from the civic association i'll come back to that a little bit later support from near neighbors
including the adjacent property at 1328 Ellsworth. We'll come back to these as well.
The five-star reviews of my clients as an Airbnb host, financial evaluations, which we'll come back
to, the listing information of when she purchased the property, including showing that it was a
functional Airbnb when she purchased it. Um, a, the property records OPA, which shows that,
um, sorry, let me get to the right part that it was, it is being taxed as a multifamily property.
Um, zoning maps, uh, breakdown of the current, I'm going to come back to all this current uses
of the block, aerial photos, photographs of the posting of the front and rear of the property as
well as the side, staircases. This is the units within the building. We'll come back to some of
these as well. This is the street, Ellsworth, and the floor plans, which we will basically
how this is laid out. We'll come back to how it's laid out. But let me just go back to page 62.
All right. So 1330 Ellsworth is a about 1,330, excuse me, 1,363 square foot parcel.
And it runs street to street from Ellsworth to Anin Street. And it's the block immediately
adjacent to South Broad Street, just so that we orient everyone. This block, as you said,
this property and most of this block are in fact zoned RSA 5. If we look here, we see that we are
in RSA 5 zone. However, that is not how most of the properties on this block are actually used.
if we look here we have at least 12 properties that are multi-unit buildings with two to six
units in it there's also an approved airbnb on this block and several commercial mixed use and
another commercial property as well so why we are in a single family home zoned area we are not
on a single family exclusive block so i just wanted to go back and say that um
My client did purchase this property in 2021, and in the listing information and in the documents provided to her, it said that the property was being used as an Airbnb with three existing units, and that had been in existence since 2018.
And that had been in existence since 2018. She purchased the property in 2021 and continued to use it as three units in Airbnb. And there's this additional fourth unit that we're talking about that's kind of in question.
um right now that building consists of let's go to the floor plans um if we go to the the
basement's just storage there's no units in there um on the first floor um there is a one studio
unit um and then this is the first there's a the fourth floor fourth unit we'll come back to that's
a bi-level unit. On the second floor here, we have another unit here, and we have a one-bed,
one-bath unit. And then there is a unit on the third floor that is a two-bedroom, two-bathroom
unit. The fourth proposed unit would be a bi-level here on the second floor. It's the rear of the
second floor and a little bit in the rear of the first floor. I'll show you some photos of how that
looks right now. Let's get to those photos. This is the lower area of that proposed fourth unit
and this is the upper area of that proposed fourth unit. Right now it's not a fully functional space.
My client like hangs out there when she comes to manage the property and I think the previous owner
had been using it as their art studio when they were there um so that's the layout of the building
our proposal is to continue using the three units that are currently in airbnb
as an airbnb with the hope of adding that fourth unit um finishing it out with a bathroom
and adding that space as well um let me just go here one second um so my client has um she is
an outstanding airbnb host with over 25 star reviews from her guests um and this is she also
expects the same sort of behavior from her guests as well um no guest is allowed to stay if they
don't have at least five prior five star reviews um they there is a two-night minimum for a stay
which avoids people that are there to throw parties um hold on one second i'm sorry um
so i apologize there's actually over 70 70 reviews i just have 20 of them here in front of me
um but um so like i said you have to have prior good ratings um from airbnb you have to have a
minimum two nights day and typically um they're her typical guests are this is right by the rock
school a lot of the parents who have children training at the rock stool will stay um there
are traveling nurses who have, you know, an extended stay that's not quite long-term and
not quite short-term, have been frequent guests of the property. And also it's conveniently located
to several of the hospitals. And so a lot of family members visiting patients in the hospital
where they need some sort of more of a living space than just a hotel room while they might
be dealing with a loved one's illness tend to be the guests here. I know another big issue is
always trash. So we do have in this property, this rear garage, which I showed in the one picture,
but let's just come back to here. And so the professional cleaning staff comes and takes the
trash out and stores them in the trash cans in the rear garage. And there is another company
contracted to take that trash out the night before trash day, where the trash goes for these
properties on and in so that you never have trash hanging out in the street that, you know,
there's never a problem with uncollected trash showing up in between guests, because there are
several different professional management companies handling that and a place to store it.
So I know that, as I said, the neighbor directly adjacent at 1328 submitted a letter of support.
We've also talked to several other neighbors. I know there's some neighbors here in opposition,
um but uh several of the neighbors who expressed support have pointed out that there are no noise
issues no trash issues and none of the other typical issues that you might see with a poorly
managed airbnb um we did meet with the passing square civic association um let me just get to
the letter um uh none of the neighbors were in attendance we did send out 133 notification
letters. It was just the board members who voted five to one in opposition.
