Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, sir.
Counsel, please proceed.
Okay. Mr. Burgos, do you own Burg 2519 North 7th Street, LLC?
Yes, I do.
And can you tell us a little bit about the property history, the purchase, when it was renovated?
we we purchased it in 2022 um right after purchasing it we put all the necessary permits
to uh renovate it and also add in addition to it in the rear it's a three family uh uh rental um
they're all the one of the units is a two bedroom one bedroom the second unit is also a two bedroom
one bedroom and then the third one is a three bedroom uh three bath um and uh right now um
well it was a rental and as we know we're here requesting a visitor accommodation
did you change any uh the configuration of the building add any extra units anything like that
uh no not since we pulled the permits to renovate it and convert it into three units okay and you
want these visitor accommodations um could you tell us a little bit about how you're going to
manage the property the guest screening um background checks anything like that uh yeah
Yeah, so we have so all the guests that stay with us, they all have to be verified through the apps that we list our units on.
So they have to provide identification.
And then we also have a third party screening application where they have to pretty much click a link in order to fill out the application and put in all their personal information into it for us to have it for record keeping.
safekeeping and then i we also have um so i have virtual assistants that are on call 24 7.
um so if there's any type of emergency they call me directly so my phone is always on
um like for them it's um if my phone's on do not disturb it comes in directly so if there's
any emergencies they call me directly so that i can report to the site i'm only 15 15 minutes
away from the site because i live in philadelphia i live in northeast philadelphia okay and uh do
Do you have any cameras, anything in the building, not in the specific units, but around for security purposes, things like that?
Yeah. Yeah. So we we have I have LTS cameras on the building that I can monitor from my phone and also my assistants can also monitor from the phone inside the individual units.
all the guests uh know because it's on on the listing we have what's called a a minute um a
noise monitor system so it measures the noise frequency inside the apartment so that if it
goes over a certain decibel um then it sets off an alarm on our end um and we know if they're
having like some type of party or being too rowdy or maybe if there's some type of argument that we
don't know about but all the guests know about it ahead of time um so it's um this disclosed
and it's completely legal so so you're you're really drifting away you got to get closer to the
mic council has he adopted your testimony yet yes uh so i um i i yes yes uh uh chair or chair yes
questions from the board yes um i think i just need a little bit more clarity into what's
defining the hardship it does look like this is a self-imposed hardship you bought this as a single
family home you did extensive construction you extended the building and turned it into three
units um so could you walk us through what's uh what's what's driving your decision to want a
short-term rental so the the the property is zone rm1 so we um the prior use yes it was a single
family to as far as i know but we bought it because um we can convert it into multi-family and the
the when we bought the property was already being um it was like in the process of being renovated
into a into a three unit um we we bought it with a construction loan to it got approved with a
construction loan for three families so we renovated it it has three families we tried
putting it on the market but the market is saturated with rental units and we're not we
weren't able to rent it um long term um at a at a rate that can that can support the mortgage
um so we we put her as visitor accommodation and we were able to see um a more income on it to be
able to cover the mortgage and like barely leave like um money left over for for for operating
reserves um so we did try to put her on on as a long-term rental but the market's too saturated
there's too many units hitting the market um and it just doesn't it's that it doesn't pencil out
so it wasn't like i had to get money from elsewhere to pick mortgage when was the last time you tried
Like, I had to get money from elsewhere to pick mortgage.
When was the last time you tried to rent it?
Oh, we're always looking for people.
It's not like we're not.
So it's, like, actively being marketed now?
When was the last time there were tenants?
Like, long-term tenants?
It's not on MLS, no.
No, okay.
But when were the last time there was a tenant in the unit?
I haven't been able to get a tenant in the unit.
