um we've i i took this project over from another attorney we had a meeting with the zoning
committee for the coordinating rfco manny manny young neighborhood council and what one of the
things i think they had requested when the prior attorney handled it and also requested of my
client and i when we met with them was that that for the homes to be pulled forward so that they
actually are right up to ripka street well the issue with that and i can show you on the plan
is that in order to do that, if you were to do that, the house on the second lot would,
and by the way, you know, we meet the lot size requirements, obviously the lot width requirements,
it's a zoned RSA 5, so the use is permitted. We've made some revisions based upon moving
where we moved the house to eliminate the height refusal, but to pull the building forward,
essentially the the grade of the ground would cut across almost half of the most of the ground floor
of the house on the second unit the one that's furthest up the hill furthest away from wildy
i've spent literally six months working with the planning and the survey district and now recently
have reached out to the streets department to find out if we can even accommodate if it were
even like, even if we wanted to, can we even accommodate MNC's suggestion that we pull
the buildings forward? Because what it would require is to basically excavate out part of
Ripka Street, build a retaining wall across Ripka Street, which is presently on the city plan. It's
not been stricken. And so we'd have to get the street stricken. We'd somehow have to get permission
to put up a retaining wall across that.
It's extremely complicated.
It's three different departments.
Survey district doesn't like necessarily
isn't clear on the situation.
So long story short,
So long story short, in pursuing the option or the request or suggestion of MNC, I've
in pursuing the option or the request or suggestion,
been working really hard, and we just don't have a definitive answer yet as to what would
be involved.
Mr. Mifro-Orphadides, you have made your case.
So MI 2021-004-541-251 Ripka Street, Cases Continued Attorney Moving Party.
Thank you for the briefing.
And I apologize for all these continued hearings and scheduling.
I've been doing this a long time.
I never imagined this would take this long to sort out.
That's fine, Sheriff.
Thank you for your...
Thank you.
Have a good day.
See you at 3.30.
All right.
Number 11, MI 2023, 003-746-8200-22, East Roosevelt Boulevard.
That case is continued.
And number 12, MI-2022...
Mr. Chair, Mr. Chair, this is Hillary.
I'm just going back to Ripka Street.
I believe the request in that case
was for attorney moving party.
Did we continue to?
You did?
All right.
Thank you.
I must have missed it.
Not a problem.
Thank you.
And then Roosevelt has continued as well.
Thank you.
So I'll go back.
Number 11, MI 2023-003-746-8200-22
East Roosevelt Board.
Cases continue.
And number 12, MI-2022, 005-434-5953, Masher Street, that case is continued.
Is there anyone in the virtual audience who has comments relative to the three cases that have been continued?
Chair, we have Brett Feldman with their hand up.
They have been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Mr. Feldman, just for the record, could you state your name, please?
Sure. Members of the board, I'm Mr. Chair. Good afternoon. Brett Feldman.
Spell your name, please, for the quarter.
B-R-E-T-T, Feldman, F-E-L-D-M-A-N.
Do you swear a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
You're number 11, right? Roosevelt Boulevard?
Yes. The continuance matter. If I may just add, this was a situation where we
are working with the zoning board, city planning streets on returning back to L&I for a new review
of revised plans to accommodate a better set up drive-through for a Dunkin' Donuts. I'm just
hoping that once we get that refusal, if there's any way to work with the board to try to get some
type of accelerated hearing date on this um um why don't you do this why don't you call the office
and we'll we'll we'll see what we can okay yeah because i think just so we we've done a lot of
work we've already had meetings with the community and uh we're well along once we can get these
revised plans hopefully uh reviewed so that'd be great thank you mr for calling we appreciate it
is there anyone else who has anyone else requesting good continuance
chair we have someone by the name of lee horn they have been unmuted and allowed to speak
why could you state your name please and spell for the court reporter
can you hear me yes i can can you state your name
right do you swear or firm to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth
And what case are you calling about, sir?
I was calling for the number 11, the 8200 Roosevelt Boulevard.
I am the representative.
Go ahead.
I am the zoning chairman for Ron Hurst Civic Association.
I saw that you're, we have your letter.
I was going to reaffirm the statements that we made in the letter and see if there was any questions from the board to us.
we we're fine with that sir we're going to wait to continue this to see where we stand with it okay
but we do appreciate your letter and appreciate you calling in thank you so much sir all right
is there any other requests for continuance here we have alan knockamson they've been muted and
allowed to speak good afternoon mr knockamson good afternoon mr chair members of the board
Just state your name for the record and I'll swear.
Yes, Alan Nochamson, A-L-A-N-N-O-C-H-U-M-S-O-N.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Are you talking about 605 Glenview Street?
No, I just want to make sure, and I'm pretty sure that this was done, but I'm just being extra careful.
2000 South Street was supposed to be heard today, but we had it administratively removed.
was supposed to be heard today but we had it administratively removed uh moved excuse me
moved to january 31st 2024 i just want to make sure that that is correct hillary tanya
i see that is that is not on our list today so um it's definitely been moved i don't have the
new date um in front of me yes but it's not okay thank you tanya
Mr. Nockamson. No, that's fine. Did Ms. Tonkett say that it has been moved to January 31st, 2024?
Yes, Mr. Nockamson. All right. Thank you. I just want to make sure that that. Okay. Thank you.
All right. Thank you, sir. Thanks for calling. We'll hear you shortly.
Number six, MI 2020. Yes. Excuse me. We have one more person with their hand up. Sure. Absolutely. Okay.
Henry Rojas has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Hi, Mr. Rojas.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Good afternoon.
Yeah, H-E-N-R-Y-R-O-J-A-S.
Good afternoon.
How are you doing, Mr. Chairman?
All right.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
What case do you want to talk about?
Number 4913?
no 2100 robbins street 4100 robbins mr chair this this case is on our add-on list
mr rojas this was scheduled to be voted today however we are going to need to move the vote
to next week in order to have all of the members present who were at the hearing last week and the
chair is going to announce that on the record you'll hear that shortly and i will make sure
that you know i remind you that when i do it okay so we'll be calling that in a matter of minutes
all right thank you so much sure that's fine so number six
mi 2022-005-088 4913 north lawrence street
uh axa flores gonzalez and also cgi construction this is the third listing we have no exhibits
do we see any hands i see no hands at this time chair thank you so mi 2022-005-088-4913
north lawrence street uh this is the third listing we still don't have any exhibits i vote to dismiss
thomas holliman i vote to dismiss james still my vote is to dismiss
Thank you. And then I have number four, MI-2023-001-892-1115-27-Frankford Avenue. This case has been withdrawn.
We're going to go to our add-on list.
Number one, MI-2023-003-246-2990 Southampton Road.
I vote yes with Proviso.
Revised plans, one page, stamped by ZBA on November 1st, 2023.
Smoking lounge use limited to smoking of cigars and other tobacco products.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes with Proviso.
James Snell, my vote is yes with Proviso.
Thank you.
And number two, MI 2022-001-058-332 Delancey Street. The vote in this matter is being rescheduled to Wednesday, November 8th at 2 p.m.
Number three, MI 2023-003-558-2334 North 30th Street. The vote in this matter is being rescheduled to Wednesday, November 8th at 2 p.m.
Number four, and Mr. Rojas, this is your case. MI 2023-002-107-2100 Robbins. The vote in this
matter is being rescheduled to Wednesday, November 8th at 2 p.m. And number five, MI 2021-004-819-2900
Distance Street. The resumptive hearing in this matter is being rescheduled to Wednesday,
November 8th at 2 p.m. We're moving to our regular list. Number two, MI 2023-003-744-1807
Walnut Street. Ronald Patterson is the attorney. Letter of non-opposition from the Center City
A letter of non-opposition from the Center City Residents Association.
Residents Association.
Mr. Patterson is coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good afternoon.
Good afternoon, Mr. Patterson.
Could you state your name and spell, please, for the court stenographer?
Sure, Ronald, R-O-N-A-L-D, Patterson, P-A-T-T-E-R-S-O-N, with Claire Harrison Law Firm, 1835 Market Street, Philadelphia, 19103.
Do you swear a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Could you identify your client in relationship to the property?
Sure, I represent the tenant at this location, which is the Star Restaurant Organization through its LLC, Smallville Restaurant Associates.
And Mr. Hallman has just a few questions for you, sir.
Good afternoon, Counselor.
Good afternoon.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Yes, I do.
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
Yes, I did.
Please proceed and share your screen.
Thank you.
Okay, can you view my screen?
You can, sir.
Okay, thank you.
So, as you mentioned, this application actually was filed under this property is 1801 through 1809.
As you see here, it's at the corner of 18th of Walnut Street.
um it's comprised of two properties uh 1801-03 and 1805-09 which is what we're here for it's
but i it's filed under 1801-09 because it's it exists under a unity of use um i did file under um
1801-09 the proposed space is 1805 yet the refusal letter says 1807 so i submitted this
revised proviso plan form to correct that address.
I had asked the department to correct it, but my request
was not answered. So Ms. Emerson has this
application request on the record. So as I mentioned,
the application regards this space, which is vacant, which was formerly occupied
by the Barnes & Noble bookstore across from
Rittenhouse Square. Here are some location pictures.
As I mentioned, the tenant, what is proposed here is a sit-down restaurant on floors one
through three, which would be the business with an accessory office on floor number three.
There are no changes proposed to the building height, footprint, or area, i.e. FAR.
are. The property is located in the CMX 5 commercial zoning district, which permits
sit-down restaurants. But as we know, it's within the Center City control area, particularly on
Walnut Street, which requires any restaurant to seek special exception approval from the zoning
board. And the special exception approval, as you know, routes us through the RCO, which in this
case is the Center City Residence Association, where we discussed, presented the case and
discussed their typical proviso conditions, which in effect lessen any adverse impacts
that may arise.
So as I mentioned, the properties, the actual business for the public would be on the first
floor and the second floor, which would be in this area here, because we'll get into
more detail for private events.
With me is Michael Palermo, who is the Vice President of Development and Facilities of the Star Restaurant Organization.
If you could promote Michael so he could testify.
We see Mr. Palermo.
Mr. Palermo has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Mr. Palermo, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court's stenography?
sure my name is michael palermo m-i-c-h-a-e-l p-a-l-e-r-m-o you swear or affirm to tell
the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth i do proceed counsel thank you uh michael uh you've
heard my opening in my statement would you agree that it is true and accurate yes it is and would
you adopt it as if it were your own? I would. Can you see my screen? I can. Okay. If you
I can.
If you wouldn't mind to just briefly describe to the board the operations proposed on the first and second floor, the number of seats and the location of the trash, interior trash storage area.
wouldn't mind to just briefly describe to the board.
We, the front of the building, if we're looking at the screen, is to the right.
we propose a modest sidewalk cafe uh on the on the sidewalk that contains approximately 32 seats
the interior of the restaurant on the first floor contains about 170 seats
uh that consists of a kind of a little cafe dining area in the front uh the a bar which
is kind of l-shaped that's got an arc uh there's some seating there above the bar and there's about
an 80-seat dining room in the back for approximately 160 seats all together on the ground
floor in addition to that on the ground floor we have a back of house area which consists of
locker rooms trash storage areas uh employee restrooms and an office for the restaurant
and there's some storage for wine there on the second floor is a approximately an 80 seat
dining room which we would use for events and private parties in the front of the restaurant
It has another small bar with about 14 seats around it, and the primary cooking kitchen for the restaurant is on the second floor.
The balance of the second floor consists of real cooking kitchen functions and food preparation functions and dishwashing and storage for proteins and vegetables and fruits.
80 seats on the first floor and and uh the hours of operation the restaurant will be open for
breakfast lunch and dinner seven days a week uh no live music just recorded background music and
of course our our refuse would remain inside the building until uh nightfall where we have
a garage on the back side of the building and inside that garage is where we would store
our trash for morning pickup. I got a trash room is on the on the screen is in the lower left hand
corner where I'm showing you and comparatively speaking the first restaurant compared to
the park is same smaller or larger would you say? Believe it or not we own and operate the
park restaurant at 18th and Locust Street. And these two restaurants are approximately
10 seats apart in capacity with the park restaurant being a little bit larger.
Thank you. And also, when we talk about the outdoor cafe, the windows here, are they operable?
Windows are not operable.
Thank you. So again, this is a special exception. And we would agree that we've met
The standards to establish that there will be no greater impact than what would be here for a fully permitted use, like the bookstore.
And we believe that is adequately addressed through the standard provisos that CCRA proposed, which we agree to.
And I can bring them up on the screen if you'd like to see them.
And, Mr. Chairman, that's all I have.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
no chair questions or comments from our attorney hillary emerson
um yes mr chair i indicated in an email to mr patterson and mentioned this to the board earlier
if we could just hold this to make sure we don't need a corrected refusal for the address
um because the board the board cannot correct the address um but if there was an error in the
address we will need lni to issue a corrected refusal okay thank you questions or comments
from the virtual audience chair we have wade albert they have been unmuted and allowed to speak
good afternoon mr albert could you state your name please and spell for the court stenographer
sure wade albert w-a-d-e last name is a-l-b-e-r-t do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole
truth nothing but the truth i do mr chairman please proceed sir thank you so i am counsel
for the Center City Residents Association,
and I echo that we do not oppose this project.
With regard to the provisos issue,
I don't think it was clear in the letter,
so I just wanted to make our point clear.
