holdings llc with me today is dale you the owner and the co-founder of the philadelphia chinese
academy who's the operating of the property okay our vice chair has a few questions good morning
counselor do you agree to weigh the reading of the refusal or stipulate to its accuracy i do
have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that's needed to proceed with this
case five days in advance of this hearing we did thank you you may proceed thank you i just need
We need a moment to join as panelists.
Am I able to share my screen?
Oh, yes.
i can't so just i i understand that um we're going to hear the case then hold
because there needs to be an amended refusal yes we were advised this morning that there
needs to be an amended um amendment um there are no uh refusals that are expected from the changes
we thought it would be in the proviso um so so we'll talk further about that with hillary but
So, we'll talk further about that with Hillary, but all the changes have been reviewed and approved by the community.
um all the
But, you know, we would wind up continuing for a vote at a later date, and it would be a week or two, right?
So, why don't you proceed?
so as uh chairman bergman mentioned uh we did receive a letter of support or of non-opposition
from the council member's office and a letter of non-opposition from the washington square west
association um the com the committee did have a few concerns about the hours of operation
of the roof deck, and so we worked with them to incorporate a proviso that the hours of operation
of the roof deck will be limited. This application is for a special exception, the standards are
lower, for two roof decks for use of the child care center, one on the second floor and one on
fifth floor we also received 30 or so signatures of near neighbors and support
and these are a few reviews of the school it's a great community asset and for the washington square
area the montessori school teaching method is built on principles of community and the environment
The Philadelphia Chinese Academy provides instruction using the Montessori method while embracing Chinese culture and Mandarin language instruction through guided play, the use of music to engage the senses.
And they do a lot of incorporating the outdoors to incorporate botany and hands-on activities as an integral part of their curriculum.
The proposed roof decks will enable the Philadelphia Chinese Academy to blend the indoor and outdoor with their classrooms and provide children with the essential outdoor space for learning and exploration.
So here are the plans.
The proposed roof deck is set back on both street frontages.
um the architect michelle kleschick is with us virtually as well to answer any questions if you
have them um as i mentioned uh we did submit a proviso and revised plans this is to add a small
27.5 square foot bathroom for the children on the roof deck um this is in response to a lot of the
comments from the teachers and the parents their toddlers and they they need the bathroom in the
play area so they're not running up and down the stairs um here are a few renderings that
of the proposed uh roof deck and this is uh the second floor it's um
incorporated into the classrooms and really will be an extension of the classrooms
um with that uh dale is here and she can answer any questions to elaborate on the school or their
operations and as i mentioned michelle is here as well why don't we do this why don't you have
your client adopt your testimony and then if anyone needs to have questions from the architect
we'll call them okay okay thank you good morning i could you get close to the mic okay i think it's
on could you please state your name and spell for the stenographer sure my name is dale you
it's spelled d as in david a l e last name is you spelled y-o-u do you swear or affirm to tell the
truth the whole truth nothing but the truth yes please proceed counsel dale you heard my testimony
today and is it true and accurate to the best of your knowledge it is and do you adopt it as your
own yes i do all right questions from the board i have a question are there any other uh roof decks
on the adjacent building? Are there roofs being used that you know of?
There are no roof decks, but both are a little bit taller than both adjacent buildings are
taller than ours. Here's a you can see them here. This is a zone for demolition and a
taller building will be in its place. Other questions from the board?
I wanted to see where these decks are going to be.
decks are going to be you said there's going to be one on the second floor and then there's one
You said there's going to be one on the second floor and then there's one on the fifth floor.
on the fifth floor and you did show some renderings but like why don't you show your
renderings you get it yes are you are you able to see it hopefully in a minute okay
while we wait for daryl to get access what is the height of the railing on the fifth floor
That's one of the things I was interested in.
Can we bring Michelle on as well?
I think she
has raised her hand so she can be promoted.
They'll be coming back in shortly.
Usually with sex,
it's only supposed to be like four and a half feet.
And I'm not sure whether with children, what age children are these?
They are younger.
One to six.
One to six.
Oh, well, let's get the architect on.
Let's see what the architect is.
Hello.
Hi, could you please state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, Michelle Kleshek, M-I-C-H-E-L-L-E, Kleshek, K-L-E-S-C-H-I-C-K.
Do you swear to affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Did you hear the question?
I did.
Okay, why don't you proceed?
So on the sides, there is a note there near the bottom wall of the screen there, a 42-inch parapet along the neighboring wall with some screening above it to make sure the kids have no option of being able to climb up on it and jump off it or anything.
and then so that screening will be how high up it's uh yeah so about two feet above it
because the roof is we are playing we're planning on using the roof as it slopes like we're not
building a structure over top of it per se so there will be some slope to it so it's about
two feet above that um and then the front and the back would have screening at about five feet to
sure they're not getting out in the mechanical areas too close to the edges of the building okay
all right thank you all the questions
how about exhaust vents through the roof because i see the mechanicals are all of the
like anything that emits steam going to be relegated to the areas outside of the sort
of fenced programmed portion of the roof deck in in the setback the mechanicals in this in the
front of the property is that what you're concerned about i'm asking about anything that would pierce
that that has theme because they're not always necessarily co-located near the existing mechanical
equipment um and i see lots of circles on this plan so i'm just trying to determine
in are any of the gray circles exhaust events no the gray circles are uh planters planters okay
yeah to try also to help keep the kids from getting too close to the edges okay great and
and that includes that's why there's such a deep setback from the two from the two street frontages
and then my last question is i'm assuming for these uh for the greenhouse and for the pavilion
and that the pergola and the roof of the greenhouse
are not higher than the pilot houses
or the elevator penthouse
in terms of max height?
