¡›î› COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING COMMITTEE ON RULES - - - Room 696, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania September 18, 2002 10:25 a.m. - - - BILL 020431 - An ordinance establishing a neighborhood improvement district in an area that generally includes both sides of East Passyunk Avenue from the south side of Federal Street to the east side of South Broad Street... - - - PRESENT: COUNCIL PRESIDENT ANNA C. VERNA, Chair COUNCILMAN JAMES KENNEY COUNCILWOMAN JANNIE BLACKWELL COUNCILMAN DARRELL CLARKE COUNCILMAN FRANK DICICCO COUNCILMAN MICHAEL NUTTER COUNCILMAN BRIAN O'NEILL - - - VINCENT VARALLO ASSOCIATES, INC. Registered Professional Reporters Eleven Penn Center 1835 Market Street, Suite 600 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 (215) 561-2220 ¡›î› I N D E X BILL 020431 AL MASINO ................................... GREGORY DICOCCO ............................. TERRY SHER .................................. ELEANOR LANGELLO ............................ 16 LAVINA GALLICCHIO ........................... 16 3 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. The Council Committee on Rules is now in session to consider Bill 020431, which is an ordinance establishing a neighborhood improvement district in an area that generally includes both side of East Passyunk Avenue from the south side of Federal Street to the east side of South Broad Street, certain blocks of streets that intersect that portion of East Passyunk Avenue, both sides of South Broad Street from the south side of McKean Street to the north side of Snyder Avenue, and the west side of South Broad Street from the south side of Mifflin Street to the north side of McKean Street, to be known as the East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District; designating East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District, Inc., a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation, as the Neighborhood Improvement District Management Association for the District; approving a final plan for the District, including a list of proposed improvements and their estimated cost, and providing for assessment fees to be levied on property owners within the District; authorizing the Director of Commerce, on behalf of the City, to execute an 4 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 agreement with East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District, Inc., relating to the District; authorizing the Director of Commerce, on behalf of the City, to execute an agreement with East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District, Inc., relating to the District; and authorizing East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District to assess property owners within the District a special property assessment fee to be used in accordance with the approved final plan; all in accordance with the provisions of the Community and Economic Improvement Act, and under certain terms and conditions. The Chair recognizes Councilmember DiCicco for an announcement prior to our testimony.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like for this committee, on behalf of myself, I would like to withdraw Bill No. 20 010350 for consideration -- excuse me. I apologize. Bill No. 010305, I'm asking that to be withdrawn.
The Chair will ask that that be made part of the record and the request withdrawing Bill No. 010305. Thank you very much. Prior to hearing witnesses, I would like 5 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 to read into the record a letter dated September 12, 2002, addressed to Honorable Anna Verna, Chair of the Committee on Rules. "Dear President Verna: On behalf of the Department of Commerce, I would like to express our strong support of the City Council Bill 020431, which will create a Business Improvement District on East Passyunk Avenue and adjacent streets. "NID's are one of the best examples of a collaboration between the public and private sectors. "The business entrepreneurs and property owners in the target area recognize the ongoing need to improve the general economic climate and quality of life throughout the neighborhood. To that end, making an area clean, safe, and attractive is important to the stability of the community. As the neighborhoods prosper, the NID's are catalysts for further revitalization. "The economic development agencies that include the Department of Commerce, PIDC, and PCDC are committed to supporting this important initiative. In collaboration with our colleagues and the Operating Department such as the Police 6 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 Department and Department of Streets, we view these as efforts crucial to the long-term growth and development of Philadelphia. "Our Department looks forward to continuing these ongoing partnerships. "Very truly yours, James J. Cuorato," City Representative and Director of Commerce. We have some witnesses from the community who I think are going to come as a group. Please grab some chairs and make yourself comfortable. Please identify yourself the record and proceed. And you need to pull that microphone way up close to you and directly into it. Thank you.
