James Snell, my vote is yes.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is yes.
Number three.
Mr. Palmer will be voting on this case. MI 2022-007-103-2926 West Oxford Street.
I vote yes, with provisos. No sleeping, accommodations in basement, maximum three units.
unit. Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes, with proviso. Ishmael Shahid, my vote is yes, with proviso.
LeVar and Leonard Palmer, my vote is yes, with proviso. Thank you. We're going to go to our
regular list. Number one, MI 2023-000-130-1130 Carpenter Street. Meredith Feralacker is the
attorney. Letter of support from the Hawthorne Empowerment Coalition. Applicant also provided
letter of support from owner of residence for adjacent properties at 1128 1132 and also a
petition signed by five neighbors she's coming back in as a panelist now chair hi could you
state your name please and spell for the court reporter sure meredith ferliger f-e-r-l-e-g-e-r
1500 market street suite 3500 e do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth and
nothing but the truth. I sure do. Could you identify your client and relationship to the
property? Certainly. My clients here today are Anna Lamb or Na Lamb as it is shown on the deed
and Alec Ma who are the owner of property at 1130 Carpenter Street. And our vice chair has a few
questions. Good afternoon, counsel. Do you agree to waive the reading of the refusal and stipulate
to its accuracy? I do. Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that are 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. I hope you can see my screen. It is shared right now. Great.
In addition to the owners of the property, Ana Lam and Alec Ma, who should be on the virtual Zoom
today we also have our architect alex dollar with fusa designs here if there's any specific
questions related to the design itself mr chairman members of the board the incomplete history of
this property is ultimately what brings us before the board today to reapprove the long-standing use
of this property as three dwelling units i will walk you through the background and then i can
quite efficiently sum up the clear hardship as it relates to the use of this property.
As you note, we did receive a letter of support from the Hawthorne Empowerment Coalition,
which is in our exhibit packet at tab 15, and we did also include petitions of support
and letters of support from near neighbors on this block. Alec and Anna purchased this property in
December of 2022 and immediately hired an architect to start working on plans for the
renovation of the aging structure. Alex's elderly parents live in the Hawthorne community and are in
need of a new place to live. It was his intent in purchasing this property to have his parents move
It was his intent in purchasing this property to have his parents move into one of the newly renovated units.
into one of
Now, in working with the architect and myself, we quickly realized the permitting discrepancy that requires remediation.
This request relates to 1130 Carpenter Street in the city's Hawthorne neighborhood.
As you can see on the zoning map up on your screen at Exhibit 7, the property sits on Carpenter Street between South 11th Street and South 12th Street.
The property is zoned RSA 5.
I'll bring up some photos at Exhibit 16.
I have some more zoomed in photographs as well.
You can see this is an existing three-story brick structure.
And as I will explain, this property currently contains three, arguably four, separate living
spaces. Briefly, if you refer to some of the interior photos that I've included in your packet,
let me zoom in a little bit on this, you will note an unfinished cellar, which will remain
in relatively unfinished condition, and three clear apartments. Unit one is highlighted in red,
first floor, kitchen. Unit two is highlighted in blue, and unit three is highlighted in green.
Oddly, there is also a separate space identified as unit four. Floor plans reflecting the existing
condition is shown up on the screen now at tab five, and this is where you can see this really
strange, what is separately identified as unit four, although we can't imagine how it was ever
used this way. The permit history for the property is shown at tab nine. And what you will note is
that the property, since at least 1987, has contained three apartments, which was granted
by variance. As I learned when I applied for an updated use permit to confirm the longstanding
in use as three family. The examiner responded to me, and you'll see her response here up on the
screen, noting that a permit was apparently never picked up back in the 80s when the variance was
granted. Now, given that the structure was ultimately converted to three apartments,
I suspect there probably was a permit at some point that has just evaded identification or
has been misfiled. Alec and Anna are proposing a comprehensive renovation of the property to
update and modernize the three units. Proposed floor plans are now shown on the screen at tab
six. The seller will be used for washer dryer space for units two and three, as well as storage.
Unit one, which is the unit that's being designed for Alec's parents, will be a one-bedroom unit of
600 square feet. Unit two and three are two-bedroom units of between 610 and 650 square feet. Each of
the unit will have a ventilated trash room, and community trash will be stored in the rear yard
for pickup. Now, of course, regarding the refusal, because the property is zoned RSA 5,
the application was refused for the multifamily use. However, as the board has seen from the
evidence we presented today, the three dwelling units have existed since at least the 1980s
and would be considered legally non-conforming given their continuous use for the last 40 plus
years. This request is simply seeking to modernize and renovate the long-standing units for the same
three total units. The hardship here is quite simple. It would be a considerable hardship to
return this structure to a single-family use, given its long-standing multifamily history.