So you've had, no one's been in this since 2022?
as a long-term tenant? Yes. No. Okay. And then for your other properties,
do you have other short-term rentals in the city? I do. You do? And are you self-managing those
as well? Yes. And then how has management of those been going? I think one, I'm a little
skeptical of a virtual assistant. Like that's essentially setting an AI alarm to let you know
when something's going on it's a glorified you know voicemail system uh no no it's not it's an
actual it's a it's a person you have actual person okay yeah yeah no there's no there's no
ai i don't believe in the i'm very skeptical when it comes to ai um because you can ask a question
and answer something completely different and it makes no sense and what it does it irritates people
like it irritates me when i call somebody and ai answers and i'm like why like where's the human
touch to it all so i understand where you're coming from that because i i'm with you on it
but no there's no there's no ai communication everything is real real you have a 24-hour
real person so all your tenants if there's an issue they're talking to a live line and that
person is going to okay and then how's the management of your other units been going
um it's located near in the same area near temple um no the what the the it's in northeast philadelphia
okay um i don't think other questions from the board yeah how many units do you have how many
other units do you have i have five other units five other units and that that are uh the short
term rental uh yeah it's a major of short term and and and long term and when was the last time
you said they were advertised for rent a long-term rent the ones were the ones were the hearing is
about correct that we're talking about yeah um i would have to check the record it was probably in
2023 2024 honestly and and the community meeting how did that go um there was there was um
A lot of people went to the community meeting. It was very productive. I did get to hear a lot from the community in regards to their concerns around the visitor accommodation, and they did voice that they had concerns with the people that were staying there.
um so it overall went good i believe we have the community support they did provide a letter
supporting um the property as visitor vote was 12 to 4 for an opposition 12 in favor
okay thank you chair um so so i would say the community meeting went very very well
and i also got uh an extensive amount of phone numbers from direct neighbors um that they get
contact with me directly if there's any issues okay last question i guess this is for the attorney
you mentioned several times that this neighborhood is transitioned what does that mean
so it it sits right at a corridor where there's commercial um uh other commercial properties uh so
So when I say that, I say the foot traffic and just the public, I guess, interaction with the residential area, it's busy.
It's not a quiet neighborhood where only the neighbors that are there are going through the area.
Okay. Questions from our attorney.
No, Chair.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
I see no hands at this time to make a commission.
Michael with Philadelphia city planning commission.
The comprehensive plan recommends a change in zoning at this location from the existing R. M. 1 residential multifamily to RSA 5 residential single family attached.
The appellant has not demonstrated that there are any unique physical circumstances or conditions of the property that would prevent the property from being used in strict conformance with the zoning code.
The community in question is largely single family in nature, leading to an increased likelihood of parking and nuisance issues for nearby properties from the proposed use.
proposed use and as note to the board the nearby cmx 2 district does not allow visitor accommodations by right the planning commission therefore recommends that the board deny the requested variance for visitor accommodation so council we've heard your test money we've heard your client's testimony
And as a note to the board, the nearby CMX2 district does not allow visitor accommodation.
we're going to talk about this next week in executive session and we'll vote at 9 30 a.m. on wednesday okay okay thank you both thank you very much thank you all thank you all
on to number 13 number for me
right so now
MI-2025-007-032-1007-13, New Market Street, Myrdeth Ferliger is the attorney.
Sure. Sure, we will.
Number 13.
MI 2025-007221-8003-Nevajo Street.
Vern Anastasio is the attorney.
Vern Anastasio will be rejoining us as a panelist.
Good morning, Mr. Chair.
Counselor, could you please state your name and spell it for the stenographer?
Vern Anastasio, A-N-A-S-T-A-S-I-O. On behalf of my client, Mr. Michael Orzolik.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
um let's go back to your client again um my understanding and in the conversation with
council that the owner of this place but is his partner right but the question is who's to testify
right? Well, ultimately, you know, Mr. Orzelek is not on the deed. No, we have a letter from
the owner in my exhibit packet authorizing him to pursue this. Ultimately, you know, the issue is
the individual on the deed needs to be the one to adopt your testimony. Mr. Orzelek cannot adopt
your testimony. He may be called as a witness, but that's fine. Yeah, I wasn't. That's fine.
no one emailed me in advance to advise of that but that's fine okay um and so let's see here
the rco support yes unanimous from chestnut hill association correct okay our our vice
uh not our vice chair our board secretary has a few questions for you learn thank you
Good morning, counsel.
