It's obsolete as an industrial building.
Um, uh, and there are much more competitive, uh, buildings, uh, sites, uh, throughout the MSA, uh, uh, they, uh, also the required truck access loading and unloading would be, uh, would not be compatible with the neighborhood.
So in addition to that point, as also we've discussed, there are unique physical circumstances, which would be the being in the floodplain and the rocky outcropping in the back of the proposed structure, which constitutes steep slopes.
And that would make the units there in the back of the second floor subterranean.
As a result, the initial level of rear-facing units that would be viable would start at the third floor.
So this is a, you know, it's a, like we said, problematic site. And so that would be an inefficient building. But we argue that the variance represented, the variance will represent the minimum variance that will afford relief, given the floodplain, light topography, the demand for one-to-one parking, the highest and best use for the rear and second floor is parking, resulting in a two-story podium of
So this is, you know, it's a, like we said, problematic site.
and so
either structural steel or concrete. To be economically viable with a two-story podium
made from either material, the proposed building would require five additional wood constructed
stories. A height variance is necessary for any future development. Our team could not find any
existing examples in the region of a building featuring a two-story podium beneath anything
less than five stories this supports the idea that there is a regional standard for podium
construction and a degree of consistency throughout and a building with fewer floors
would not be sufficient to meet the practical and structural needs of the site and I looking over
the other points I would say I would argue that the height variances will not be detrimental to
the neighborhood or adjacent properties. The height and scale are consistent with numerous
other high density and multifamily developments in the neighborhood and in keeping with the historic
shape and massing within Manioc. It'll be in harmony and in spirit of the zoning code. And I
would also like to underscore the fact that this project is very much in keeping with Philadelphia
2035, which has an explicit goal to rehabilitate abandoned industrial infrastructure for new uses
and reuse industrial buildings to create new neighborhood anchors. And this is a perfect
example of such a project, very much in keeping with the city plan. So with that, I will
conclude these are the highlights of my report and i can thank thank you very much for uh doing that
so succinctly uh please stand by uh for questions uh if they come up later on but i'd like to
request mr chairman that dr peter angelides a-n-g-e-l-i-d-e-s be promoted as a panelist
Dr. Angelides is a principal founding partner of eConsult Solutions, Incorporated.
He has appeared before this board before, and it is an expert in documenting the financial
and economic impact of the proposed project.
There he is.
Sir, could you please state your name and spell for the stenographer?
Dr. Angelides, please unmute.
I see your box on the screen.
There you are.
Hi, sir.
Could you please state your name and spell for the stenographer?
Okay, yes.
Hi, my name is Peter Angelides, P-E-T-E-R-A-N-G-E-L-I-D-E-S.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, told truth, and nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Please proceed, counsel.
Good evening, Dr. Angelides.
I believe you're abroad, and we thank you for being able, making yourself willing to participate even while you are abroad.
You've presented a written submission to the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
Would you be kind enough to please provide a quick overview of the highlights of your findings?
I'm happy to.
So my analysis was a study of the economic benefits of constructing and operating this project.
So in other words, what are the economic and financial outcomes that arise from having this project built?
And I did it in two parts.
The first part was to look at what the impacts of the construction of the building would be.
And then the next part is, well, what about once it's built and occupied by people and operating, what are those impacts?
And there are several different types of impacts.
In addition to that, there are other non-financial impacts that are still real and important that I'll talk about as well.
So very briefly, this project, total construction costs are approximately $45 million. And that money gets spent on the project, and then it gets spent on people and materials, and then that money gets...
It gets spent on people and materials, and then that money gets spent again and again and again in the economy.
And within the city, that $45 million expenditure to build the project results in a total of about $65 million in direct and induced economic benefits to the city.
That results in 305 full-time equivalent jobs, 305 jobs, not permanent jobs as a one-year full-time equivalent, but 305 jobs, which is about $16.7 million in wages to construction workers and other people working on the project.
And that's all during the construction phase. And that construction phase also, because there's economic activity going on, there are sales taxes and income taxes from the people working on the project.
And overall to the city, it's approximately $755,000 in income sales and business tax revenue to the city and another $427,000 in realty transfer tax and development impact taxes.
So that's a total of about $1.2 million of tax revenue to the city's general fund. And that's one time during the construction. Once the building opens up, there's additional impact, a slightly different kind.
Obviously, the construction part is done, but you have ongoing impacts.
You have about a million and a half dollars of direct, indirect and induced economic impacts in the overall economy from the operation of the building, the utilities, the people who work there.
That leads to about 700, sorry, not 700, seven full time jobs for the people who work there, the maintenance staff, the door people and whatnot.
And that's about $200,000 in annual wages for the people who work at the building.
In addition, there are significant tax benefits to the city from this building.
First is property tax.
Now it's eligible for an abatement.