And the main concern that they expressed was that they didn't want
and the main concern that they expressed was that they didn't want additional housing stock added
that weren't for Philadelphia housing, but I just want to highlight that we have these three unit
Airbnb that are already in place and have been in place for five years, so nothing is being added
or taken away. We're just asking for the status quo of this property. That fourth unit would be
great, but we also understand if that's not possible. So I want to go back to the neighborhood
support letters. Stephanie was at the property fixing her flower boxes, doing other maintenance
on the property, and spoke to all of these people individually, explaining what, you know, who she
was, what was going on with the property. And so we have letters of support on Ellsworth Street,
1328 Ellsworth, the immediate adjacent. We have 1334, which is two properties down. 1338, again,
really close. We also have 1331, which is across the street. 1343. And then we also have 1314,
which is on an in street behind. So that's in the rear of this property. There's some properties
that don't fully go street to street and we also have 1349 and in street and then the rest of the
support letters are from like a block or two away um but i just wanted to highlight these ones that
are very very close on this block um so while we did have that that letter of opposition from
the board um i don't believe any of those members were adjacent neighbors and we do have these
letters of support from the adjacent neighbors um and i think that that just um and the fact that
Stephanie went out and obtained it herself talking about what she does um says a lot along with the
fact that there haven't been complaints um from those neighbors and they're willing to have this
use continue now I do want to go and talk a little bit about the financial hardship um if this building
was uh if this use was not allowed so let me go to here so as I said um my client purchased this
property in 2021 as an airbnb it was represented to her as a fully um operating ready to go airbnb
with three units um so so um i just also wanted to add in too before i get there um part of the
appeal for um that fourth unit is that stephanie would eventually like to she's in the process of
moving to philadelphia and would like to move into this building and live in one of the units
and continue the airbnb usage um so that was one of the other things that the neighbors
like that this person's involved with the community involved with the neighbors
um but let me just go back to the expenses um one second i'm so sorry so um this is expenses
per year her mortgage payments uh total um 36 408 taxes owed are about 10 000 property insurance
$4,400. She also pays for security cameras, security services. So her total expenses are
over $50,000 a year. Stephanie herself is an experienced landlord. She has properties outside
of Philadelphia that she rents long-term. She's also a licensed realtor, but consulted with a
realtor, Emily Ho, who specializes in South Philly properties. And we came up with that if we were to
rent this property long-term, um, the estimated rental income would only be about 45, $45,000 a
year, which doesn't even hit the level of the reoccurring expenses and doesn't factor in any
costs for improvements and maintenance. Um, we know right now that there needs to be skylights
replaced on the building, uh, which are going to cost $7,000 this year. Uh, if we go over here,
I know that Stephanie's also put on a new roof, repaired the HVAC system, repaired the garage, and done a lot of other upgrades to the property to make sure that it's up to standard and the building is well-maintained.
Again, because this is a building that she loves and cares about.
So, you know, if we, if she was forced to convert this to either long term rental, and even, you know, especially if it was only two units, that would be an even lower income this that that 45,000 was based on three units, which we understand we would probably have to come back here for, but this is just not financially viable for her in order to rent this property long term if she wasn't able to do it as an Airbnb.
I do want to go back and talk a little bit, a little bit about more about the neighborhood
and the character of the neighborhood. So I know that I showed this map that shows,
you know, we have multi-families, we have another Airbnb, just
You know, we have multi-families, we have another Airbnb just on this block, but I want to go and look at the zoning map a little bit further out from this block because it's important to look at the context of where this block is.
We are right, you know, less than half a block outside of Broad Street, and we are a block away from Washington Avenue.
notably on washington avenue we have a development coming here with 649 units all of which can be
airbnb by right we also have over here with 322 units again in the zoning district where that is
allowed by right but um if you just look at these scales of projects and you look at my client she's
an individual owner we have a situation where the airbnb that's allowed are on these massive
plots and expensive parcels that are really not financially available to the average property
owner. Whereas here we have a property that's not in an oasis of single family homes, that's adjacent
to commercial zoning, that's nearby public transportation, that services some of these
like medium term guests that are, you know, visiting students, patients, serve, you know,
as visiting nurses in the hospital, that, you know, we have this ability for Stephanie to have
this financially viable business that helps support her and her family. But, you know,
without really altering the character of this block of this neighborhood. And so that's why
I don't think that this is out of character. And I think that that's part of why a good number of
the neighbors were also in support of granting this variance. So just in summary, again, this
Airbnb has existed since 2018. My client took it over in 2021. It's on a mixed use block near
public transportation, near high intensity commercial zoning. She's an invested property
owner who's at the property regularly and is hoping to actually reside in one of these units
going forward in the near future, who thoroughly screens her guests and has made arrangements so
that the property is properly maintained to not be any of creating the nuisance that we might see
with poorly managed Airbnbs. Do you want to bring your client on and have your testimony adopted?