We presented standard provisos to the applicant,
uh to the applicant and based on uh zba practice the the only proviso that i'm asking to be included
and based on ZBA...
in the license is uh the trash being uh uh be held internally um prior to uh to pick up uh and
and with that um thank you very much thank you thank you for calling in we appreciate it is
anyone else in the virtual audience i see your hands at this time chair thank you planning
commission thank you chairman and board members david vecto with the city planning commission
the comprehensive plan recommends no change to the commercial mixed use zoning at this location
the appellant has shown that an eating and drinking establishment will have no detrimental impacts
beyond what might be expected the city planning commission recommends the board grant the proposed
special exception for eating and drinking establishment thank you david we're going to
hold the vote hillary can we look for this to be maybe next wednesday can that be done by then
yeah that that should be fine let's look for next wednesday at 2 p.m we'll vote okay
thank you so much thank you mr patterson all right you're welcome have a great day
number three mi-2023-003-603-1921 north 2nd street joseph consul is the attorney
letter of support from norris square alliance letter of non-opposition from council member
good afternoon mr consul just for the record could you state your name and spell please for
the court stenographer. It's Joseph, J-O-S-E-P-H, last name, Consul, C-O-N-S-O-L-E.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
I do. Could you identify your client and relationship to this property?
Yeah, my client is Mr., well, it's Two Street Properties, LLC. Representative James Brand is
on the call. Okay, and Mr. Holloman has just a few questions for you, sir.
Good afternoon, Counselor. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy?
Yep. Yes.
Did you email all the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
All right. Okay, we're here on 1921 North 2nd Street. This is 2nd Street between Norris and
Burke Street. As you can see on the map here, it's zoned CMX 2.5. The other side of the block
is zoned RM1. We're here because this property was originally constructed as a multifamily with
no commercial space. And having been rezoned as CMX 2.5, my client, while he initially
had intended to attempt to create commercial space on the first floor of this property,
It became clear while he was in that process with his engineers and such that it was just impossible for him to retrofit based on the way the property sits the first floor into any commercial space.
And as you'll see on picture of the block, there's the property there, this sort of shell in front of you.
It sits up a little high to make it a commercial space.
First of all, it's too small, but also there would have to be a lift there that he just wouldn't be able to accommodate.
And just generally, the reason for the hardship is it's never had commercial space.
You can see the property next door clearly didn't either.
There are commercial spaces on the block, but there are also plenty of multifamily and single family homes that never had commercial space on them.
So for that particular aspect of the refusal, we're seeking a variance to remove the commercial space entirely.
Now, the second issue, which is number of dwelling units, we had originally proposed four dwelling units.
Three is the number that is allowed in CMX 2.5 per the square footage that we have here.
And that's all my client is asking for today is three units.
So really, the second refusal is not relevant, and we're just seeking approval to not have to convert the first floor into commercial space.
To that end, we visited with North Square Community Alliance in-person meeting, and we got their full support.
And we got their full support.
We received a letter of non-opposition from Council.
We received a letter of non-opposition from Councilman Lozada, Councilperson Lozada.
And that is kind of it.
I'm going to scroll through the photos and the plans.
Like I said, my client will rehabilitate this property and make it into a nice three-unit building.
and we have the plans that we included in the packet showing the breakdown of those three
units we actually had the plans um redrawn uh that's what we included in our packet that we
submitted to show the three units that we presented to the rco um following the plans
we have all the other necessary documentation including the deed and the project information
form um it's not a lot else to highlight for this property except to reiterate no commercial space
ever existed there uh and it's suited for three units by right and we're hoping the board does
not uh see a need for us to implant a commercial space into the first floor of this building uh
With that, Hillary, hold on. Hillary, do you have the plan show in three?
It was a little bit confusing from the plans. It looked like there was commercial space plus the residential dwelling unit.
My client did, like I said, when he was originally designing it, he did design it to include those three units.
But I could call him to to testify and we could resubmit the plans without the third unit if that's the ones that we had digitally when we submitted this.
We've since he since updated them.
Let's bring your client on. He can adopt your testimony. He can explain what what what he's going to do.
Mr. Consul, what is your client's name?
His last name is Brand, James Brand.
James Brand has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Mr. Brand, could you state your name and spell, please, for the court stenographer?
Yes, my name is James Brand, B-R-A-N-D.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Proceed, counsel.
All right. Initially, Mr. Brand, did you hear my testimony regarding your property on Second Street?
Yes, I did.
Do you adopt it as your own?
Could you explain to the board the evolution of your plans from having the commercial space with the units to where it's at now?
Sure. So by right, we were allowed to have one commercial space and three residential units.
I tried with my architect and my engineer to conform to that with some drawings.
There were some restrictions regarding access given the elevation of the first floor, at which point we decided to pursue a variance to remove that between speaking with you and certainly after discussing with the Neighborhood Association.
You know, it seems like just for the, you know, it's not a very large property that three units was a better solution than trying to squeeze four residential units in.
So originally we had a tiny commercial space that encompassed the first 30 feet with a
efficiency in the back, accessing the basement.
But again, it was just very jammed together and there was no way to provide appropriate
access to the commercial space.
So we basically redesigned it and we just have a first floor apartment, a second floor
apartment and a third floor apartment.
a very common layout that you'll see in a typical three-story triplex and and that's that's pretty
much it thank you hillary hillary do you need anything uh this is fine mr chair since this is
a change of youth application plans plans weren't required it was just that the ones that were
submitted with the packet were a little confusing all right thank you questions from the board
no mr chair uh hillary anything additional no mr chair questions or comments from the virtual
audience i say no hands share high planning commission thank you sir and good afternoon
david fecto with the city planning commission the comprehensive plan recommends no change to the
commercial mixed use of zoning at this location the lack of ground floor commercial space is an
existing condition so the city planning commission recommends the board grant the proposed relief
from the ground floor commercial requirement in the zoning code
from the ground floor commercial requirement in the zoning code
MI 2023 Mr. Chair this is Hillary I just want to note that the applicant is only requesting
three units we should note that as a proviso thank you so MI 2023-003-603-1921 North
Second Street I vote yes proviso no more than three dwelling units Thomas Holloman my vote
is yes with proviso james now my vote is yes with proviso thank you counsel thank you number five
mi 2023 003 678 605 glennview street um letter of opposition from long crest community association
applicant did provide a petition of support signed by approximately 10 neighbors along with six form
letters, including one signed by the adjacent neighbor at 603. Mr. Nockamson.
He's coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good afternoon again, Mr. Chair, members of the board, Alan Nockamson.
Mr. Knock, I'm saying you've already been sworn.
Could you identify your client in relationship to this property?
Yes, my client is Lord Alcantara.
She is the owner of the property.
Okay, and Mr. Holloman has just a few questions for you, sir.
Good afternoon, counsel.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing
yes we have thank you please proceed and share your screen all right thank you
so i'm here to present 605 blendview street um just from the outset my client is not a developer
She's owned this property since 2015, and it's currently being used as a duplex.
There is one extra space that has been vacant for all those years that she's trying to make into a third unit for herself.
And that unit, the entry is above grade.
So she's really looking at this for her own use.
She's not looking to monetize this third unit.
And like the chairman stated, you know, she has support of nearby neighbors, including her next door neighbor.
So first, we'll review the notice of refusal. Then we'll have the correspondence from the 35th Democratic Board.
Then we'll review the petition that we circulated to nearby neighbors, and it has a map showing that the individuals who signed the petition or the letters of support, the form letters of support, are all within a block, a block and a half radius.
So we really did try to find the people who would be most directly impacted about this project with regards to this project, and they are supportive of this project.
We also have the rental license.
So it's not like we're taking a property that has a single family use and making three units.
It's two to three units.
We have legalization for two units.
We have a rental license for that use.
And we're asking to add that third unit.
And again, it's for my client.
As she ages out, she needs a place in that building where there's no steps.
So that's why she's looking for this ground, essentially a ground floor unit, which has a parking space in the back for her use.
And again, it's not uncommon to have multifamily use on this block.
So we will show you a few properties on that block, which are multifamily in nature, which are also RSA3 properties currently.
Then maps of the area, photographs of the property, or plans and drawings.
The RSA meeting notice, along with the proof of mailing of that notice, our application for appeal that we filed on Lord's behalf, our deed to her property, showing that she has owned the property for a better part of a decade, and the certificate of tax clearance.
At the conclusion of my presentation, I would ask that she virtually raise her hand, and then I have a few questions for her to answer.
So, yes, this is an RSA 3 property, but it has a significant history for multifamily use.
Currently has legal use for two units.
We're asking for a third unit.
Again, this is for her own use.
You'll see from the pictures that the entryway for that third unit has its own entryway.
There's two ways to get in and two ways to get out of this property.
And again, the entryway is above grade.
And in front of that entryway is an off-street parking space, which she would use for herself.
And in front of that entryway is an off-street parking space, which she would use for herself as well, especially as she ages out.
So we did meet with the 35th Democratic Award.
They had strong opposition to this proposal.
I will say this.
If you look at their tally, not one person was within the affected area.
So I think that they have a great following as a community, but no one within the affected area was in opposition to this property or even voted.
And that's why, again, we were very diligent in getting circulating a petition in support and letters to support.
We thought that this was a pretty straightforward project and not even a project.
This is for our client who's just an individual.
And we were a little bit surprised of the the lack of support within the general confines of the 35th Democratic Ward.
And a couple of things to note in their comments, they said they had questions focused on the layout, the basement.
Like I said, I think it's more of a lower level. And then they had questions about the upstairs units, which we have no problem.
We only showed them the floor plans. Well, we focused our floor plans on the lower level unit because that's why we're here today. I don't know if there was a misunderstanding or lack of understanding that those two units above on the second and third floor or the second floor are allowed as a right.
So maybe there was a misunderstanding with regards to that, and that we were trying to go from one unit to three units.
And then there was a discussion about congestion in the area regarding parking.
Again, the two units that are currently in existence, neither of them use that parking spot that's in the rear.
And again, we're adding a third unit, and that third unit would have exclusive use to that parking spot.
And it's only a one-bedroom. It's not large by any means.
and we would think that it's it's a zero-sum game there like we're not causing any issues
with parking by adding that third unit because there's an off-street parking spot that already
exists so i just want to respond to their concerns of the community uh and then the petition as you
can see we're right here and like we mapped out like again it's basically a block and a half radius
on Glenview. In addition to our next door neighbor, the neighbor behind us is also
support. So people who are really directly impacted are supportive of this increase in
use of units. And then here's our petition. We did it in both in English and in Spanish
because there is a Spanish speaking population in this area. So we wanted to make sure that
people fully understood what they were signing. So we put it in English and in Spanish.
and then her letters of support and then the rental license again um two units are currently
allowed uh even though this is an rsa3 property and we're only trying to increase it by one
additional unit to three units but lords does everything um proper and that's why she's part
this process as well and then it's not uncommon to have a multi-family even in these rsa3
properties on this block 600 glenn view street is multi-family 611 glenn view street is multi-family
and 613 and 615 glenn view are also multi-family and then the maps of the area we're between
Oxford and Bingham and Longshore and then there's Glenview and then North Street as well
and we're in the Longcrest section of Philadelphia so there's a sprinkling of some commercial
units nearby so this increased density would hopefully help support you know those commercial
units as well and then photographs of the property this is the front of the property as you can see
it's a two-story structure in the front. And the way it slopes down, this is the back of the
property, and this is the door that's exclusive to that potential third unit. And there's a
parking spot right here as well, which would be for the exclusive use of that third unit.
We also have proof that we posted the orange notice posters for today's hearing. Here's the
one that's in the front of the property and the one in the rear. And this is a better photo showing
the parking that's allowed in the rear as well and then this is glenn of u street to the right
of the property to the left of the property and then our plans and drawings pretty straightforward
what i do want to highlight is the fact and you saw this with the pictures but we're basically
above grade almost exclusively it gets a little higher when we go towards the end of the unit
but we're this is not where we're putting a unit in the basement and there
but we're this is not where we're putting a unit in the basement and there's multiple
ways to get in and out of the property which you'll see as well just get into it
so this is our unit so a couple things this is the this is the first floor on the glenn view
how it slopes down but you can you know there's a flight of steps that go down there this is the
secondary access. But you go down this flight of steps, there's a common laundry facility. And then
this is the rear of our unit number one. But someone in case of emergency, you saw that front
door, which is over here, where the three stories is. But in case of emergency, they have two ways
to get in and two ways to get out. There's a separate flight of steps and all that. And again,
it's not a large unit by any means, but my client needs this. This is going to help her
like you know hopefully retire one day and and to again she can't take the steps and this is why
it was really important to convert this this into a third unit but there's a living room a bedroom
and a bathroom nothing extravagant but like something that's needed for her oops
and then we met with the community on october 19th at 6 30 p.m this is proof of emailing that notice
to the coordinating RCOs
and then the other affiliated RCOs.
51 addresses are within the affected area.
Proof of mailing to those addresses.
Our application for appeal
that I filed on my client's behalf,
along with the notice of refusal
and the project information form,
the deed to the property,
and the certificate of tax clearance
shows she owes no money.
at least real estate taxes with respect to that property.
With that being said, I would ask that she virtually raise her hand.
Let me ask the question first, maybe, and not that you would know what happened,
but could you at least address the 1991 ZBA when they approved this, the comment,
could you at least mention that to her for us?
Yeah. So, yes. In the refusal, it does say that two units were approved, but that there would be no third unit in the in the basement level.
I can't speak to that. I think I wasn't even in college at that point in my life.
So but no, I mean, it isn't, you know, it's something that was dealt with at in 1991.
We are asking, I'm not saying a second bite of the apple, but it's not uncommon to have multifamily around here.
I think three units are reasonable under the circumstances.
This lot is over 3,000 square feet, right?
The building is a decent size as well.
And given the configuration, and I'm sure the configuration hasn't changed in 20, 30, 30, three years, 32 years, but it's how it slopes down.