So in the first year of operation, there are essentially no additional property taxes compared to what you have today.
But over the course of 10 years, the abatement burns off. And the first 10 years results in about $4.2 million of property taxes to the city. And in that case, I mean, the city and the school district combined. And then after 10 years, it's about $756,000 annually every year for perpetuity.
In addition to property taxes, which are paid directly by the owner to the city, there are wage and income tax receipts from residents.
So people are living in the building. They're city residents. Therefore, they owe city wage tax or its equivalent if you're not a wage earner, but a business owner.
And the total of that is about five hundred and seventeen thousand in wage taxes to the city annually.
And then there's also wage and income tax from the operations of the people who work in the building.
That's another $12,000.
So there are substantial tax benefits, direct to the city tax benefits from the building once it's open and operated.
In addition to the financial and economic benefits that I mentioned, the quantifiable ones, there are other unquantifiable economic benefits.
for example there are a whole bunch more people living in the neighborhood more than 200 people
additional people living in the neighborhood which means you have that many more people who
can go to the neighborhood businesses and buy a slice of pizza or get their clothes cleaned or
anything like that they're also near step to stop so this supports the public transit network it's
really transit oriented developed in the sense it's near the transit network it increases the
overall housing stock of the city. Again, in keeping with the mayor's goal of increasing
the number of housing units in the city, that is exactly what this is doing, increasing the
housing stock and quite significantly. And in general, it brings an overall improvement to
the appearance of Lower Main Street, which means it's just a nicer place. And that benefits not
just the property itself, but all the nearby properties benefit from having an improved
structure on the property. That concludes my very, very high-level summary.
Thank you, Dr. Angelides. That was a great segue when you mentioned the appearance of
Lower Main Street and improvements to Lower Main Street. You can just stand by because we're going
to go through this very quickly. But I have up on the screen, Mr. Chairman and members of the board,
a letter of support from the Mount Young Special Services District,
which represents over 230 stakeholders.
And you'll see in the letter that this important community organization, quote, sees this use as presenting a positive impact for the business corridor as more residents move in and ultimately use the services provided in our business district.
And you'll see in the letter that this important...
end quote. Furthermore, quote, the proposed new improvements will especially benefit
lower Main Street, which has not experienced the level of investment and attention as the
commercial core of Manioc's Main Street, end quote. So when we think of Main Street, we think of that
core. This is the fringe, pardon the expression, but it's the outskirt. But it's the same river,
it's the same Philadelphia, it's the same Manioc. There's good essence there that can be
reactivated. And that's why we really hope to have the opportunity to partner with council
member Curtis Jones and others to realize this vision after so long. In this important letter,
you'll note that there's no objection to the massing or scale, that the proposed development
would be, quote, a great connection between the Wissahickon transfer station, the movie theater
property and the Maniunk Business Corridor, end quote. Really helping in so many different ways
to achieve the objectives of the one Philadelphia, make public transit strong,
bring residents to support businesses that have been hurt by the pandemic.
It's synergistic, I would suggest. Next, we have a letter of support from the Maniunk
Development Corporation, noting that the proposed new improvements will especially benefit Lower
Main Street, which is in such need of vision and direction. This next exhibit is really quite
important, and it's been revised, Ms. Emerson, from initial submissions, and I'll be sure to
get this to council and to the board for records. We had previously submitted a map indicating
support, and the support has only grown in time. But what's really important and instructive to
note is we have the subject property indicated by the red or magenta star over the blue property,
really right in the center of the page. And you see surrounding it, and we've submitted this to
the board in yellow are the written letters of support from the most impacted stakeholders
in yellow. And then a much lesser component is verbal support. We recognize that the board
needs to weigh the evidence and that the written support is most meaningful. Furthermore, we've
indicated here with the red lines, supporters within 250 feet. And then in blue, supporters
within 500 feet. We've had the opportunity to review some of the other exhibits that have been
submitted by other parties. We'll get to that in due course if there are those who choose to speak.
From my review as an officer of the court, I do not see this type of vested interest, actually, in those who unfortunately don't share our vision.
But as we go through further support and wrap up our testimony, please remember this exhibit because I've presented many cases before this board.
And I think this is quite unusual in the amount of near-interested party support and a desire to actually see improvement at the site.
Immediately next door to the subject property is the Starfinder organization.
I believe my 14-year-old son has played soccer there from time to time.
It's an important community institution and an important community institution for the city of Philadelphia.
They are noting in their letter no objection to the massing.