Good morning.
Did you submit your documents and exhibits five days in advance?
Yes, of course.
And do you waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate to its accuracy?
Then you can share your screen and proceed with your presentation.
Thank you.
The application is for personal services.
Basically, my client is a trainer, personal trainer.
He'll do concierge services one-on-one, only one client per visit, approximately 45-minute sessions, opening mostly in the morning, but we'll have clients throughout the day.
By the way, here are the immediate neighbors, 8005, 8001, both in support, in addition to the folks across the street.
And we'll get to, you've already seen the Chestnut Hill Civic Association's letter of support with the proviso that it's sunset.
Here's the refusal. Obviously, the personal services is not permitted in RSD3.
Here's the interior layout of the house itself.
Here's the floor plan of the basement.
Here's the floor plan of the basement, and this is where the work, the gym will be right
here in the basement.
This portion here, this is the home itself, as you can see, it sits off the street, rather
large driveway that can fit three cars or more. This is the interior gym section. And here's the
rest of the basement. And the business model is, you know, I'm sure many folks are familiar with
this. My client would enter a business relationship with an individual. An individual
pays on a monthly basis and that individual will come to my client's home you know one two three
times a week for 45 50 minute session this is 41 individual households were mailed the notice
and the chestnut hill civic association questionnaire that was filled out
and of course ms khan who is my client's partner authorizing him to pursue this variance and again
And the immediate neighbors surrounding the property are in full support as well.
We have no objection to the sunset provision.
And with that, my client, I'd like to call my client to the stand.
Why don't you do that?
Michael Orzulik.
Can we take him?
Michael Orzulik will be coming in as a panelist.
he may he may testify as to the use but he just the only issue is he can't adopt
I understand counsel I heard you I heard you thank you
hello everyone please state your name and spell for the stenographer my name is Michael orzilek
m-i-c-h-a-e-l-o-r-z-o-l-e-k do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth nothing
but the truth yes counsel thank you michael did you hear my presentation to the board today
yes is it true and accurate to the best of your knowledge yes can you explain your history as
a trainer and um you know and you know that this is not something that you're going to be doing
for the first time? Please explain to the board. So I majored in sports medicine in college,
continued on to get my master's in human performance. I've worked as like a physical
therapy aid. I've coached multiple sports in my life, and I've been working as a personal trainer
in the city for about 10 years. And you're also a championship rower, are you not?
Correct. Thank you. I have nothing further.
okay um are you gonna bring into your uh mr con on no man no sir okay all right we have
unanimous support i don't necessarily yes i have a few questions one um did you all talk at all to
the owner of what is 8004 the house directly behind i see you got everyone on the immediate block
but that house's backyard would be sort of facing parts they attended the rco meeting
they did okay yeah but they did not sign in support we didn't get to them my client was
working yeah yeah that's all that was that was no other reason okay so it's not like they're in
opposition yeah we weren't trying to avoid anyone uh and then my second question is are you going
to be exclusively training in the basement or do you plan to use any of the outdoor spaces
as well when the weather's nice?
Strictly in the basement.
Strictly in the basement.
Other questions?
So how many days a week?
I guess it depends on the client.
Right.
It does depend.
Typically, personal trainers work Monday through Friday full time,
maybe a Saturday in the morning, but Sunday's usually off.
That's my own experience with trainers.
and then the parking will be in your own yard in the own driveway yes and this would be um
these are all by appointment only i mean by appointment only correct okay and because
these are individual then you can't have but so many people in the day all right okay yes thank
you and how how are the how are the clients procured that's a good question michael um
So my plan is just, you know, basically like set up a website, set up an Instagram, get
My plan is just, you know, basically like set up a website, set up an Instagram, get some local flyers at the local businesses, you know, go door to door, just talk to my neighbors.
I want this to be like a pretty small community business.
My target population is just people that can walk here.
So that is my basic marketing strategy.
And typically, how personal training works is that a personal trainer will plop into a residential community or near a residential community and just operate in maybe a two-mile radius where people can walk to.