We're just asking for this accommodation.
So the other multifamily, are there any of them three dwelling units?
I don't know if that's the case.
I will say that there's an apartment building across the street, which is 25 units, which is on Bingham.
okay why don't we bring your client
Mr. Nackamson
what is your client's name
Lourdes
Alcantara
Lourdes Alcantara
has been unmuted and allowed to speak
could you state your name
please and spell for the court stenography
my name is Lourdes Alcantara
L-O-U-R-D-E-S
Alcantara
A-L-C-A-N-T-A-R-A
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth,
the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Proceed, counsel.
Yes, Lords. You heard everything
I had to state today.
Is it true and correct what I stated?
And do you adopt it as your own testimony?
Thank you.
What questions from the board?
Mr. Chairman, not a question, but a comment.
It says kitchen permitted in basement, so you can't have a kitchen without an apartment.
I just want to make a comment that I noticed that, Tom.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Right.
Questions or comments from our attorney Hillary Emerson?
yes i just had a quick question for mr knockamson um how many parking spaces did you say there were
Yes, I just had a quick question for Mr. Nockmson.
because this is rsa3 so there should have been a note about the parking spaces on the refusal
there there's one it's it looks like one of those common driveways that you would see in like the
northeast where it's just basically a common driveway and everyone goes right or left behind
their wherever their building is right right yeah i did see the common driveway i just wasn't clear
it wasn't clear from what i could see how many spaces there were because there it may have been
that there should have been a refusal for not having if there's not three spaces for not having
three spaces as well i can't say three yeah i didn't look at the width of the property i i didn't
look at the width of the property so i i don't know i definitely saw one no one parks right right
now so okay i did you know okay okay thank you um questions or comments from the virtual audience
here i see no hands at this time planning commission thank you chairman and board
members david fecto with the city planning commission the comprehensive plan recommends
no change to the residential single-family zoning at this location this property has a
documented history as a duplex dating to 1991. However, there is no indication of a third legal
unit. There is no unique physical condition or circumstance that would prevent the property
from continuing to be used as two dwelling units, and this is a primarily single-family block.
The City Planning Commission recommends that the board deny the proposed use variance
for a third dwelling unit. Mr. Nackas, and what I want to do is really talk to the other board
members about this case in executive session next week. We'll vote on this next week at 2 p.m.
Yeah, I appreciate it. One other point I just wanted to reference.
Sure. And I just thought about this. So in 1991, there was a legal change in the use of the
property to a duplex. It allowed for a bathroom in the kitchen in there. And when my client
purchased it in 2015, that was in existence. And I don't know if Mr. Holloman was trying to get at
this. But like, ultimately, there is a third unit there. It's never been used as such. And that's
why we're trying to legalize that. That's why we're going to sit and talk about this next week.
All right. Thank you. All right. Thank you.
Number seven, MI 2023-003-644-2411 to 43 North 11th Street. William Mafuchi is the
attorney. There's a recommendation of support from the 37th Ward RCO and a letter of support
from Council President Darrell Clark. William Napucci, if you're in the virtual audience,
please raise your hand. He's coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good afternoon, counsel.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
How are you, sir?
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Certainly. William Maffucci, W-I-L-L-I-A-M. Maffucci is M-A-F-F-U-C-C-I.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Could you identify your client, the relationship to the property?
Yes, my client is the Philadelphia Housing Authority, the owner of the property.
Okay, thank you. And Mr. Holloman, our board member, has just a few questions for you, sir.
Good afternoon, counsel. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Yes, I do.
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
Yes, I did.
Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the board. With me today are members of the development team that the Philadelphia Housing Authority has put together. I'd like to identify them for the Philadelphia Housing Authority.
we have Zia Rockman, Senior Construction Manager, Michael Leger, Project Engineer,
Neil Berger, Program Manager, and Nicole Ward, Architect. From the architectural firm JKRP
Architects, we have Glenn Werner, the principal of the firm, George Connell, Senior Project Coordinator,
Mark McWilliams, the designer. From the civil engineer, Stantic Consulting, we have Kevin Smith.
From the civil engineer, Stantic Consulting, we have Kevin Smith.
And from the project manager, Dale Corporation, we have Jeff Isberg.
We're here seeking relief from two refusals issued by L&I in connection with our application
for the first phase, Fairhill Apartments Phase 1 of Philadelphia, of PHA's project
to redevelop and revitalize a beloved area in the heart of Philadelphia near Temple University
immediately east of Favreau Square. The PHA's master plan in three phrase phases will cover
355 residential units. Most of the units will be in two existing since 1962 high-rise buildings
on North 11th Street, which will be completely renovated and committed to senior housing.
The others will be in low-rise units, most in the same location as the existing buildings
along Cumberland Street, 10th Street, New York Street today.
Keep on that page.
Critical to the PHA's plan is the breakup of the superblock
and the dedication of land for New Street, Boston Place,
running east to west through the center of the block.
Go to the next screen number three.
Screen number three.
You can see Boston Place is shown on the right side,
on the right screen is the proposed New Street.
uh the city a city ordinance has passed approving the creation of boston place um and
in connection with the subdivision required for this now this screen shows phase one is everything
north of boston place everything in the front of this screen you see the house the existing high
rise is on the right uh the the low rises are to the left there'll be a community center uh
i think what appears there is the north uh the the the top left corner our zoning application
for phase one resulted in two refusals uh one regarding the floor area ratio far and one
regarding the proposed bicycle parking space uh bicycle parking spaces let us address the latter
refusal first go back to slide four go to slide four four right no four
uh go go go ahead go forward
where's the slide
looking at slide number four which shows the bar it's which the by the parking spaces yeah it's
not on that list uh you're getting i apologize mr chairman we had
while she's looking looking for the slide which actually shows you the location of the park
shows you there we go there we go the the bicycle parking spaces have been
Mr. Maffoot we don't see it you may see it but we don't see it I'll just share the screen there
while she's scrolling to that the the uh the parking spaces um the the refusal that was issued
by the examiner reads as follows. 10 class 1A parking spaces are required for the 30 proposed
dwelling units, whereas 28 class 2 bicycle parking spaces are proposed. Again, we've outlined,
we circled in red where the existing bicycle parking spaces are proposed as of this drawing.
I've conferred directly with the plan examiner, Matthew Wojcik, and he could explain that the
refusal did not regard the number of spaces or the location of the spaces but instead only the
type of the bicycle parking spaces proposed. We contemplate what are known as class two spaces
which are open air but he reads the the the code is the code table is requiring class one a spaces
which are enclosed. Now, as a preliminary matter, I think he may have been in error in interpreting
the code provision, the table, which is table 148041, as requiring any parking spaces.
His refusal reads, makes reference to 30 dwelling units, which correlates to the low rise
in a single and double family units that we propose, which numbered 30.
which numbered 30.
Table 14-1804-1 does not require any bicycle parking
Table 14, 1804.
for the low-rise units
or for any buildings comprising fewer than 12 parking spaces.
In any event, when we went to the RCO,
many residents participated,
and all of them were unanimous
in preferring that the bicycle parking spaces be open.
One of them made a comment,
those enclosed spaces would be of no use to us. And in any event, it's important to keep in mind
that the importance of the bicycle parking spaces is diminished here in a project such as this one,
which will be dedicated principally to senior housing. With regards to the refusal regarding
the FAR, the floor area ratio, the fact that the FAR exceeds 70%, of course, is not a condition that
is being created by the development it's a pre-existing historical condition that was created
that is created by the presence of the high rise which was constructed in 1962 many many years
before the adoption of the far uh neither is the far changing substantially with the construction
the pha's master plan will essentially replicate the existing building footprints uh go back to
to slide five uh it's possible that uh the creation of boston and the dedication of boston
pay place increased the far slightly solely by virtue of uh of of decreasing the size of the
footprint of the result in lots but again boston place is a critical component of pha's master plan
it was one of the very first features that was addressed it's been approved by by city council
and it's essential to the success of the revitalization of this area.
In any event, with regard to hardship, recognizing that the hardship warranting relief we submit
is consistent with decisions of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in Marshall versus City of Philadelphia
in Zoning Board of Adjustment, and of the Commonwealth Court in Davis versus Zoning Board of Adjustment,
Both of which mandate relief from the strict application of zoning requirements, particularly as here dimensional requirements, to promote the reconstruction and revitalization of communities.
Let me walk very quickly through the exhibits that we've submitted.
The first is the zoning permit application.
We've submitted the zoning refusal.
Go to the...
Keep going down.
Here's the zoning refusal, the project information form.
Slide down one more.
Our application for repeal.
Keep sliding down.
The next page should be the certificate of tax clearance and the next two you can slide
through.
We've mentioned already, we have the support of the coordinating RCO of the 37th Ward.
letter of support from uh city council president daryl clark um the zoning posters uh with that
you know we've taken three sets of zoning posters the first of which was 21 days before this hearing
flip on down the um some more about zoning posters
that should be about it right there
took a lot of pictures
took more posters than I thought
with the city
so 14 people
attended the meeting
it was unanimous
yes it was
more people than that
attended but
the vote was unanimous
Here's the letter.
Skip on down to the next plan, the subdivision plan.
Just keep pulling down.
Pull the round down.
Keep going down.
The next is the city ordinance approving the dedication of Boston Place.
The next document is a city plans division depiction of Boston Place as approved.
to slip down, all right.
Here's the Boston place as depicted by the streets
to the city planning commission.
Two quick aerial photographs.
This is the existing conditions you'll see.
One way down, this is a depiction of the completed space.
And then we're not going to go through all of these,
and I apologize, there's so many of them.
And all these properties were acquired between 1958 and 1961 through condemnation proceedings or through agreements in law of condemnation.
The vesting deeds date back that far.
There were 400 pages.
We submitted them all, and we apologized for the technical problems caused by the volume.
There was no deed that merged them all together after they were acquired.
I'd rather be a tax parcel was assigned based upon the merger of title under the merger doctrine of law.
I would like to ask my client, Zia Rockman, who is here to just affirm my testimony.
Thank you.
Mr. Rockman, could you please state your name as spelled for the court reporter?
Ziaur Rahman
Z-I-A-U-R
last name
R-A-H-M-A-N
you swear or affirm
to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
proceed counsel
thank you Zia, you were next to me
did you hear my testimony?
do you agree with my testimony and adopt it as your own?
are you available to answer any questions
that the board may have for us.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
Questions or comments from our attorney,
Hillary Emerson?
Not at this time, Mr. Chair.
And Mr. Mifuchi, thank you for sending over
all those deeds separately.
I appreciate it.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
I see no hands at this time, Chair.
Planning Commission.
Thank you, Chair Bergman and board members. David Vecto with the City Planning Commission.
The comprehensive plan recommends no change to the residential multifamily zoning at this location.
The appellant seeks to replace the current low-rise public housing units with new low-rise units.
The City Planning Commission approved the introduction of a new street into what is currently a superblock to facilitate this project.
The proposed floor-to-area ratio variance and substitution of Class 2 bicycle parking spaces for Class 1 bicycle parking spaces are both consistent with the Commission's previous actions at this site.
The City Planning Commission recommends the Board grant both variances.
MI 2023-003-644-2411-43 North 11th Street, I wrote yes.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes.
James Snell, my vote is yes.
Counselor, you have your votes. Thank you.
Thank you, Karen. Thank you.
Thank you.
Number eight, MI 2023, 003-716-240 Hermitage Street.
Brandon Saverin is the attorney.
Letter of support from Ridge Park Civic Association.
Letter of support from Councilman Jones. An applicant provided 23 form letters of support from neighbors.
Mr. Saverin is coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman.
Good afternoon, Mr. Saverin. For the record, could you state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, my name is Brandon Saverin. That's spelled B-R-A-N-D-O-N. And then S as in Sam, A, V as in Victor, R-A-N as in Nancy.
You swear or affirm, tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Could you identify your client and the relationship to the property?
So I have two clients in this matter. One is the title owner of the property. That's the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Catholic Archdiocese.
Catholic Archdiocese. The second applicant is under contract to purchase a portion of the
this. The second applicant
property and that is Studio Hill 1 LLC and I represent them both today. Mr. Holloman has just
a few questions for you sir. Good afternoon counsel do you agree to waive the reading of
refusal and stipulate to his accuracy? Good afternoon, Mr. Holliman. Yes, I do.