Thank you Rules Committee, Council President Ann Verna, Councilman Kenney, for allowing me to testify before this great Council. I am Al Masino, co-owner of RoseLena's Coffee Bar and president of the East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District. I represent a dedicated group of business and property owners along an eight-block shopping corridor that has steadily deteriorated for the last 8 to 10 years while we were constantly complaining and waiting for 7 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 shoppers to rediscover the avenue. Now, I believe we've stopped complaining and waiting and have collectively decided to address the problems. Through an initiative guided by State Senator Fumo, Councilman DiCicco, and Kenney and the Atlantic Group, a steering committee was formed and has met relentlessly each week since August 2001. Now we are asking that this much-labored-over legislation be approved by Council so that we can begin funding the proposed seven-year project, so that Passyunk Avenue can again become a vital asset to the City of Philadelphia, bringing in revenue from its restaurants and fine quality specialty shops, attracting more business from the main line and South Jersey, and interrupting the constant flow of shoppers from our own South Philadelphia community to South Jersey malls. We feel this project will certainly bolster the surrounding residential community as well as the business community. Yes, we can keep the money here; and, yes, we can keep the jobs here; and, yes, it will be very difficult. But we're a board of hardheads and we won't give up. Thank you for your time. My fellow 8 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 hardheads will enlighten you with the details.
Good morning, Councilmembers. My name is Gregory DiCocco, and I represent my family's business, the DiCocco Family St. Jude Shop at 1807 East Passyunk Avenue. We have been a family-owned and operated business for nearly 40 years. I presently hold the position as secretary of the Board of the East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District and have been actively involved from its beginning in August 2001 as a member of its steering committee primarily addressing the issues of parking and signage. What I would like to do today is bring you up to date and let you know of all the many meetings we have had. As of today, we have reached out through more than 17 meetings to the neighborhood and other businesses that are affected. Through numerous mailings and block meetings, we have reached out to the community to inform them of our ideas and to solicit their ideas in order to put together, not only our bylaws, but also our budget and initiative. Presently, our board meets every 9 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 Friday and tries to address issues that can be handled with little or no money. Because of the many meetings and the many services we are hoping to provide, we would like our first goal the setup of a professional director to organize and put into place the numerous ideas and plans we are attempting to bring to fruition. We have found out from other districts, namely, the Manyunk and Olde City and Chestnut Hill Districts that this is the first and most important step that needs to be taken. After that, we need to address the issues of marketing and being able to draw more people to the avenue so as some bring the avenue back to its original fame as a lively and vital shopping arena while keeping the strong Italian flavor. Through our many attempts at reaching out to the area's businesspeople, we hope to be able to make Passyunk Avenue into an Italian galleria. Hat this has been put forth in our bylaws and business plan which we have submitted to you. I thank you for your time to hear from us and for allowing us to help introduce this bill 24 before City Council.
Thank you very much 10 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 for your testimony. Mr. Sher, please.
Greetings and salutations to the members of City Council. My name is Terry Sher. I own Loro Shoes at 1916-1918 East Passyunk Avenue. For over years I have been an integral part of 10 East Passyunk Avenue. I have held posts from chief 11 cook and bottle washer to president. At the present 12 time, I am the treasurer of East Passyunk Avenue 13 Business Improvement District, Inc. My two areas of 14 responsibility are financial and security. 15 Financial. As soon as the bid is 16 approved and tax bills go out, I will start and head 17 up a committee made up of representatives of all the 18 banks that have branches on the avenue. We hope to 19 leverage the tax monies to get funds at once. I 20 will also be computerizing our accounts, working with City representatives on collection and transfer of tax funds and working with our pay director on securing additional funds and grants from area corporation. Providing our membership with financial reports when needed. Continuously 11 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 adjusting our budget, which is never written in stone and is a living and always-changing entity. Security. Getting stores to be more security aware. Working with the Philadelphia Police Department for better coverage and having them visit stores to make better security recommendations. Plan and implement and avenue-wide security surveillance system. To do all these wonderful things, we need you to approve our bid. On the average, the cost the property owners, owner-occupied and residential without any rentals are exempt from bid taxes, will be less than a dollar a day per property. On a personal note, I have so much faith in the future of the avenue I am investigating in as many properties as I can. We hope you have the same faith and invest your yea votes in us. Thank you. Terry Sher, Treasurer.
Thank you very much for your testimony. Is there anyone else from the community that's going to testify in favor of the bill? Are there any questions? 12 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 Councilman DiCicco.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. And good morning, gentlemen. As you know, I've been a part of this process from the beginning, and even before the beginning of this process probably as far back as the late 1980s when I was a staff person on Senator Fumo's -- I was on Senator Fumo's staff when we tried for many years to come up with a plan that would work for the betterment of the South Philadelphia community, in particular the east Passyunk Avenue corridor. And many things were tried. From time to time, we came up with what we felt were innovative ideas. Unfortunately, none of them really took hold enough to make a major difference. It has been suggested over the last several weeks by way of flyers, I'm sure you've seen some of those, that in some way I have been responsible for increasing real estate taxes on the avenue. Can any of you speak with any authority as to whether or not I have done that, for the record?