City Light Church, representing 400-plus individuals, supports the revitalization of the site and the betterment of the community.
uh 11 shores lane which is the property uh just behind uh that has been referenced uh by many
along the way they support this project that's the site that i said is quite different
they support this project that's the site that i said is quite different and distinguishable from
this site because it doesn't have the uh same constraints but they would like to see their
neighboring site revitalized and uh i'm not going to go through line by line the pages of support
letters from vested property owners all along and in close proximity here is one from the owner of
4100 main street the presence of a new development will stimulate additional commerce in the area
which is crucial for the vitality of our local businesses pages and pages have been submitted
into the record that were shown on that first visual map and then after all the letters of
support. There is a petition of support as well. I'd like to move to a letter of support from
someone that this board knows well. Mr. Bill O'Brien, who is a Maniunk stakeholder who
works in the immediate vicinity at 4322 Main Street. He may be with us online, I'm not quite
sure, but he notes, as a very active participant in the Manion community for 40 years, it is my
informed opinion that the multifamily use is the best use for the parcel and will be most welcome
addition to the Main Street business corridor. He goes on to note that South Main Street, Selma,
I hadn't known that acronym.
Ridge Avenue to Shores Lane is characterized by vacant lots, empty buildings, and office
fitness and industrial uses.
It is, as we stated seven weeks ago, unfortunately, in many respects, stagnating.
This is a chance to be a part of efforts to change that.
I don't mean to suggest that there's nothing good.
Quite to the contrary, there's a lot of good that needs to be given a lift up.
Mr. O'Brien goes on to state, any argument, any argument that the proposed height of the property's proposed development is an anomaly is without merit.
Furthermore, the neighborhood's topography diminishes the impact of the proposed building's height on the nearest residential neighborhood to the east at Crescent Street.
So we have the expert testimony and analysis.
We now also have from those who are most immediately impacted who are recognizing the same types of challenges that we've respectfully brought before this board.
And Mr. O'Brien goes on to end in relevant part that the proposed development is consistent with and complementary to a vibrant manioc.
And he goes on to share some important documentation, which is in the record, which I won't get into.
But I think it's appropriate that the last word of this formal testimony goes to the Littlewood family.
Their labor and love for Maniunk is deep.
And they submitted a letter to all of you.
And Robert Littlewood, with whom I've met on several occasions, and who's quite passionate about his family's business, their legacy, his neighbors in Maniunk, and wants to see the best for the area, noted in relevant part.
I want to clarify what truly happens when Mount Young faces these extreme weather events.
He's referring to the flooding and different versions that have been presented to the board
of what occurs in the flooding.
And he tells it as it was, as he experienced, quote, we begin preparations about three days
in advance, closely monitoring its path and adjusting accordingly.
fortunately these storms take time to form and develop end quote he goes on to note quote after
ida the second worst storm in philadelphia's history city crews worked tirelessly restoring
traffic flow to main street within just three days end quote so why do i state this and why does he
so why do I state this and why does he? The city has risen to the occasion. The businesses work
together. He is sharing with you that this is done in three days, not some other version
of the end of the world of weeks, months, et cetera. He notes that the plans proposed will
significantly improve the property's resilience to future flooding, ensuring that it remains a
valuable part of Mani Young's future. And he concludes, throughout our long history, the
Littlewood family has always believed in Mani Young's potential. I truly believe that this
redevelopment project will revitalize the lower end of Main Street and serve as a catalyst for
renewed energy and prosperity. Mr. Chairman and members of the board, the authorization of
variance relief will not alter the character of the neighborhood or district or be detrimental
to the public welfare. The proposal fits into the surrounding neighborhood as evidenced by the
district council members' enthusiastic support for the revised plans, in addition to other
expressions of support. And this all speaks to the granting of relief being of benefit to the
public and within the spirit of the code. The proposed variance would represent the minimum
variants to afford relief and will represent the least modification possible of the regulations
at issue to permit a reasonable use, a possible viable use of a quite burdened property. The grant
of variance relief will not substantially increase congestion in the public streets, increase the
danger of fire or otherwise endanger the public health, safety, or general welfare. The proposed
development employs best practices in floodplain development construction and management. That is,
as you'll recall from seven weeks ago, why we reached out proactively to the city's floodplain
manager to seek her guidance, even before we sought private guidance in best practices that
were out there for floodplain development construction and management, which we believe
this project embodies in a way that will really be a model, we hope, in our city and beyond.
The CBP, formerly Cecil Baker Partners, CBP design plan represents the highest and best use
for this site in line with the finest locations in our city. The proposed development appropriately
respects the changing neighborhood with a mix of long existing uses and new projects dotting the
neighborhood we showed you some of that in uh our exhibits uh in march march 19th when we last met
this will not adversely affect transportation or unduly uh burden water sewer school park or other
public facilities we've discussed the tie-in with septa we had uh bowman consulting present
testimony on their traffic analysis and the minimal impact we are proactively addressing
environmental concerns and we have submitted revised proviso plans to the board which
council has had the opportunity to review i know that there are several uh nearby neighbors who