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
Yes. Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen. Thank you.
okay good afternoon members of the board um as mentioned i am here to speak about 240 hermitage
street um what's on your screen right now um is exhibit eight among the exhibits that i submitted
to the board and asked be moved into the record uh this is a zoning map from atlas that in this
blue rectangle highlights the property um the property is the uh holy family roman catholic
church and contains a building that formerly was the holy family catholic grade school
and just to orient you a little bit zoom out a tad um this is the ridge park section of
rocksboro so where my cursor is right now is the green lane bridge where a lot of folks cross the
Schuylkill River and to Lower Marion to get on the Schuylkill Expressway. If you were to proceed
northwest along Maine and Umbria streets and then make a right and go up the hill just a little bit,
the property is on Hermitage Street. It's a very large property. It's over 87,000 square feet. So
particularly in the context of Roxborough, we're talking about an enormous site.
uh this has been um you know in the hands of the archdiocese of philadelphia for a very very long
time um the vesting deed that i submitted among my exhibits was written in hand by hand in cursive
which i haven't seen in a long time um so just to go through a couple other exhibits um this is
exhibit nine um also from the atlas website an aerial view of the property i'll go through that
more more carefully in a moment um just to point out though uh in a rough overview the front of
the property along hermitage street basically serves as a front yard um there's also a rear
yard in the back of the buildings and then even further back there's a parking lot and even
further back there's a strip of uh woodland uh which is zoned differently than the rest of the
property. It's zoned SPOA. So important to note right off the bat, we're not proposing any
construction of new structures and hardly any new construction at all. We are certainly not
touching the protected woodlands. Very important. And then Exhibit 10 is a few slides that we showed
at the two RCO meetings we attended. So this is privately obtained photography that shows
the school building, which is vacant and has had a rough go of it of late. I believe within the
past year, a portion of the roof collapsed and had to be repaired. So the archdiocese is looking to
sell this portion of the property, but retain the rest. And my clients actually put together,
sorry, this is a side view of that same school building. My clients put together this image,
which I think is helpful before I show you the official zoning plan. So here's what this is all
about. The dashed red line indicates the extent of the portion of the property that Studio Hill
1 LLC is set to purchase from the Archdiocese. And what it contains is a small portion of the
parking lot, some additional blacktop area, some of which we're proposing to landscape,
and the school building, and a historic fire tower behind the school building that is going
to be used for storage purposes. The rest of the property, which consists of the Holy Family Church,
the rectory and the former convent which is now used as an assembly hall are all going to remain
you know in their their current state of use and remain owned by the archdiocese
as you'll see there's this sort of leg here by which the the property flows out to Fowler Street
by which the the property flows out to Fowler Street this i'm outlining with my cursor is
actually a separate property owned by the archdiocese and they have offered my client
an easement through it so that it can access so that so the future residents of the school
which we're converting to an apartment building can access their parking more on that in one moment
So here is the notice of refusal and referral.
And this is Exhibit 2F.
So the capitalized text at the top tells you in a little more detail about what's being proposed.
First paragraph says that we're proposing to subdivide the property and create some easements, as I just summarized for you.
The second paragraph talks about what Studio Hill 1 wants to do with the school building after it purchases it, which is to convert it to 16 dwelling units of mostly two-bedroom apartments.
I have interior floor plans to show you about that in a second.
It also talks about using the fire tower for storage, and it talks about the purchase of 13 parking spaces from the archdiocese, which will include the requisite van accessible ADA space, as well as covered bike parking.
Finally, the text mentions that the rest of the property, which is not being sold, is going to remain in use as religious assembly, accessory storage and kitchen.
And what it says is six single room residences. That's the rectory.
In addition to 41, which we've reduced to 40, I'll show you in a second, but we'll say 40 parking spaces that will be for the exclusive use of the church and the related uses.
So 40 spaces for the archdiocese activities, 13 spaces for my client, and my client is actually also leasing some off-site spaces from the archdiocese, which I believe will give them a total of 20 spaces, but that lease is not a subject of this application.
So 13 on-site spaces for the 16 apartments.
I know that was a little confusing.
I can go back and talk about parking count if you have any questions.
And just to show you the referral and the refusals.
So the referral is right here.
The Archdiocese requires a special exception to continue to operate the rectory as a rectory.
It has six bedrooms for clergy.
That's a pre-existing use. There's also some refusals for which we need variances. So at the bottom, this actually pertains to the archdiocese portion of the site.
There are currently only two ADA spaces. It's not clear that they were the requisite with. So as I'll show you in a moment on our plan, we basically are not officially eliminating these refusals, but we're dealing with them by providing on our revised plans the ADA spaces that they require.
So that's how we satisfied that. The rear yard death issue, I'll show you on the plan in a moment. That's a dimensional refusal. And then finally, sort of the central issue is that we need a refusal to use the school building as multifamily residential living.
keep going here I'll show you our zoning plan so this is exhibit 2j this is our proviso plan
that we're asking you to approve it's two pages long it's very similar to the zoning plan that
we originally submitted to L&I basically the only differences are that we've added some landscaping
which I'll talk about in a moment and then here are those new and improved ADA spaces serving the
church, which aims to satisfy the criticism of that last refusal. So that's, that's shown here.
We're just going to re-stripe this parking aisle to install these code compliant ADA spaces.
But let me zoom out a little bit. You know, the shaded portion of the plan is what Studio Hill
One is purchasing from the Archdiocese. And you can see how this is sort of a, what's called a
third more or less of the site and it shows how the parking spaces are going to be attached to
and part of what's being sold. The landscaping is going into some sloped blacktop. This was at the
request of the two RCOs that participated in this process. It's really a beautification effort
and because as the board knows there's a lot of rules now about landscaping in the code that are
relatively new. We had the planning commission preemptively review the location.
we have the planning commission preemptively review um the location the size the species of
the new landscaping that we're proposing and you can see right here that the planning commission
stamped the plan with approval so our our new landscaping would not generate any new refusals
and we have sort of official uh you know go ahead on that um we also show the easement that is
mentioned the refusal. So as you saw in the aerial image, the way that the parking lot is accessed
from the street is not changing. One iota, no physical change with regard to the driveway.
All we're doing is basically signing a piece of paper, a legal easement that officially
guarantees the apartment residents the right to drive onto the property. It's to ensure
that the archdiocese, not that it would ever do this, but it's to ensure that the archdiocese
can't change its mind later and say, hey, we changed our mind. You can't park there anymore.
So the fact that the easement is located in the rear of the property triggered a refusal,
but it's a little bit, I would say, of like a de minimis, like purely legal refusal in the sense
that we are not like paving additional areas to get this done that's already paved really just
giving rights to the apartment residents to drive on it but that triggered a refusal because of its
location um and again the woodlands in the rear not being touched that i showed you earlier
i also will show you i promise i'm nearing nearing the end a couple more minutes the streets
department did review the plan showing that driveway easement and gave zoning stage approval.
This is Exhibit 2E. It's the approval letter from the Department of Streets.
Exhibit 5 are the floor plans that are proposed for the interior of the school.
I'm going to go through this as quick as humanly possible. Three stories,
no additions to the building, no roof deck, nobody living in a basement. Basically,
most of these units are two bedrooms, just to pick on a few at random. You know, here is an
example of a two bedroom unit. Here's another, right? Let's say, on average, 1000 square feet,
something like that. Now, here's a one bedroom unit. It says 789 square feet. Why is this
bedroom only? Why is this unit only one bedroom? That's because of the fact that it is adjacent to
one of the emergency egress stairs. So we couldn't establish a second bedroom here given the way
there's no windows next to those stairs without really limiting the light going into the living
room. So just to say most of these units are two bedrooms. There's a handful that are one bedroom,
but this is definitely not an attempt to like shoehorn a bunch of studios into the building.
I'm going to go into sort of the RCO and the neighbors.
This is exhibit 13.
As the chairman mentioned, we obtained, I believe, about 20 letters, form letters of
support that were signed by residents of the Roxborough and Nandiamh communities.
This is a letter of support that was provided to us by the coordinating RCO, Ridge Park
Civic.
We attended two Zoom meetings. It says that there were 27 votes in favor and only two opposed
to the entire project. This is a letter of support from the project from Councilman Curtis Jones.
I also have, just to go back to this, I have a short email from the Maniunk Neighborhood
Council, an affected RCO that simply says that they share in Ridge Park Civics support of the
project. Exhibit 3 is a memo of law that speaks in full to why we meet the requirements of the
code for all of the variances and the special exception that we're requesting. I will not
read through this. I'll simply note that with regard to the use of the school as an apartment
building there is a case which looked at a similar conversion also of a catholic school
called marshall verse city of philadelphia um that found that um a a uh vacant school building
um it is a valid hardship to be able to say that it cannot be converted uh to uh any by right uses
to any by right uses, and that multifamily residential use can be held to be the minimum
and that
necessary relief to enable reuse of the building. And then finally, last exhibit,
this is a letter from the Monsignor of the parish, Holy Family Parish, that granted me
power of attorney to testify on behalf of the archdiocese's behalf. And that's because the
archdiocese did not send a representative today. I do have a representative from Studio Hill One
to adopt my testimony. And that's it. Let me have your testimony adopted.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. His name is Andrew Janos.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Hey, Andrew. Firstly, do you have authorization to testify today on behalf of Studio Hill One LLC?
And your organization is under contract to purchase what's shown as proposed parcel A on the subdivision survey?
That is correct.
So with regard to parcel A, did you hear my testimony in your zoning case this afternoon?
I did.
And was it true and accurate to the best of your knowledge, information, and belief?
Yes, it was.
And would you therefore adopt it as if it had been your own testimony?
Yes, I would.
Okay, 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?
I see no hands, Chair.
planning commission thank you chair bergman and board members david vecto with the city planning
commission the comprehensive plan recommends no change to the residential single-family zoning at
this location the proposed use of variants for multi-family units and rear rear yard depth
variants advance the comprehensive plan's goals to reuse vacant land and structures in innovative
ways and to preserve culturally historically and architecturally significant buildings sites
structures, and districts. The remaining use and dimensional variances are existing conditions on
the site. The City Planning Commission recommends that the Board grant the proposed use and
dimensional variances for this proposal. Thank you. MI 2023-003-716-240 Hermitage Street. I vote yes
with proviso revised plans two pages stand by zba on november 1st 2023
thomas holliman my vote is yes with proviso
thank you counsel please stay on the phone on the line okay so number nine mi 2023
323-003-670, 1801 West Tioga Street.
We have a letter of support from Algady West Civic Association.
Mr. Saverin, you've already been sworn, but just for the record, could you state your name and also identify your client and the relationship to this property?
Yes. My name is Brandon Saverin. I am the attorney for Tioga Gardens LP, who is the property owner.
And Mr. Holloman has a few questions.
Good afternoon, counsel. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
Yes, I did.
Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
Thank you.
Okay, good afternoon again, members of the board.
So I am here on a request for two variances
to legalize the existing condition
of a garden apartment complex known as Tioga Gardens
in North Philadelphia.
my client did not cause the conditions that require the variances they happened under the
watch of a prior owner and we are not proposing any construction
um a prior owner and we are not proposing any uh construction that um has any uh relevance to
zoning um so again this is an application to legalize the existing conditions as i will show
you in a moment exhibit 2a among the exhibits i've submitted and asked to be moved into the record
is our notice of refusal. You'll see that the application for statement says that we are
attempting to legalize 34 dwelling units in existing structures where only 33 are currently
permitted. And the refusals result from the fact that going up from 33 units to 34 requires a
variance because we're in a single family district, RSA 3. The second refusal results
from the fact that in the RSA 3 district, unlike the more common RSA 5 district, you
have to have parking for each dwelling unit. And there is some parking on the site, but
we're not proposing to increase it because we're adding a, or I should say legalizing
a dwelling unit without adding additional parking, we drew a refusal for not adding
an additional parking space. I will show you our current rental license, which is Exhibit 4.
So you'll see here, this is a screenshot from li.phila.gov that we have an active rental
license for 33 units. And that is because if you look at Exhibit 5, we were permitted or a prior
owner, I should say, was permitted to construct the buildings on the property, or some of them,
I think some of the buildings even predate these permits, and to use the totality of the buildings
as 33 dwelling units I won't go through all of these I think I submitted 20 or 30 some pages of
permits and related documents but you know I hope you take my word for it if you haven't reviewed
them that the property is permitted to have 33 units currently exhibit six shows you the location
of the property using the city's official zoning map from atlas.phila.gov. It is a 35,000 square
foot property at the northwest corner of Tioga and 18th Streets with a small frontage on Atlantic
Street as well. Exhibit 7 has an aerial view of the property from Atlas. And I'll show you
street level photos too, but what you're going to see is that probably a third or perhaps even a
half of the site is dedicated to green space on the sides, in the front, in the rear of the
buildings that comprise our complex, which I'm tracing with my cursor right now. There's a lot
of open green space here. So we have a lot of units, you know, we have 34 units, but we have
over a thousand square feet of land per unit, right? So this is not a, I would not say this
is a dangerously dense complex by any stretch of the imagination. Exhibit eight are some street
level shots from Atlas. So this on the left, and this is the Tioga Street frontage, this is like
one of the older buildings that probably predated the rest of the complex that was incorporated
into it. The rest of the complex was built in the 90s. You can see the side of one of the newer
buildings that faces 18th Street here. And there's a row of about a half dozen of them that go down
18th Street, and they're shown here. They all have front yards. I believe that most of these
units, these buildings on your screen now are triplexes. There's also some duplexes and quad
complexes on the property. All one land parcel. When I say, you know, triplex, I'm talking about
a particular building. And then finally, there's, I think, three structures that are on Atlantic
Street. This is a strip of off-street spots. These are the only parking spaces on the property and
it was permitted as such and they'll continue to be there. We just are not proposing to add
additional parking in connection with the legalization of the extra unit. And what we
think happened is that there was a duplex in one of these buildings that was converted
into a triplex without permits. What we're going to do, if you grant us the variances that we're
seeking, is we're going to get a new CO for the property. And in applying for that CO,
And in applying for that CO, we're going to submit floor plans to L&I, and L&I is going to inspect the property.
we're going to submit floor plans to L&I, and L&I is going to
So it will make sure that all of the triplexes, in terms of their interior construction, are up to code.
And if one of them is not, because it was the one that was converted without permits, L&I will tell us, and we will make safety improvements to make it up to code.
So that's just to reassure you that you are not going to be allowing illegal construction if you grant the variances.
Exhibit 11 addresses the RCO process.
On your screen right now is the letter that was mailed to affected neighbors.
This is proof of mailing here.
This is an email that we sent with the same notice and our refusal to affected RCOs.
I believe one of the affected RCOs did attend the meeting, which was held by the coordinating RCO, Allegheny West Civic.
And this is Allegheny West Civic's meeting summary.
It says that their five board members all voted in support of the legalization of the 34th unit, as did the three near neighbors who were in attendance.
Just one or two more minutes here.
I'm just going to talk about the comprehensive plan and the memo that I wrote to the board.