Furthermore, the zoning code would not require such a conversion for a long-standing non-conforming
use. If the board is interested, I do have several cases referenced to confirm it would be unreasonable
and by no means the least minimum variance to ask a property owner to convert a structure back to
single-family use after a long history of multifamily use. It also goes without saying
that this is not a self-imposed hardship, as my client just recently purchased this property
and is undertaking this process to ensure the property has all of the up-to-date permits in
place. The proposal is further consistent with the area, which includes a mix of single-family
and multi-family uses. You will see permits for other multi-family uses on just this block at
Exhibit 11, and I did include a summary map, which you'll see up on the screen, showing two, three,
and even five unit dwellings on this same block. Accordingly, we submit this proposal
five unit dwellings on this same block accordingly we submit this proposal will not increase
congestion harm neighboring properties or impair light and air a full analysis is provided in the
memo of law i've submitted to the board at exhibit 12. with respect to the community hawthorne
empowerment coalition's letter of support is in the packet in addition to signatures and letters
of support from your neighbors.
At this time, I'd like to call up Anna Lamb
to adopt my testimony.
Anna, if you want to hit the raise hand button
and wait to be unmuted.
Chair, we have Nye Lamb with his hand up.
Mr. Lamb, please unmute yourself and wait for the chair.
Could you state your name, please,
and spell it for the court reporter?
Nye Lamb, N-A-H.
LAM. L-A-M. Right. Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, sir. Proceed, counsel. Thank you. Nah, have you heard all of the testimony and evidence that I have offered to the board today?
Yes. And would you agree that that testimony was true and accurate, and would you adopt that testimony as if it were your own?
Yes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'm happy to answer any questions.
Questions from the board? No, Mr. Chairman.
no chair no chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
i see no hands at this time chair planning commission good afternoon chair bergman
members of the board ian hegarty here for the philadelphia city planning commission
last name spelled h-e-g-a-r-t-y welcome back by the way thank you very much do you swear
a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? Yes, I do. Proceed. Thank
you. Board members, the comprehensive plan recommends no change to the existing RSA 5
single-family zoning at this location. However, the proposed use is consistent with the documented
prior use on the property and the existing physical configuration of the building. The
City Planning Commission recommends that the board grant the variance. Thank you. MI 2023-000-130-1130
Carpenter Street, I vote yes. Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes. James Snell, my vote is yes.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is yes. Thank you, counsel. Thank you. I'll be back. I have another one.
I understand. Number two, MI 2022-007-564-1637 Nordane Street. Alan Nockamson is the attorney.
there is a letter of opposition from the center city residents association
mr sherrett this is hillary i want to let you know that we also
just received a letter of opposition from councilman johnson okay
chair mr nackamson is coming back in as a panelist now okay
good afternoon mr chair members of the board alan knockamson a-l-a-n last name knockamson
n-o-c-h-u-m-s-o-n do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the
truth i do could you identify your client in relationship to the property uh yeah let me
just get my notes here so i take your time i have a decent amount of no i think so yeah
uh all right um my clients are jeff and jeffrey and faith wellen uh the owners of the property
and they should be in the virtual audience okay our vice chair has just a few questions
good afternoon counsel do you agree to waive the reading or the refusal and stipulate to
with accuracy? I do. Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that are needed
to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing? Yes, I have. Thank you. Please
Please proceed and share your screen.
So I'm here to present 1637 Nardine Street.
This is in the Graduate Hospital section of Philadelphia.
It's a pretty straightforward case.
I know that there is opposition from the Center City Residence Association.
I would say this, that I believe it's their policy to deny this type of use of a short-term
accommodation such as a merit of A&B. I don't think it really has much to do with the merits
of the case, and we'll review that throughout my presentation. So first, we'll review the
So first, we'll review the table of contents. It's the notice of refusal, correspondence from the Center City Residence Association, a petition that we circulated to nearby neighbors, and a letter of support from nearby neighbors.