Yeah, there's heights on them.
They'd be about eight and a half feet for the pavilion
and about nine feet for the greenhouse.
There's heights for those,
but I don't see the height for the pilot house
or the penthouse, which is why I asked.
Oh, there's an elevation somewhere on that sheet
that has the overall heights.
hey any other questions from the board
questions from our attorney ryan mcshere
no chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
chair i have a hand up from paul bonnie i will promote them and they'll be coming back in shortly
good morning counsel
good morning mr chair members could you please state your name and spell for the
quartz stenographer tall bonnie b-o-n-i do you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth
and nothing but the truth yes i do please proceed counsel thank you uh good morning i uh represent
the society hill civic association which is listed as an affected rco and i wanted to indicate uh
and I wanted to indicate for the record and for the board that we have no objection
for the record and for the board that uh we have no objection
to this project. Thank you very much. Thank you, counsel. We appreciate it.
Anyone else in the virtual audience?
Planning Commission. We're going to hold this for a vote and maybe two weeks, right?
Do you want to take your position today? We'll hold as well. Thank you.
Okay, so we're going to do this 521 at 930 a.m. It's closed except for the revised plans and also we're planning to vote. Other than that, everything else is closed. Thank you very much.
Thank you.
Number one, MI 2023-002-415-1941, East Tioga Street.
Henry Clinton is the attorney.
Debbie Cummins, thank you.
That's a panelist short, Mr. Chair.
michael johns i'm here uh okay good morning michael again okay i shouldn't say morning again
morning mr chairman members of the board morning mr clinton could you please state your name and
spell for the court stenographer sure henry clinton h-e-n-r-y clinton c-l-i-n-t-o-n
you swear or affirm to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the truth
i do uh could you identify your client in relationship to the property
Sure. My client is Leo Pasholi, P-A-S-H-O-L-L-I, and he is the principal of the owner of the property.
And our vice shares a few questions, sir.
Good morning, counsel. Do you agree to wait the reading of the refusal or stipulate to its accuracy?
I do, Mr. Shahid.
Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits as needed to proceed with this case five days in advance of this hearing?
I have, and I think the community group sent in a letter recently, I hope. So yes to that.
Thank you, counsel.
Please proceed.
Is that visible, Mr. Chairman?
It is, sir.
All right.
Good morning again, everyone.
Just a little bit bigger.
That's all.
Better?
Yeah, we'll get through that.
That's good.
Good morning again, Mr. Chairman, members of the board. I'm here on behalf of Leo Pacioli, the owner of 1941 East Tioga Street. This request is for a legalization of a two family dwelling on a block that has several eight or nine multifamily properties on the block.
Table of Contents, A1 through A11.
Refusal, this is an RSA 5 zoning district.
Despite the existence of multifamily on the block, we still obviously got a refusal because
we also are proposing a two-family dwelling.
I understand, I was at the RCO meeting and I understand the vote was 10 to 2.
I don't know if Harry Gate's letter got to the board yet.
I didn't get one, but that's my understanding that there's one on its way or has come.
All right. So we we have not observed it yet. So, Henry, if you have a copy, could you send it to us?
Right. I don't. Mr. Chairman, I don't have it yet.
This is just you're saying it was 10 to 2 in favor.
That's the verbal that I got. All right. Thank you.
So from my client. OK, so this is an aerial photograph.
The subject property is four from the corner.
It's right here where my cursor is.
And I've placed red dots on the properties that are multifamily, and they're all two-family dwellings on the block.
And there's one that's been in place, a two-family dwelling, since 1947, three doors away.
This is just a view from the other angle, from a higher angle.
This is the front of the property.
There's already two mailboxes there.
and 1947, as I said, three doors down
is the one that's been there since 1947.
Interior of the property.
This is the rear yard.
Again, a close-up of the zoning posters
as well as the two mailboxes.
The plans, basically, this is the first floor,
560 square feet come in through the side to come in through the front door living dining area
you have the dimensions of the room uh bet one bathroom one bed so there are two
You have the dimensions of the room, one bathroom, one bed.
So there are two flats, one bedroom on the first floor, one bedroom on the second floor.
This is the second floor, again, living area in the front, closet, stairway to get up from the first floor, and one bedroom in the rear.
application, project information form,
tax clearance,
There's a notice we sent out letters to 187 individuals.
So before I get to the zoning records, just a little bit of background.
So this matter was originally scheduled in front of the board in November of 2023.
At that time, Harrogate was not inclined to support my client's application.
They wanted to hear from, I guess, more people on the block because the meeting then was not well attended.
They also wanted to see how my client's use of the property was going to progress throughout the year.
meeting where they're going to get complaints, where people upset, and having heard none,
we tried to schedule another meeting. We eventually had a meeting last week
where the community basically turned around their view of the project and have voted to support it.
I have the zoning records here indicating that the following properties,
according to the public records, are either two-family or a store and one family.