So I wrote a memo to the board at Exhibit 1, making, I know the board often takes an
interest in, you know, the question of, are there other multifamily properties in the
vicinity?
So yes.
And in fact, in this case, a majority of the buildings that are on our block of Tioga Street
contain three or more dwelling units.
So that sort of matches our level of density. Also, a majority of the buildings on the 3500 block of 18th Street, our block of 18th Street, also contain three or more dwelling units.
And then there are buildings, some of which are right next to us, and some of which are a few more blocks away, that also have a lot of units on much smaller properties, I should add.
So, you know, 2100 West Tioga Street, 40 units, that's more than us on a lot that is, you know, about a quarter of the size of ours.
And there's other examples of that here, you know, 2104 West Venango, 106 units.
And then finally, I believe that I provided a couple rental licenses just to prove what is inside some of those other big properties I referenced.
And then I spoke about the comprehensive plan for the North District and included a screenshot of the plan just to show you where my cursor is here, that our property was at the time this plan was written by the Planning Commission proposed to be up zoned to RM1.
And if the property were in fact zoned RM1, our number of dwelling units would be permitted by right.
So for all of those reasons, we respectfully request that you legalize the 34th dwelling unit without requiring the creation of an additional parking space.
Thank you very much.
Okay. You have your client there to adopt your testimony?
Justin Kaplan is his name.
Justin Kaplan has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Chair, could you state your name and please spell it for the court stenographer?
Justin Kaplan, J-U-S-T-I-N-K-A-P-L-A-N.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, counsel.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Justin, are you permitted to speak on behalf of Tioga Gardens LP today?
Did you hear my testimony in your zoning case this afternoon?
I did.
Was it true and accurate to the best of your knowledge, information, and belief?
And would you therefore adopt it as if it were your own testimony?
Thank you.
Questions from the board?
no mr chairman no chair questions or comments from our uh attorney hillary emerson
not at this time mr chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
chair we have charles richardson they have been unmuted and allowed to speak
good afternoon mr richardson could you just state your name and spell please for the court
an article good afternoon mr chair charles richardson from the office of council
Good afternoon, Mr. Chair. Charles Richardson from the Office of Councilwoman Vass, room 508 City Hall, Richardson, R-I-C-H-A-R-D-S-O-Y.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, sir.
Councilwoman is not opposed to granting the variance.
Thank you very much for your calling in. We appreciate your comments. Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
I see no hands, Chair.
Planning Commission.
Thank you, sir, and good afternoon. David Fecto with the City Planning Commission. Mr. Chairman and board members, the comprehensive plan recommends a change in zoning at this location from residential single family to residential multifamily. Based on the size of the lot, 67 dwelling units would be allowed by right under the proposed zoning. So 34 dwelling units is the minimum necessary to afford relief.
The City Planning Commission recommends the Board grant the proposed use variance for 34 dwelling units and for not including an additional parking space.
MI 2023-003-670-1801 West Tioga, I vote yes.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes.
James Snell, my vote is yes.
Thank you, Counsel.
Thank you very much.
Number 10, MI 2023, 004265, 164 North 54th Street.
Kiwanis Duckett is the attorney.
There's a letter of opposition from Achievability.
There's a letter of opposition from the block captain.
And there's a letter of support from Council Member Jones.
Chair Kiwanis-Duckett is coming back in as a panelist now.
Council?
I see him on the panelist side.
I don't know why he's not responding.
Kiwanis Duckett?
He's come back in as a panelist
because I can see him, but I don't know
why there is no response.
Is he muted?
Chair, looks like he's unmuted.
Kiwanis Duckett?
it looks like he's having trouble with his
audio.
Okay, let's
let's move on we'll come back to that again okay okay number 13 mi 2023 003 704 2200 to 04
locust street justin crick is the attorney
the center city residents association has taken a position of non-opposition
Justin Crick is coming back in now as a panelist, Chair.
Good morning.
Hi, Mr. Crick. How are you, sir?
I'm well.
Can you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, Justin, J-U-S-T-I-N, Crick, K-R-I-K.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Could you identify your client in relationship to the property?
Yes, my client is George Beatty, and he is the owner, record owner of the property.
Right. And Mr. Holloman has a few questions for you, sir.
Good afternoon, counsel. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
All documents were submitted. They did come in Monday morning in hopes of getting the tax
clearance from the website. We actually got that today during this hearing, but everything was
sent to Ms. Emerson. Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen. All right. Thank you very
much. Members of the board, I am here on behalf of the owner of 2200-04 Locust Street. The property
is a large four-story structure with basement and
is a large four-story structure with basement and is zoned as RM1 multifamily. The applicant
is the owner of or partner of a law firm that has been operating out of this property since
2012. Interestingly enough, this application was prompted by the desire for the owner to
convert an unused fourth floor of the property into a residential unit, private residential
unit, which then triggered the fact that his prior previously approved use as a law firm
and an office in this building had actually lapsed due to administrative error on their
They did not obtain the CO after obtaining the use permit back in 2012 for this use.
So, I'm going to jump right to that part because I think it's the most relevant.
You'll see that in 2011, the application, a decision was rendered in favor of this building
being used for a law office on the first, second, and third floor with accessory storage
on the third floor and basement.
There was no use of the fourth floor at the time.
It was left as vacant.
Again, and I'll show you a little bit later on, we have the permit that was actually issued
in October of 2012, but because of a failure administratively to obtain this certificate
of occupancy afterwards, my client only recently realized that the use had expired and lapsed.
So again, for the last, since 2011-12, the property has been used in the current fashion
that we're seeking. But this is an application for the erection of a roof deck and use, as I said,
of the fourth floor as a residence, but we do have to come back before this board to
confirm the proposed business and professional office use in the district.
For geographic purposes from Atlas, you can see that the property is at the corner of
22nd and Locust.
It's a fairly large property and I zoom in shortly, but it's not your typical row home
in the area.
Zoning, you'll see that most of the properties around are RM1 properties located in this area.
And if we were to use this as an RM1 property, we are in the dozens of units available.
But currently, there are no residential units in the property, and we are looking to make the first floor exclusively a single unit.
Some street views from the corner, opposite corner of the building.
Here's our frontage on, I believe this is the 22nd Street side.
And this is the Locust Street.
This is up Locust Street.
And this is Locust.
So this picture, just for knowledge, the intention is that the first, second, and third floors
of this building are exclusive to the law office.
Accessibility and entrance through the primary entrance will only give access to that one
business.
and then there's a red door that you can see on the side here I will zoom in a
little bit this red door leads to the basement and will provide common area
through the basement for passage for exclusive access to an elevator that
does exist and or stairwell so that the fourth floor residential unit is separate
and cordoned off from any of the business use it is the intention of the
applicant to use this residence for personal purposes but that is not
forever guaranteed and we also wanted to make sure that the the uses or anyone
who is in there would not interfere with anybody else and the use of the
property the roof deck as you can see from some of these aerial shots will be
located on this flat part of the roof we are working with historic in terms of
viewing angles but there is since it's so high up and set back already thank
thanks to these dormers you there's no visibility of what the proposed roof
deck will be on this on this section of the roof so again what we're seeking
what isn't technically at the refusal here but just to give the background is
the roof deck on the top this building does have a separate fire escape and
from from all floors down and out so there are multiple means of interior and
exterior egress. This page shows the existing floor plans, but I'm going to go right to
the proposed. So our proposed fourth floor plan would be to make this a single family
three bedroom, three bath residence with access to this roof deck. As you can see, the third
floor is existing law office and there's photos that will demonstrate what's going on in there
in some file boxes the second and first floor are actively used as the law
office as the photos will demonstrate and the basement will be as I indicated
And the basement will be, as I indicated, kind of parsed off where there's common accessibility and access to elevators and staircases, but certain areas will be restricted from the residence and or the business for the owner only, as well as certain areas designated just for the law office, like this little kitchen area.
kind of parsed off where there's common
as indicated before the site angles on the building do not allow for visibility of the
roof deck and we will again continue to work through historic with regard to the materials
and any other design issues with the roof deck here is the use permit that was issued
in 2012 that allowed for the law office in first second third floor with accessory use
in third floor basement. Again, just had not obtained the certificate of occupancy following
the issuance of the permit. Some interior photos of the basement as is current, mostly
storage as indicated. The entrance off the street comes in this way and you'll notice
that at the moment there is actually a handicap accessible ramp to bring someone in. This is
This is in part because the business may need to and has been required to, as a law firm,
see clients that needed accessibility into the building and they can then get to the
elevator and get to the first floor.
This is the first floor.
You'll see we have law firm operating out of this location and it's been maintained
this way.
Clearly has not been used as a residence for quite some time.
Also first floor use.
Here we have some shots of the second floor and offices within the second floor.
And we have the third floor storage that will continue to be used as law firm slash storage.
And then this is the fourth floor as it exists with, you know, just some empty rooms and
some things strewn around, but with the intent to convert this into the residential portion
that we were discussing.
For fire safety purposes, just so you're aware, and for trash, this is the exit from the basement down to the rear alley that leads both to the street as well as from the fire escape courtyard that leads through this alley or underpass area out to the street.
This is not a shared alley. This is exclusive, and this is trash and so forth are kept and stored under here and brought out at the appropriate time.
Here's a copy of the vesting deed indicating that George Beatty III is the owner of the property.
This is what we originally had from the tax clearance but in fact as you can see Mr. Beatty
while waiting for this matter to be called managed to get the system to work and did get an issue
date of today on a tax clearance certificate. We did meet with CCRA and they do not oppose of the
issue and they do not oppose the legalization of this use in the property.
This is the application that was filed for appeal. Copies of the postings on the property
and notice to the CCRA members with the refusal and several pages of notices of mailing to
near neighbors. I do have Mr. Beatty on the line to adopt my test. Prior to doing that, I do want
to just state that we do believe that there is a hardship in the nature of the fact that
the existing RM1 use, if this building were put to its called for use as RM1,
we believe that it would increase density significantly in the area, which is something
that we don't believe the neighbors were looking to have done. So that is in part why we believe
that they have not opposed but we are only increasing density by one unit in this circumstance
right um mr beady if you have the opportunity please raise your hand
do we see mr he was there a minute ago chair he disappeared there he is he's back again
George Beatty has been unmuted.
Hi, Mr. Beatty.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, George Beatty, G-E-O-R-G-E.
My last name is Beatty, B-A-D-E-Y.
Right.
Do you swear or affirm, tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Proceed, counsel.
Thank you.
Mr. Beatty, have you had an opportunity to hear my statements to the board today?
Yes, I did.
Do you believe that my testimony was true and correct to the best of your knowledge?
Yes, that's correct.
And would you adopt my testimony today as if it was your own?
Yes, I just, the fourth floor is the residence issue.
You said that several times, and one time I think you said it was the first floor, but it's the fourth floor for the residence.
so with that caveat yes i adopt everything that you said very good thank you questions from the
So with that caveat, yes, I adopt everything that you said.
Very good. Thank you.
board no mr chairman no chair questions or comments from our attorney hillary emerson
none at this time mr chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands at this time chair planning commission thank you sir and good afternoon
David Fecto with the City Planning Commission. The comprehensive plan recommends no change to
the residential multifamily zoning at this location. The appellant seeks a variance to
document an existing business and professional office in this property. The City Planning
Commission recommends the board grant the proposed use variance for a business and professional
office. Thank you. MI 2023-003-704-2200-204 Locust Street, I vote yes. Thomas Holliman,
my vote is yes. James Snell, my vote is yes. Thank you, counsel. You have your votes.
Thank you very much. All right. We're going to go back to number 10. MI 2023-004-265-164
North 54th Street.
Koanis Duckett is the attorney.
Koanis Duckett is coming back
and is a panelist, Sheriff.
Thank you.
Hi, could you state your name and spell it, please,
for the court stenographer?
Good afternoon. Can you hear me now?
I can.
Awesome.
And I can share my screen?
Yeah. Do me a favor.
Could you state your name first and spell it for the court stenographer?
Juan Estuckett, C-O-W-A-N-I-S-E-U-C-K-E-T-T.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Would you identify your client and relationship to this property?
164 CES LLC.
The owners are Samaya Minor and Alexander Daniels.
They are president of the vote.
Mr. Holloman, our board member, has a few questions for you.
Thomas?
Good afternoon, counsel.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required three days in advance to this hearing?
Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
Good afternoon. I represent Alexander Deos and Maya Minor, owners of 164 North 54th Street.
Y'all are here because we're asking for zoning use fairies.
Property is already zoned as CMX1's commercial mixed use.
And right now we're asking to change the commercial space
and to be used as an assembly entertainment space
full of 49 people.
See the deed here.
This is the deed when they bought the property in 2021.
one, tax certificate. I want to take you up. Here, tax clearance, tax certificate clearance.
Here are the building plans. Now, they have not changed the footprint of the building. There have
been no changes to the building. There have just been renovations. So that has stayed pretty much
is saying this is the certificate of approval for the changes that they have
made some pictures of the orange posters on the building I believe their time
stamp started on the 10th of October we have a couple from the 17th
23rd there's the 17th right there and October 23 23
This property has been vacant for 40 years. This is a picture that's on the corner of 54th and Ray
Streets. At the time of Purchase, it was vacant for 40 years. Pictures of the back of the property
is overgrown, dilapidated. These are pictures of the inside before my client started making the
renovations. So what they've done is they've changed this space. They made
commercial space on the, I'm sorry, residential space on the second floor.
These are pictures of the second floor and their intention is to first floor as
and their intention is to first floor as an event space.
and events.
They've had a meeting with the RCL and the community members,
and a lot of people attended.
I believe over 20, there was a vote, and the vote was 7, 4, and 6 against.