Table of Contents is the Notice of Refusal, Correspondence,
uh nearby airbnb listings so it's not uncommon to have airbnb listings um um available uh nearby
and i actually said graduate hospital i mistakenly said stated that that's it's more of center city
we are we're north of uh south street um then a little bit about this listing in particular
in this property i have in the airbnb listing about this place so we'll learn a little bit about
it um and about the amenities which is the next exhibit also we'll review uh the reviews my client
has received um they have received 4.97 uh stars for you know their accommodations maps of the
area photographs of the property our interior drawings um are just basic floor plans uh proof
of our meeting with the group by way of a rco meeting notice and mail in that notice our
application for appeal, our deed to the property, showing that Jeffrey and Faith Whelan are the
owners of the property and our certificate of tax credits. At the conclusion of my presentation,
I'll ask Mr. Whelan to virtually raise his hand, be sworn in, and to adopt my testimony as his own.
So this is a notice of refusal. This is an RSA 5 property, and we're being denied merely because
we're trying to do short-term accommodations, essentially accommodations less than 30 days.
And as the board knows, the rules have changed recently with regards to these short accommodations,
where previously this use was allowed as a right. And a few years ago, City Council passed an
ordinance requiring special governmental approval for these use. I would argue that the use that
we're seeking uh is a non-conforming use my clients purchased this property before the change
in the ordinance and just a little bit of background and why these are special circumstances
my clients currently live out of town they have a family their their parents live in uh in
philadelphia they would like and they're elderly and they'd like to visit the parents you know with
their family on a consistent basis. So they purchased this property in February of 2020
for a significant amount, $530,000, expecting to be able to use this property for their own purposes
six to eight weeks out of the year. In order to make this work and be viable, they also plan to
have short-term accommodations for this property. So it's not like an investment property where,
okay, they can rent this out long-term if this doesn't happen. It would defeat the purpose of
why they purchased this property for $530,000. And you'll see how well maintained they keep
this property through the pictures and that significant expense. But instead of having
hotel accommodations themselves, six to eight weeks out of the year, which would be cost
prohibitive to them they thought that this would be a sound uh path forward and again unfortunately
the law changed after they purchased the property it's not like they purchased the property hoping
to do visitor accommodation and seeking special governmental approval through this board
the law at the time of purchase allowed them to have this use thus this is a non-conforming
property and we're asking the board to merely legalize that non-conforming use
So we do have correspondence from the Center City Residents Association.
Of particular note, the Center City Residents Association, first of all, gave us a fair forum, listed to our presentation, but they don't take votes of the community.
They have an executive board that merely hears the merits of the case, and then they decide amongst themselves as an executive board the position that the Center City Residents Association takes.
Again, unfortunately, they have made a policy decision to deny any Airbnb use of this type.
So again, they have not heard the actual merits of our case, and we would ask that the board
actually consider those merits, especially given the fact that my client spent a significant
amount of money on a piece of real estate in the city of Philadelphia prior to a change
in law, and they're not looking to create a situation where they're taking an RSA by
property and increased density. They're not taking a situation where they have a property that's RSA 5
that did not allow visitor accommodations at the time of purchase. It's a change in law. It's an
unfortunate change in the law. If this board feels so inclined, I would ask that the board grant it
If this board feels so inclined, I would ask that the board grant it with a proviso, with a temporary variance.
with a
Thank you very much.
Again, you'll see from the reviews, my client is a stellar landlord for short-term accommodations.
And you can see from the pictures that they take this rather seriously.
So they did circulate a petition around.
You know, again, you can see that 610 Rodman Street, which is close by, 620 Naudain, 641 Naudain, 1640 Naudain, and 1702 Rodman, all signed the petition.
And then separately, you know, again, nearby, we had 408 South 19th Street sign a letter of support.
And then 1702 Rodman Street, two individuals signed a letter of support.
So, again, it's not uncommon to have this type of use in this vicinity of the city.
because we're close to center city again we're just north of south street we're between 16
and 17 street and as you can see we're not even the only airbnb on this block so we're not out
of character what our use is not out of character to what you would expect in this part of town
and then about their place so a couple of things we were talking about how they're reviewed and
you can see this is a 4.97, 122 reviews. We took that screenshot, I believe a few months ago. So
there may be additional reviews as well. Just like they're highly rated as a landlord for
short-term accommodations, they take it very seriously because this is their living arrangement
for up to two months out of the year on average. They actually only accept occupants who are rated
as well by Airbnb. Not many people know that, but the occupants themselves can be rated by
the landlords of Airbnb facilities. And they only take people who have the high ratings just like
them. In addition, they take you very serious about the fact that they want to make sure that