If I may, being the treasurer, the answer to that is a definite no. 25 It's the only way that we can fund the projects that 13 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 we have to do is increasing the taxes to the property owners. This money is not going to the City. The City will collect it, turn every penny over to us and it will be spent on the avenue for all our betterments.
What is happening is that the Business District, the merchants, have basically agreed and entered into agreement by way of the NID, Neighborhood Improvement District, to actually self-impose a tax, not the tax that is being driven by Councilman DiCicco.
Do you know of anyone in the business community who will be a part of this bid who is opposed to the NID?
Councilman, through our many meetings, we have reached out to the community and even privately on our own reached out to fellow businesses, business people that are affected by this bill. And no one has approached us -- they've had many questions. No one has approached us to oppose it. If anything, they've given us positive constructive feedback, how to name it, different ideas on transportation, signage, and the like. So 14 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 we've never had anything. It's always been favorable. Never have we heard anything negative.
For the record and for this committee, I have no knowledge of any opposition to this NID. And I bring that to the attention of this committee because in the seven years or so I've been a councilperson in the 1st District, I've been involved in at least two other NIDS, one in Olde City and one in the expansion of the South Street Head House District. And there's another one I just can't think of off the top of my head. And it is unusual to present a Neighborhood Improvement District that you would find no 15 opposition to it. In the end, they all were approved, but as normal, when anything different is being proposed, there is usually opposition. This is the first time in my tenure as a councilperson that I have not recognized or have not been told of any opposition. Now, there may be somebody out there, but has not yet been brought to my attention. And as far as I know, speaking on your behalf, you don't know of any opposition either. I just wanted to bring that to the attention of this committee. It's very unusual, but welcome. 15 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438
The only -- I got a couple phone calls that dealt with the original real estate tax, which I can't answer. The questions were, "Why is your building assessed this much and mine assessed that." Well, I don't know that.
I would argue the only effectiveness of any unnamed or unsigned flyers spewing this information, probably the only effect it's had is to litter the neighborhood even more. I would generally ignore that type of information, especially when people don't have the courage to put their names on it as to where they originate from. Some of that kind of activity is reminiscent of Nazi Germany in the '30s. But I think people see through it and understand it and will do what's best for the community regardless of outside influence. Thank you very much. Anyone else?
Good morning. Thank 16 9/18/02 - RULES - BILL 020438 you for waiting.
I had a business there for 10 years myself and now I rent my property and I am 100 percent in favor of this bill. And it's a pleasure to pay the tax. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Anyone else to testify for this bill.
Good morning. I'm Levina Gallicchio. I own the property at 1646 East Passyunk Avenue, and we are very willing to go along with this bill and so is my tenant.
Any questions for these witnesses? (No response.) 17 ¡›î›
Seeing none, that will conclude the hearing of the Rules Committee. - - - COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC MEETING COMMITTEE ON RULES - - - September 18, 2002 - - - Public Meeting conducted by the Committee on Rules, held in Room 696, City Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the above date, to consider action on the following: BILL 020438 - - - PRESENT: COUNCIL PRESIDENT ANNA C. VERNA, Chair COUNCILMAN JAMES KENNEY COUNCILWOMAN JANNIE BLACKWELL COUNCILMAN DARRELL CLARKE COUNCILMAN FRANK DICICCO COUNCILMAN MICHAEL NUTTER COUNCILMAN BRIAN O'NEILL - - - 18 9/18/02 - RULES - PUBLIC MEETING
We will now convene a public meeting. The Chair recognizes Councilmember DiCicco.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I make a motion to approve the preliminary plan as the final plan and that a second hearing, I understand, will be scheduled for the final plan in the Rules Committee on October 16th at 10:00 a.m. in this room. A notice of the hearing will be sent to all property owners prior to that hearing.
There are none opposed. The preliminary plan has been approved and recommended by this committee. We will see you on the 16th of October. Thank you. (Council adjourned at 10:45 a.m.) - - - 19 ¡›î› C E R T I F I C A T I O N I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia of September 18, 2002, were reported fully and accurately by me, and that this is a correct transcript of the same. RE: COMMITTEE ON RULES ___________________________ Lisa C. Bradley, RPR and Notary Public