We've heard many of the community's concerns,
and I think they highlighted that in a letter from, I believe it was Ms. Campbell,
who was the block captain.
And when we read their letter, we hear that their concerns are parking and violence.
For some reason, I see that they were paying particular attention to us selling alcohol.
I'm sorry. Yeah. If this event space is given a license to sell alcohol, there's nothing but give individuals full to engage in census acts of arguing, fighting, shooting, et cetera.
But 21 neighbors in the affected properties did sign it.
However, I believe those neighbors are misled by what my clients are trying to do.
They're not trying to sell alcohol.
We're not trying to obtain a liquor license.
There are also concerns about safety.
And I believe Ms. Campbell makes reference to her granddaughter, her grandchildren,
being able to be safe in the neighborhood.
Issues that they raise, I believe, are issues that what the use of this commercial space for doesn't change.
By right, if my clients wanted to open up a bodega or daycare or something like that, what they could do, there would still be issues with parking.
However, my clients have started to address their issues by reaching out to the resources in the community, specifically Pastor Fleming.
He's at the church down the street, I believe it's St. Jude Baptist Church.
And we've talked to him to arrange that people who are coming to our event space can park there on days where it's not Sunday service or a Bible study.
We don't want to interfere with their already existing services.
Let's see if...
We don't have a letter with the pastor, right?
We don't have a letter with the pastor.
So we did reach out to, sorry, wait a second.
Oh, there is, so for the parking attorneys, that's the best that we can do if we're open to other suggestions with regard to that.
Also reached out to Captain Newborn, the 19th District, to talk about safety issues, to ask for additional patrols when we have events.
And just to make a relationship so they're aware of what we're trying to do there.
With regard to other issues with violence, we talk to retired police officers to talk about security concerns.
And we also are looking to get armed security while we have events.
My client has also taken that corner and has brightened it up.
He's put out there 16,000 room and lights.
So the property is lit up at night.
It's very bright.
He also has surveillance cameras out there as well.
We've done all that we think we could to address the concerns of the community,
which I believe are based on the assumption that we were trying to get a liquor license.
Our clients are looking to use this as event space and community space.
We've already got commitments from Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,
which is an active member and an officer.
And they have an images program, which is geared towards teenage daughters.
They committed to hold meetings there once a month at this event space if we are granted this variance.
Both Samaya Miners and Alexander Daniels also are going to hold seminars there.
Samaya, life and health, she does insurance.
Her commitment is listed here.
Alexander Daniels not only was a real estate agent at one time, but he's a real estate investor,
and he liked the whole seminars to try to teach that and provide other real estate information to members of the community.
Lastly, I, myself, as an attorney, also am committed to doing Know Your Rights workshops,
family law, estate planning, and the other legal understanding workshop here, which I already do.
with the local school district, certain churches, and other areas.
Next, I do believe the concerns were heard, and you see, sorry, this letter of support from the councilman.
The councilman is aware of the RCO's letter, the neighbor's letter,
and the councilman put in here conditions in which we believe, which is...
The councilman put in here conditions in which his support would be given, and we already have the same hours that he's put here, so he got that from the conversation with us.
He's asking that we stay with those hours, but he also put no purchase of liquor, which was the main concern, for not to be a hookah lounge and to arrange parking with neighboring churches.
So we've done that.
We've arranged parking, and with regard to the hookah lounge, it won't be a hookah lounge.
This event space is for private events, so it won't be open to the public event space.
And lastly, my clients did sign a proviso, which we have attached, which says that they agree as a condition of getting the zoning variance experience not to use, not to sell alcohol or never to apply for or try to obtain a liquor license with this business.
One of the things that I saw that I noticed from the conversations with the neighbors, and we had conversations not only with the RCO meeting, but we actually went and rang every doorbell, went face-to-face and talked to the neighbors, is that their concern is about the violence in the city.
And I believe that it was because of that they're operating from a place of fear, and I don't think they see my client's vision.
My client, somebody who I've known almost three decades now, and I see them actually doing what it is that we spoke of years ago, how we can contribute to the community.
I believe that this event space will do exactly that.
Many of them say there's nowhere, I saw in their letter, Ms. Campbell said there's nowhere for our children to play.
They're closing schools, they're closing resources.
And I believe that this is a resource that the community needs.
I believe that those neighbors, because of their fear for a liquor license, which is unfounded, some other fears that they might be arguing and bringing for a drawing of the wrong crowd to this neighborhood, I believe that their non-support is misguided.
And I truly believe that clients are investing in the community, providing space for sororities like Alpha Kappa Alpha by programming for people in that community, opportunities for people like me to give out information and opportunities for them and other people, other stakeholders, which we've been lifelong residents in the city.
We know a lot of people for us to reinvest in our communities and not take our assets and investments and put them outside the community.
So I believe that what they've done with this building is great.
I believe we had some more pictures, but I'm sorry.
We've had technical difficulties.
I don't see the pictures here.
Why don't you bring your client on and adopt your, have your testimony adopted?
Wonderful.
It'll be some Maya Miner.
And Alexander Daniels, they're together, but they're under the name Samaya Minor.
Samaya Minor has been allowed to speak.
Could you state your name, please, and spell it for the court stenographer?
Yes, my name is Samaya, S as in Sam, A-M-A-I-Y-A, Minor, M-I-N-O-R.
You swear or firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Chief Counselor.
Thank you.
So, Maya Minor, did you just hear my testimony to the zoning board?
Is it true and accurate to your knowledge?
You forgot my statements.
Questions from the board?
No, Mr. Chairman.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Yes, Mr. Chair.
Two things.
Um, first the, the wrong tax clearance was submitted in this case. It was for permits
and licenses instead of zoning. So I checked the real estate taxes and there's a small balance due
from 2022. Um, so we will not be able to vote on this case until that is resolved. Um, the second
thing that I do want to check on is there is a dwelling unit above that I'm unclear that it is
referenced in prior zoning permits but I'm not sure um if that use needs to be re-established by
being listed on this refusal it's a by right use but I just want to check that with L&I just to
make sure um that is not being missed and um it's just it's included with whatever the board does
here so um yeah so if we can if we can hold this once we've heard from the public and um planning
that would be great questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands chair planning commission
Planning Commission.
thank you chair bergman and good afternoon david effecto with the city plan
Thank you, Chair Bergman, and good afternoon.
David DeFecto with the City Planning Commission.
The comprehensive plan recommends no change to the commercial mixed-use zoning at this location.
This property has a history as ground floor shoe repair shop dating to 1969.
However, while a cobbler is compatible with residential block, assembly and entertainment is not.
that is why the zoning code allows assembly and entertainment facilities on commercial corridors
with a special exception and not on residential blocks the city planning commission recommends
the board deny the proposed use variance for assembly and entertainment thank you um we will
not vote on this until uh we receive the tax but the record will be closed other than that hillary
am I correct? Yes, Mr. Chair. The record will be closed, and as soon as we rectify the tax issue
and figure out what L and I, then we'll relist this for a vote. We can't give it a date right
now. Am I right? That is correct, Mr. Chair. Okay. So, counsel, did you hear me? I did. Can
you hear me? Yes, I can. So, as far as the tax clearance, we just send that to the same
uh emails we sent the attachments to yeah and there's nothing that we need to do with l and i
just wait for them to get back to us yeah i i will i will look into that um mr duckett i i
yes i was just seeing seeing what you submitted and what was listed on the refusal there is a
discrepancy so i will just check with them to make sure there isn't anything that the board
would need to include in their decision to rectify that thank you miss emerson all right thank you
very much. Is there anyone in the virtual audience
whose 2 p.m. case has not been called?
I've seen no hands, Chair. Okay, we're going to take a five-minute
break, then we'll come back and we'll finish up, okay, with the 3.30 list.
Thank you. Good afternoon, Mike.
Good afternoon. My name is Bill Bergman, and I will be chairing
the 3.30 p.m. meeting. With me is Thomas Holloman, our board member. Present, Mr. Chairman. James
Snell, our board member. Present, Chair. LeBaron Leonard Palmer from Development Services, who is
serving as our alternate board member. Present, Mr. Chair. Also present is Hillary Emerson, our
attorney, and our executive director, Tanya Sunken. Here's a virtual format. Be advised
the proceedings are being recorded. A video will be available by contacting tanyasunken
at phila.gov. For the benefit of our court stenographer, we ask attorneys and witnesses
to identify themselves before testifying. If you're participating by phone and you wish
to testify, press star 9, raise your hand, and star 6 to unmute. 200 appearance statement
and call 267-270-5548.
Leave your email and the address of the property in question.
And finally, the question and answer box on the screen
is not for comments or testimony.
All comments should be directed to our executive director, Tanya Sunkin.
Let's look at our schedule for this afternoon.
Let's see here.
Number one, MI 2023-002-341-741 South 20th Street. That case is continued.
Number two, MI 2023-000839-2349 East Allegheny Avenue. The case is a continued attorney moving party.
Number seven, MI 2022-001110-6619 Musgrave, Abe Moharad.
This is a request for continuance.
The appellant must appear.
are you in the audience
i see no hands chair
mr chair i i see someone with that name but they're not
raising their hand okay
this is for 66 19 musgrave street
hey maharad please unmute yourself yes can you hear us now i can could you
Can you hear us now?
I can. Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Abe Mujerat, M-O-J-A-R-A-D.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Sir, this is the fourth listing, but you want to continue. Could you tell me what's happening with this case?
because we try to get
appointment with RCO
sometimes we are very
unable because they change the
people and we haven't been able
to get the meeting with them
so here's what we'll do
you try again and when
this case comes up again it must be heard
whether or not
the RCO responds or not
but make sure that you notify the RCO
you're ready to meet okay
okay so
So MI-2022-001-110-6619 Musgrave Street, cases continued, will be marked, must be tried, and must be heard.
Number eight, MI-2023-000-784-263 East Upsil Street, that case is continued.
Are there any comments relative to the four cases that I just continued?
I see no hands chair are there any other requests for continuances
I see no hands chair thank you we're going to go to I'll be right with you
continue we're going to hear number three and number four together
So MI 2023-002-329-229 South 60th Street, Parcel A, and MI 2023-002-328-215 and 19 South 60th Street.
William Kerr is the attorney.
There is a letter of support from the Third Ward Executive Committee.
Councilman Gauthier has taken a position of support.
Mr. Kerr.
Mr. Kerr is coming back in as a panelist now, Chair.
Good afternoon, Mr. Chair. Can everyone hear me?
Again, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Certainly. William Kerr, K-E-R-R. I'm an attorney with High Sports, 40 East Erie Street, excuse me, in Norristown.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Could you turn on your video, please?
I did. It's on.
We don't see it, sir.
Do you have something blocking your camera view?
Maybe you have something over your camera or the lens closed on your camera?
There we go.
There you go.
There you go.
There you go.
Technology is not my thing, so I apologize for that.
All right.
So, do you swear a firm to tell the truth, nothing but the truth?
Could you identify your client and relationship to the property?
George Bantel is a principal at the West Philadelphia Real Estate 7th, and Mr. Bantel, I think, is somewhere on the call here today.
Mr. Holloman has a few questions for you.
Good afternoon, counsel.
Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
I did.
And then we had sent everything in one packet and we were notified we needed to split them up.
So you should have two separate exhibit packets for both property at this point.
Thank you.
Please proceed to share your screen.
you're up okay good um again i'm representing west philadelphia real estate seven um owner of
owner of both of these properties and the screen that i've i have uh displayed here
both of these properties and the screen that i i have
gives you an overall view of of the project this is 215 to 19 south 60 is sort of the focus
of this this uh project and these application things what you're seeing on the screen here is
It's the approved L&I and ZVA plan for phase one.
What I'm showing here with my cursor outlining, that's the site of what used to be the Imperial Ballroom.
It was an event facility on South 60th Street for many years, and it closed a number of decades ago.
So it was an abandoned event space.
Again, the Imperial Ballroom, 215 to 19, South 60th.
First phase of this project essentially took the rear portion of this property that fronts on Chancellor Street and subdivided it into 10 separate parcels on which we got approval to build townhouse units.
And each one of those townhouse units had a number of affordable housing units, which were constructed within the units.
So phase one was 13 separate parcels, including these 10.
Then we had 221 South 60th Street, 225 South 60th, and 227, which were also part of phase one.
Those 13 parcels were developed into 30 affordable housing units under the Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program.
And that project is just being completed as we speak.
The application today is for the remnant portion of the Imperial Ballroom, which I'm circling with my cursor right now, which is, again, fronts on South 60th Street.
And the proposal for that property is to essentially renovate it into another event space, a much smaller event space.
But an event space, nonetheless, that can be used for things like weddings, funerals, parties, neighborhood parties, birthday parties, community meetings, and the like.
So it basically takes the, again, the remnant of the Imperial Ballroom and reestablishes it as an event space.
Then we're also proposing, because that space requires 19 parking spaces under the current zoning code, we're also proposing to take 229 South 60th, which is right across Chancellor Street here.
This is the Imperial Ballroom property.
These are our units, our residential units, Chancellor Street, and then 229 is this parcel right across Chancellor Street.
And we're going to convert that into from a vacant lot, currently a vacant lot, into 19 space for 19 parking spaces.
And those spaces would be available for the Imperial Ballroom and also for the residential units if there was a need.
um so i have two exhibit packets for each i don't know that given the hour that you want me to go
through each one but in those exhibit packets we do have um at exhibit we have the refusals at tab
one in each we have our appeal applications at tab two our deed is included for each property
at tab four. We have a number of photos for the project at tab five. Our plans are at tab eight.
The letters we sent to the community for the RCO meetings are at tab nine.