Absolutely. Stephanie, can you raise your hand so that they can unmute you or call you?
do we see a hand raised yeah she's there okay hi could you state your name please and spell
for the court reporter certainly stephanie de clerk uh s-t-e-f-a-n-i-d-e-c-l-e-r-c-q
right do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth
yes proceed counsel um stephanie did you hear my testimony here today and believe it to be
truthful and accurate? Yes. And would you adapt it as your own? Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Questions
from the board? No, Chair. Questions or comments from the virtual audience? I see no hands, Chair.
Planning Commission. Sir Ron Bednar, City Planning. The property is indicated for
residential use on the city plan or adopted. District plan recommends no change to existing
residential single family at this location, the applicant's hardship, not supported with evidence
of any physical circumstances, a condition of the property that would prevent it from being
used in conforming with the code, but we recommend a request for variance stomping, Randy.
We're going to take this under consideration.
Sorry, this is Hillary. There was someone who raised their hand to speak in the public.
Thank you.
All right. Could you state your name, please, and spell for the court reporter?
yes my name is mark schultz m-a-r-c-s-c-h-u-l-t-z right do you swear or affirm to tell
the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth i do are you a neighbor i am i can see the
building outside my window right now oh that's great thank you thank you my first time here
okay i'm happy to be here all right proceed okay so i just wanted to um summarize my interaction
i actually submitted uh testimony okay days ago but i'll summarize what i submitted um i want to
summarize my interaction with with the landlord um the property owner mr clark uh because the
counselor seems to point quite a bit to the neighbor's level of support um i had a i had a
nice interaction with mr clark she came up to me i never met her before um and i can't speak to the
the rest of the other interactions
interactions with uh that Ms. Clark had with other neighbors but when Mr. Clark approached me last
that Ms. Clark had with other neighbors.
But when Mr. Clark approached me,
week to get my support as I was uh in front of my building sort of just cleaning up the sidewalk
she told me that her daughter lives on the first floor that she is moving into the second floor and
that she'd like to rent out the third floor but that the city is forcing her to get a variance
to convert her building um when she told me this she said that she needed support uh to she needed
me to sign a letter of support and i said sure because i think that it's reasonable if you know
she wants to have another unit oh sorry she wants to get a variance to move her single family
building to a three-unit building uh one unit for her daughter one unit for herself one unit
to rent out and i said sure i support that wholly and um she gave me the letter to sign
and when i saw the the letter which is the letters that the counselor presented i saw that the
letter said four Airbnb rental units. And I asked Mr. Clark why the letter did not reflect what she
had told me. And she said, Mr. Clark said that they were four units because her attorney told her
to put down four units because then they could successfully negotiate down to three if they need
to. And as for the Airbnb, I could cross that out and just write rental units if I wanted to.
I said that it sounds like she has an attorney and I don't feel comfortable with more Airbnbs
on our block because I already pay pretty high rent right now. I live with three roommates in
order to afford my rent. And there's plenty of research out there that shows that Airbnbs
construct the housing supply, which ultimately raises rent, housing prices, etc. But if they
want to change the letter, she can come knock on my door. And if it reflects what she had told me
about the situation, then I'd sign it. So like I said, I can't speak to all the other interactions
that Mr. Clark had to garner the support. But for me, this is how she presented it. She never
mentioned Airbnbs until I read the actual paper and asked her about it. Other than that, it was
amicable interaction with mr clark uh but um i wanted to make the board aware of that thank you
thank you for taking i have some questions for mr schultz please yeah okay all right can you put
your address on the record please 1319 ellsworth street okay and uh do you rent do you rent or do
you own i rent and do you rent the whole house or a specific unit within that building we rent the
whole house it's a single family home all right um and then i did want to ask um i know that to
clarify some of this interaction and perhaps is a misunderstanding miss uh my client's daughter
did in fact live in the building at one point um and she is intending to try to move into one of
these properties into one of the units i don't know if this was a misunderstanding between the
two of you i don't i could imagine that happening um i just want to be very clear that the letter
that people signed clearly says, I have it up on the screen, that for Airbnb short-term rentals.
So people were advised of what they were signing prior to signing the letter, as evidenced by what
Mr. Schultz has said, that he read the letter and he didn't want to sign it anymore. So he did not.
I also think that it's worthy to note that the people who have signed the letter, most notably
the people close to our property owners and have a vested interest in the block long-term.
so that's that's that's what i have to say uh can i can i say can i add one thing chairman
sure i i would just like to say that just because i rent doesn't mean i don't have a vested interest
in the block so to imply otherwise is frankly insulting that's i said long-term hold it council
hold it hold it i i understand what you're saying sir thank and thank you for taking the time to
calls calls yeah is there anyone else in the virtual please call my client back to clarify
this conversation as well because i think that he's fundamentally please call her back and try
to move the comment you know what i mean absolutely stephanie can you
are you still available stephanie i'm not sure stephanie yes miss stephanie's there please
unmute a council uh stephanie just state your name for the record you've already been sworn
Stephanie DeClerk.