And then we have the RCO support letters. The first is from the RCO, the third ward executive
committee. We have Councilwoman Gauthier's office, a letter from Mr. Goodman. And then there's also
a letter from the preservation alliance that was issued
with regard to the first phase of the project.
Mr. Kerr, why don't you do this? Why don't you show the photos?
So then we'll understand. Okay, I can do that. Yep.
Let me get to...
waiting for that to load and i'll be there it'll be there momentarily that's fine
the first set of photos are for our zoning notices
this is going very still loading i think so it's a little bit
this is going very still loading I think so it's a little bit slow but I'll
scroll through it
and these are loaded on my screen but for some reason the transfer is not
happening very quickly okay here we go
that's the facade of the imperial ballroom okay
that was shored up um while the demolition and construction happened to
the rear so you do see some some uh support and and some equipment
out there
And I apologize.
Again, I did have this loaded on my screen, but they're not really showing up.
They're taking a while to load.
Why don't you go down a little bit?
Let's see that one there.
These are some photos of the neighborhood.
I apologize. I don't know why
this is so slow.
Neighborhood, am I right?
Yeah, these are some additional photos of the neighborhood.
Let me just go back.
I think I have some photos of the Imperial Ballroom prior.
They're not loaded yet either.
how about let me ask you this you have you have the lot where you're going to put parking
we do have that yes
that's down at the bottom here so let me get these loaded that's too far
Well, is that the neighborhood again, or is that more of a neighborhood?
Again, I apologize.
Let's see if I can, it seems to be moving a little more quickly now.
What's that there, the vacant lot?
That, I don't think that's the vacant lot, but it is in a similar condition.
Let me try something else.
and this is what i was worried about with having two exhibit packs packets i think it's your
computer and that is exhibit packets myself but yeah again they were both they were both opened
on my computer, but for some reason now
they're not transferring into
Zoom for whatever reason quickly.
I think we're getting close.
Okay, this red brick building, that's the lot, just to the right of that.
And I think I have one more just prior to this.
It shows the lot a little, a little better shot of the entire lot.
Okay, so the lot's at 229, am I correct?
229, that's correct. Right across, right at the corner of Chancellor and South 60.
Right. And you're going to put 19 parking places there?
19 parking places, right. And there is a tab 8 of the exhibit packet for 229.
We have a plan that illustrates that.
And you're also in the process of redoing the Imperial Ballroom or the portion.
Correct. Correct. We're going to redo the Imperial Ballroom.
And the Council Member Gauthier has taken a position of support.
Correct.
She appreciates the applicant's willingness to convert 229 into parking to respond to community concerns.
And she also appreciates that if approved, this will pave the way for the former Imperial Ballroom site at long last to become a destination on 63 Commercial Assembly and Entertainment.
use brings comparable activity levels at the property as so we do not believe this to be any
undue burden right and you also had the RCO in support of this am I right that's correct
that's correct yeah we had extensive RCO meetings on on these this project look listen to me bring
on your client and have your testimony adopted okay George are you there George
has he raised his hand George Bantel has been unmuted and allowed to speak
sir could you state your name please and spell for the court stenographer
George Bantel g-e-o-r-g-e b-a-n-t-e-l do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth
nothing but the truth yes proceed counsel okay george you are a principal in wp re7 correct
correct and have you been on the zoom this afternoon during the uh during my statements
to the board yes and have i accurately characterized everything yes and do you adopt
my statements as your own testimony yes okay questions from the board no mr
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Not at this time, Mr. Chair.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
Chair, we have a round of waters.
They have been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Mr. Waters, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
mr waters please unmute yourself
ronald waters my first r-o-n-a-l-d w-a-t-e-r-s right do you swear for him to tell the truth
the whole truth nothing but the truth yes mr chairman are you a neighbor i am proceed sir
all right um i just wanted to um comment on the um that property that you're looking at that's how
that that that vacant lot that you were referring to mr chairman that was how that property looked
before the developer built those 30 units right the property on the on the left of your screen
yes sir yeah uh and he's and he's converted into some really nice nice um livable um quality
livable places for people to access the um imperial ballroom for me i have a lot of history
there that used to be a skating rink um too for for the people in the community when i was young
um a whole lot younger matter of fact and and it was also an event center it has a lot of
possibilities. I look forward to what the developer is going to place there for the community to have
meetings, weddings, repasses, baby showers, and the like. That's why the third board executive
committee, after hearing the plans and having a chance to ask questions and Mr. Bentel's willingness
to make adjustments according to what the feedback was to the community.
But as soon as it is right now, everybody who I've talked to, not everybody, because some people have concerns about parking and those are legitimate concerns.
It seems like this right now, everybody who I've talked to,
not...
But I was happy that he was willing to turn that vacant lot into a parking space so that could help accommodate some of those concerns that came from the community.
So I stand, I just wanted to just say I support the project and I look forward to the benefits that's going to come from having a facility like that on the Citrus Street corridor.
All right, Mr. Waters, thank you very much.
We appreciate your input and thanks for calling in.
Is there anyone else in the virtual audience?
Here, we have a Kyle Sampson.
They have been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Hi, could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
My name is Kyle Sampson, K-Y-L-E-S-A-M-P-S-O-N. I'm president of the West Philadelphia Economic Development Council, RCO.
Okay, sir. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, sir.
You had asked Mr. Waters if he was a neighbor. Mr. Waters is not a near neighbor. I wanted to state that.
Next, the coordinating RCO, despite our asking for a vote for the near neighbors, refused to.
Mr. Waters refused to take a vote for the near neighbors.
There was a considerable amount of opposition.
And I think one of the reasons that Mr. Waters did not take a vote is because the developer promised the third ward RCO an office.
And I have a copy of the email.
He promised them an office if they would support the project.
And the last point I wanted to make is that the developer stated to me in an email that they have 23.9% minority contracting, and that's below what the city requires.
I submitted my opposition late, but your office has it.
Mr. Sampson, thanks for calling in.
We appreciate your input.
Is there anyone else in the first audience?
Here, I see no hands at this time.
Planning Commission. This is Ron Bednar, City Planning. First name Ron, R-O-N, last name Bednar, B-E-D-E-N-A-R.
Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
I do. Please proceed, sir. So this testimony is for 215th and 19th South 60th and 229th South 60th Street.
These properties are indicated for commercial mixed use on the city plan.
the applicant has shown that the proposed use will have no more of an impact and would be expected
given its uh specific location therefore we recommend that the request for special exception
We're going to vote them both together. MI 2023-002-329-229-South 60th Street. And number four, MI 2023-002-328-215-19-South 60th Street. I vote yes for both.
thomas holloman my vote is yes to vote james snell my vote is yes to both thank you counsel
thank you mr chair thank you members of the board but thank you miss emerson
thank you going on to number five mi 2023 002 323 4727 to 37 north front street
Xen Jin is the attorney.
There's a letter of non-opposition from Council Member Lozada.
And letter of support from the 42nd Democratic Ward with provisos.
Okay, our Zen Jen is coming back in as a panelist now.
Good afternoon.
Good afternoon, Ms. Jen.
Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court stenographer?
Zen Jen, Z-H-E-N-J-I-N, 1617 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Suite 1838, Philadelphia PA 19103,
here on behalf of the applicant.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Counsel, could you identify your client, the relationship to the property?
Yes, my client is Les Grisevix. He is the owner of the property.
Okay. And Mr. Holloman has just a few questions for you, sir.
Good afternoon, counsel. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy?
Did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
all of the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance to this hearing?
Yes. Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen. Thank you. I'm going to share with the
board the documentation we previously submitted. Can everyone see my presentation? We can, sir.
Thank you. This is an application for the use of this property as a mechanic shop. I want
to point out to the board an important history of this property is that this is not the first time
that we are before the board on this specific identical application. This was a previously
approved use, but it was on a temporary permit when the board approved it for three years.
After three years of operation, my client has again appeared before the community to ask that
this be extended indefinitely as a permanent use this property is zoned cmx2 however
from the photos it'll be easy to see that there is actually a condition of the property that makes
it hard to be used as a cmx2 property and that is that the entire property one is essentially set up
initially as a warehouse many years ago and is in that condition now it is set back from the street
front and it has bay doors and really no frontage to be used as a kind of a commercial use.
So the property also for the purpose of a mechanic shop use has the advantage of having a lot with
parking space as well as interior space to keep the cars off the street. That was the biggest
concern when we first applied for the temporary permit. There are other mechanic shops nearby
and they have been leaving their cars on the street leading to the community asking for a
temporary permit to make sure our operator and my client, the owner, will make sure that cars are
not parked on the street. And when we went back this time, we did get the community support based
on their observation of the operation for the past three years. And that is really what we're
asking for here is to once again be approved for the same use that it was approved for
some years ago and continue to use it in the same format. I have plans here, which lays out a little
better exactly how the property is set up. Again, all repairs are done inside the building. All
vehicles parked inside the lot. And that is primarily the reason we're here before the board
today is to ask for a renewal of this permit as a permanent use. I'm happy to answer any questions
and redirect the board to any portion of our exhibits.
My client should be here to verify my testimony as well.
Why don't we bring your client one, too?
Thank you.
Les, can you raise your hand virtually to be identified?
Les Grasowick.
There they are.
Les Grasowick has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Sir, could you state your name and spell it, please, for the court stenographer?
hello can you hear me yes yes i can sir could you state your name and then spell it for the
court stenographer my name is les grisevich first name les l-e-s last name g-r-y-c-e-w-i-c-z
right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth
yes i do proceed counsel thank you les can you uh verify to the board that you
were present during my presentation
and will adopt my testimony as your own.
Thank you.
Questions from counsel.
Did you see the provisos?
I actually did not get the copy of the detailed.
It says Monday to Friday, just so you know.
Monday to Friday, 8A to 6P.
Les, I don't believe that would be an issue.
Can you verify?
On Saturday and Sunday.
Yes, I believe they are closed on weekends.
Les, are those provisos okay?
Les Garcewit, please unmute yourself.
Yes, closed on weekends.
And 8 to 6 p.m. should be good operating hours for the business, correct?
Yes, correct.
Thank you.
Thank you.
questions from the board no mr chairman no chair questions or comments from hillary emerson our
attorney just a quick note mr chair uh mr jen i think what what happened with the rco like i
initially we received the meeting summary form and the letter and then we just received a revised
summary form so i assumed the letter which requested the
summary form so i assumed the letter which requested the hours operation proviso that was
from the it was also part or well it wasn't part of the previous variance but it was i think
mentioned at that time i think the prior letter still stood but they just revised their recommendation
on the meeting summary form okay um yeah that's that's what i think happened initially they asked
for a temporary again but it looks like they removed that request right we we discussed that
with them yeah okay okay thank you thanks questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands chair planning commission uh ron bednar city planning the property is indicated
for commercial mixed use on the city plan given a physical circumstance of the site
documented use history, we recommend the
question parents be ready. Thank you.
23, 002
4727 to 37
North Front Street. I vote
yes. Proviso. Hours of
operation, Monday to Friday,
8A to 6P,
closed on Saturday and Sunday.
Thomas Holloman.
My vote is yes with
proviso.
So, James Snell, my vote is yes with Proviso.
Thank you, counsel.
You have your votes.
Thank you.
Have a good evening.
Right.
Number six, MI 2023-002-335-1121 South 18th Street.
David Orphanides is the attorney.
No RCO letter.
that we see but there was a meeting held 820 823 by the point breeze community development
corporation mr chair actually a brief a brief update on that um we did um just recently received
uh the letter um it's in support from the coordinating rco um we also received a letter
in support from um council member johnson and we also have the tax clearance so this
this case is all set. We have it all, yes. Mr. Orphanides, please. Yes, sir. I'm here.
Mr. Orphanides, you've already been sworn. Could you just state your name?
Certainly. David Orphanides, O-R-P-H-A-N-I-D-E-S.
And could you identify your client, the relationship to this property?
Certainly, sir. 1711 Carpenter Properties, LLC, LLC is the owner of the property. They're my
client. Okay. And Mr. Heilman has just a few questions. Sure. Good afternoon, counsel. Do you
agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to his accuracy? Yes, sir. Did you
email all the exhibits and documents as required five days in advance of this hearing? We emailed,
as Hillary mentioned, we emailed all of them except for the RCOs, coordinating RCOs letter,
which we received on Monday. The councilman's letter, and then the tax clearance was not
forward until today. There was an outstanding balance, which was paid, I think, earlier in the
week. It didn't hit the tax clearance system to show up as a clearance until yesterday.
Thank you. Please proceed and share your screen.
Certainly. Can you all see my screen?
We can, sir.
It's terrific. Again, my name is David Orphanides. I'm with the law firm of Orphanides & Toner, LLP, here in Philadelphia.
And again, I'm here this afternoon on behalf of 1711 Carpenter Properties, LLC, the owner of the subject property, which you see here on your screen.
It's an existing two-story structure that's located on the east side of South 18th Street
between Washington, below Washington Avenue and between Washington Avenue and Ellsworth Street.
Here you can see an aerial image, which is at tab three of the exhibits that I forwarded.
You can see where directly across the street from the Chu playground,
This aerial image was taken when the playground was being renovated.
It's since been fully rehabilitated into an operational playground, a football field and baseball field.
In addition to the children's playground, you see here in the northwest corner of Ellsworth and South 18th.
And then the basketball courts over at South 19th on the southeast corner of South 19th and Washington.
You'll see at the southeast corner of Washington and South 18th, you have an auto zone.
store. You have other commercial properties on Washington Avenue, as I think we're all familiar
with. One of the reasons I bring up AutoZone is that they have a parking lot that my client
makes available to people that stay at their property, which is unusual.
to people that stay at their property, which is unusual and unlike many other
applications of this nature. So they have an agreement with AutoZone to utilize their parking
space. Here's a little closer aerial image of the property. Again, you can see our property here on
the east side of South 18th. We have a small backyard patio. You'll see photographs of that
in my exhibit book. The property that's abutting us to the north, which is 1119 South 18th Street,
I have zoning archives for that property at tab 9A of my exhibit book. You can see over here
that property has been granted a variance for a daycare on the first floor with two residential
dwelling units above. It is similarly zoned RSA 5 as our property, as you can see here.
So the whole block at the south end between Ellsworth and Washington between 18th and 17th is RSA 5.
Then we have the I-2 properties up here on Washington Avenue, and then the recreational city-owned property across the street.
But back to the aerial.
So the property to the north of us, again, was granted variances in 05, 08, and 09, and was permitted, originally permitted back starting in the 50s as a nine-family dwelling.
There is another property here at the south, northeast corner of Ellsworth and south 18th, 1131, that is presently permitted for a four-family dwelling.
So it's an interesting block, Alter Street here. I'm not sure if it's on the city plan or not per the zoning archives, but you have the commercial property up here just to the north of us. You have a mixed-use property right next to us to the north. You have the city park across the street, playground across the street, and then you have a multifamily at the end of the block.
So pretty unique.
This property has been utilized as a rental property since dating back to 20, at least to 2011.
Included rental licenses from the city's Atlas website that you can see right here.
It's a tab five of my exhibit book, 2011 to 2012, 2012 to 21, which was the prior owner.
Then my client took over the ownership of the property and they secured their rental license.
And that's still active.
Exterior photos of the property, you can see here again, the property that I had right
at the beginning of our presentation, a budding property to the south of us, a one story.
You can see the view to the south on South 18th Street.
Further down here on the left is the four family structure.
And then you can see the on the right here, part of the playground.
And then as we swing around to view across the street, you can see the two playgrounds.
There's parking that's available on the street.
There's also up on the southwest corner of 18th and Washington, there's one of the bike depots for the Blue Cross bikes.
And then here at the bottom, even though it's showing under construction at the time, there was still parking available.
Then and now at the parking lot, you can see the AutoZone and then the beginning of what's known as Alter Street.
at the bottom right of that photograph at the bottom of page four of that tab.
And then here you have the photograph of the daycare with the two units above,
which abuts our property to the north again.
Here are interior photographs of the building, of the property.
I think as I scroll through, it may not be everybody's taste, it's my taste,
but it's a beautifully appointed building.
It's like the interior is right out of a magazine.
If my clients were to testify, they would say that the Airbnbs that they have, again, this is an app, not again, but to be clear, I don't think I was specific when I started.
This is an application to document the use of this property as an Airbnb or as it is known under the Philadelphia Zoning Code when the building is not owner-occupied, its visitor accommodations.
but they would testify that all of their properties are beautifully appointed inside and out.
Real quickly, you can hear the back patio area, the reference Mezzel Quintiero,
but that the upkeep on them, on the interior of them,
is far less than their properties that they do for long-term rentals.
For however long that they've had them, they've not had to repaint them,
not had to repair them, that the people that stay there are quiet.
They screen all of their possible residents or occupants for a high rate.
All of their possible residents or occupants for high ratings on whatever the online booking system is that they use.
So they don't have any problems.
They don't want any problems.
As a result, the neighbors don't have any problems either.
They are very highly rated as well themselves on the online booking systems.
You can see that there's an alley behind us that creates space between us and the building to the east of us.
And again, back to the interior, as you head up to the second floor, you can see, again, I mean, beautifully designed, beautifully upkept, kept up.
And this is the second, oh, the second floor.
And then the ground floor is just storage washing machine.
Here's the floor plans for the first and second floor that are available for rental.
And again, the notice of refusal is for having visitor accommodations.
That's the only refusal we're here for to document that use.
I did include the provision of the table from the zoning code that's referenced in the notice
of refusal.
Here you have the table that shows that visitor accommodations are not permitted in RSA 5.
We do have, as indicated, and it wasn't made available to you beforehand, the letter from
point breeze was sent to rco's eba but wasn't forwarded to hillary or tanya but you can see
we did have the commute we had a virtual community group meeting and we have a letter of support from
them people came to by the way people came to that meeting and spoke highly of both this particular
property as well as my clients and some of the things they do for the neighbors they provide
discounted rates for people that live in the neighborhood that contact them and whether it's
through Facebook or otherwise and let them know that they need a family coming in to stay or
need it for whatever reason. They provide discounts to people in the community. And again,
they provide very well-maintained properties. And in regards to people in the neighborhood that
need this, I would say, need these type of uses in their neighborhood, we mapped out as best we
could. Here you can see our property. And then you can see where other existing hotels are
in the neighborhood, short-term stays. You can see there's one over here, down here,
the Clover 2900 apartment and rooms, the Philadelphia Hotel, Bella Vista, which is all
the way, it's fairly far away over Bella Vista, different neighborhood, across Broad Street.
And then it's not till you get almost up to Rittenhouse Square, then Rittenhouse Square,
and then further towards Market Street, that you actually have places where people can come and stay
when they're visiting people in this neighborhood. I actually live in this neighborhood as well.
And it's not great that people have to either take a cab or take a car or walk pretty far
distance to where they may stay if they're staying in the area and want to visit people.
And what's interesting is, and this came up at another one of our meetings, one of the residents
in the community spoke how he was down at one of the civil rights museums down south
and happened to look in the Green Book, who we've heard of the movie, those of us who are familiar
with it. And you can look and you can see that in the Green Book itself, there were a number of
hotels that were in our neighborhood in the past, places or places for people to stay short term.
I've attempted to, I've reached out to the Historic Commission and tried to see if they had any other records other than these records regarding short-term places, places to stay short-term in this neighborhood or other neighborhoods in the city.
I remember when I moved here to Philadelphia in 91, that there were places like this.
I know that some of them were not always used for the best purposes, some of them were, and that they've all kind of been either legislated out of existence or, for one reason or another, no longer exist.
But you can see we plotted these out, and you can see at one time, there were plenty of places for people in this neighborhood to stay without having to go all the way downtown to Walnut Street, Chestnut Street, Market Street, JFK to stay.
and then we overlaid those two together and you can see right here and here again in the purple
is our property so we feel that this this proposed use although it requires a variance
satisfies a very important need if it's done the right way the way that my clients do it
for residents and without causing any negative impact that might be contrary to the overriding
principles of the zoning code a copy of our appeals at tab 11
And then our project information form that we're submitted to the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
and then our project information form that were submitted to the zoning board of adjustment
Copy of the hearing notice that was prepared by our office for posting at the property.
You can see here tab 13, photos of the posting, along with a copy of the notice of refusal as required by the zoning code.
Copy of the deed.
My clients took ownership of the property in 21, as indicated.
We're not converting like an owner-occupied property into a visitor accommodation.
We're taking a property.
So we're not taking something that could be bought and owned off the market.
It was already a rental for about 10 years, a little over 10 years at this point.
Pact compliance, as I mentioned, we just got yesterday.
Clients owed a little bit of a balance and took care of it when they were made aware of it.
uh the email from the Planning Commission from April 21st designating or confirming
the Point Breeze Community Development Coalition as a coordinating RCO for the project again we
have their letter of support from from Monday from them the list of addresses to which our 14 303
notices were sent including all the RCOs the Zoning Board the Planning Commission and Councilman
johnson's office um at the time the 20 days from the from the time of that email from the planning
commission we had and because of how far out the zoning board hearing uh was was going to be it
was scheduled no offense um we uh had to send out the first notice uh without a date for the
community group meeting they didn't want to meet until or didn't feel the need to meet until later
on in the summer closer to the date of the hearing rather than back in april or may but you can see a
copy of that notice along with the copy of the notice of refusal and the certificate of mailing.
That was back on May 19th. And then once we had the date confirmed with PBCDC, we sent out
another 14303 notice with that information. Again, it was done via Zoom, information about the
property, what we were applying for, what the refusal was, along with information regarding
today's zoning board hearing that was also included in the first notice that we sent out.
And the law of the notice of refusal. And then here's a certificate and mailing of that back on August 17. So for the reasons I've stated above or prior to this throughout our presentation, along with letters of support from both the RCO as well as Councilman Johnson's office, we respectfully request that the Zoning Board grant the requested variance.
And I would like to have my client, one of my representatives from the LLC is online, Tal Tigay, and she can be promoted to panelists and sworn in.
I could have her adopt my statements.
Mr. Orphanese, what is the name of your client?
That's Tal, T-A-L, Tigay, T-I-G-A-Y.
Tal Tigay has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Hi, could you please state your name as spelled for the court stenographer?
Hi, how are you?
My full name is Hamutal, H-A-M-U-T-A-L.
And my last name is T-I-G-A-Y.
You swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Please proceed, counsel.
Certainly.
Tao, are you a member of 1711 Carpenter Properties, LLC?
Okay. And did you hear the statements that I made to the board today?
And are they true and correct to the best of your knowledge?
And would you adopt them as your own?
And I don't want to take up too much of the board's time.
I know you're extremely proud of this property and the other properties you own.
And we've been at community group meetings where the community speaks extremely highly of you.
But being respectful of the board's time, is there anything that I missed that you think it's important to add?
And I know you can go on. I know, again, you're really proud of these properties, but I'm not going to speak much. The only thing I wanted to add is that Tanya Ward, our right-handed neighbor.
Yeah. I spoke to her and she attended the meeting and also was one of the supporting votes.
at the community group meeting yeah okay great thank you it doesn't have any questions for us
or for yes questions from the board no chair questions or comments from our attorney hillary
emberson at this time mr chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands chair waning commission the ron bednar city planning properties indicated for
so run bednar city planning property is indicated for residential use on the city plan or adopted
residential use
district plan recommends no change to existing residential single-family zoning at this location
applicant's hardship is not supported with evidence of unique physical circumstances
or condition of the property that would prevent it from being used in conformity with the code
Therefore, we recommend a request for a stop event.
MI 2023-002-335-1121 South 8th Street, I vote yes with proviso.
Temporary variance expires November 2nd, 2027.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes with proviso.
James Snell, my vote is yes with proviso.
Thank you, counsel.
Thank you.
May be excused.
Yes, you can.
Thank you.
So, number nine, MI20230023432929Gurridge Street.
Olaf Sokoloff is the attorney.
No letter from RCO, but email from Grace Ferry Community Council to applicant
indicated the vote was in support. The Tasker Mars neighbors also served as co-RCO. Applicant
also provided 11 form letters of support from eight from neighbors, eight from 2,900 Black
Guard. Counsel? Counsel, you've already been sworn. Could you state your name, please?
Sure. Good afternoon. Nice to see everyone again. Oleg Sokolov on behalf of the applicant.
od and took okay and our uh our uh board member thomas holliman has a few questions for you sir
good afternoon good afternoon counsel do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal
and stipulate to his accuracy i do did you email all of the exhibits and documents as required five
days in advance to this hearing i did thank you please proceed and share your screen thank you
very much. All right. Once again, good afternoon, members of the board. Thank you for your time.
I will try to be as brief as possible. Similar to the previous request, we are here seeking
a variance to use the subject property 2929 Garrett Street for the purposes of visitor
accommodation. A refusal was issued in April just for the single use refusal. This property I'd like
to mention was prior to the enactment of new legislation in Philadelphia and that began this
January was used as a as a Airbnb and for the purposes of short-term stay. So this is an
application to bring the property into compliance with the current code. Here is our refusal. I'll
try to take you through the exhibit packets. Our deed, this property was purchased in 2020
by Mr. Oduk Ntuk and Ms. Adele Harris, the applicants and registered owners.
Our tax clearance, photos of the subject property.
Quick layout, the zoning map, our project information form, our appeal application,
our mailers sent, and our proof of mailing prior to the RCO meeting.
Pictures of the notice posters at the subject property.
our notice. And as the Mr. Chairman stated, we have not received any communication other than
this email from the community organization. However, we were informed that a vote was held
and that the community voted to support our proposal.
And once again, as stated, we have a number of letters from nearby neighbors,
including eight or nine neighbors on the immediate block.
eight or nine neighbors on the immediate block.
If I may, I'll bring Mr. Ntuk online to adopt my testimony.
Odin Ntuk has been unmuted and allowed to speak.
Hello.
Could you say your name and please spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, my full legal first name is Uduak.
It's spelled O-D-U-O-K, last name Ntuk, N-T-U-K.
Do you swear or affirm, tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Proceed, counsel.
Thank you.
Good evening now, Mr. Ntuk.
Have you been online to listen to my presentation?
And would you adopt my testimony as your own?
And is there anything you'd like to add or anything else for the board that you'd like
to have considered no okay thank you very much questions from the board no mr chairman questions
or comments from our attorney hillary emerson not at this time mr chair questions or comments from
the virtual audience i see no hands chair planning commission the run bed night city planning
property is indicated for residential use on the city plan or adopted district plan recommends no
change the existing residential single-family zoning at this location the applicant's hardship
is not supported with evidence of any physical circumstances or condition of the property would
prevent it from being used in conformity with the code therefore we recommend request advance
not be granted thank you mi 2023 002 343 2929 garage street i vote yes with proviso
Temporary variance, which expires November 2nd, 2027.
Thank you, counsel.
Thomas Holloman.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes with proviso.
James Snell, my vote is yes with proviso.
Thank you.
Thank you, counsel.
Thank you.
Thank you, members of the board.
Thank you.
Is there anyone in the virtual audience whose 330 case has not been called?
i see no hands chair thanks everyone good day's work thanks chairman everybody great job chair