identify yourself with the record, spell your name, and provide us with your address.
Hello, my name is Karen Javaruski. My last name is spelled J-A-V as in Victor, A-R-U-S-K-I.
I am here to represent our FNA, Fishtown Neighbors Association. I'm a board member and also on the
zoning committee of the organization we're going to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but the
truth yes sir thank you ma'am please proceed okay so um we did have a large community meeting and we
Okay, so we did have a large community meeting, and we have listened to our neighbors regarding their concerns for the property.
And I just want to lay this out kind of in layman's terms and in practical terms.
So there are some safety logistical and parking related issues that we think are are presented by by way of the density.
If you were to look a little further up the street on Girard, it's a pretty this is a pretty busy street.
Just up the block, we have Aramingo and Girard coming together. So, you know, there's somewhat of a safety issue there at this time. And then as you move on to Berks, Berks becomes a one-way street.
So there is some concern about there not being parking here to accommodate for the additional density.
If you were also to look a little further up Berks, the diagram would show you that there is a property similar to this that's being built.
it's it does not contain residents at this time and it also does not have parking at this time
okay have you concluded yes okay thank you thank you anyone else would like to testify
Mr. Chair, there is someone
by the name of Beer City
with their hand raised
if you wish I may allow them to speak
Yes, please
Hi, sir, your name, full name
My name is Javed Hashim
H-A-S-H-I-M
And swear and affirm
to tell the truth, the whole truth
nothing but the truth
Yes. Your affiliation with this? I am the tenant at the at the plaza right now.
OK, please proceed. All right. I want to thank ZBA for giving me this opportunity to speak today.
I am Beer City, a beloved business in the neighborhood. Beer City has been serving this community for 23 years.
while I have been serving this great community for seven years.
Beer City loves their community and wants to continue to serve them,
but this project is destroying cherished businesses
which provide jobs and necessary services to the surrounding community.
This will create a displacement of the businesses in the plaza.
The businesses are adversely impacted by the variants
as a developer has no hardship to justify the variances.
We have a petition signed by 731 community members
who are opposing the project and still counting.
And the RCO FNA opposes the project
along with Councilman Mark Squilla.
He also opposes the project.
the proposal the proposal is also an overuse of the lot as it is within 600 feet of interstate 95
or i-95 the height of the project is too high which will substantially impair an adequate
supply of light and air to adjacent conforming properties the high density of the project will
substantially increase congestion in the public streets. Let me interrupt if I could. Sure. You
run the beer distributor. Do you live in a neighborhood? No. So all those things that
you're pointing out just now will not impact you personally, correct? Other than the loss of your
business, which I don't minimize, but other than that, you will not be impacted. The community
will be impacted. No, no. You have to speak for yourself. Right. Okay. All right. Okay. I'm not
being flipped with you i'm just saying you would not be impacted other than the loss of your
business which i can appreciate the height and the density will not impact you personally because
you don't live in the neighborhood correct right anyone else would like to testify in this case
please raise your hand mr chair i have a john scott with his hand raised good afternoon mr scott
Good afternoon, Mr. Scott. Please identify yourself with the record.
Please identify yourself with the record.
Because he was like you.
Hi, can you hear me?
Yes, please identify yourself with the record name and address.
Yes, thank you. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman. John Scott, 456 Moyer Street.
You're wearing a firm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
moyer street is what just north of gerard it is one block north unless there's a flora street yes
but i'm actually a block to the southwest as well thank you this is the 700 block i'm on the front
block um thank you again uh so i do want to make a couple of kind of technical points here
I was at the F&A meeting, of course. The F&A is the coordinating RCO on this project. And I want
to point out for the record that the Fishtown bid, while they are also an RCO, they don't
represent the residents. They only represent the businesses. So that is maybe why there's
some disagreement there between the F&A's opposition and the bid's support. And I wanted
to make that point clear. I'm familiar with that. Thank you. Okay, good. Thank you. The other thing
I want to point out, I think Karen mentioned it, but this particular block is not really a well
walked area of the neighborhood because of its proximity to I-95. And this building likely won't
change that. We do have some commercial space nearby there that's brand new and it is still
vacant. And I don't think that this building really makes that block any more walkable because
it is right off the highway. It is very loud. You know, there's a lot of traffic right there
to begin with. I want to point out that the neighbors overwhelmingly support the existing
businesses. A lot of our neighbors work there. A lot of our neighbors shop there. You know,
we were kind of ridiculed for it being beer and donuts, but that is, you know, those are
functioning businesses. They've been there a long time. And I agree that there's not really a
hardship. If those businesses are functioning, they don't need to be torn down and replaced
with something that may be vacant for a while. So it is very important to the neighbors to have
those businesses there. We don't consider it to be an underutilized site. We consider it to be,
you know, a perfectly functioning site. It has parking, which, you know, every now and then
people drive to the Dunkin' Donuts. So we don't consider it to be underutilized in its current
form. And we do consider the proposed project to be an overutilization. Notwithstanding that
some of it may be by right, the project as proposed is overutilizing that location.
So I do want to, like I said, I want to reiterate that the neighborhood was overwhelmingly
opposed to the removal of this business and the overuse of this site thank you i understand i
appreciate it but just my two cents there's no guarantee that those businesses will stay
i mean businesses change all the time yes we're not going to be able to guarantee that those
businesses regardless of this project or any other project that may get presented that those
businesses will remain unless unless the beer the beer distributor guy bought the place then
And obviously he can stay there as long as he wants, but there's no, again, there's no guarantees, but thank you anyway.
Thank you for your testimony.
Anyone else?
Mr. Chair, I have a Vanice Whitaker with her hand raised.
If you wish, I can allow her to speak at the time.
Yes, Ms. Whitaker, please identify yourself, spell your last name, and I would appreciate if there's something new and different.
Name and address, please.
Sorry.
This is Denise Whitaker, 1468 East Will Street, Citizen Planner for the Fishtown area.
Ms. Whitaker, could you spell your first and last name, please?
I'm sorry, yes. It's like Denise with a V, V-E-N-I-S-E, last name Whitaker, 1-T-W-H-I-T-A-K-E-R.
You swear and affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
And I interrupted you.
Please explain who you are.
Sorry.
Besides a resident of Fishtown, I'm a citizen planner.
I'm going to make this short and brief.
I support everything that John Scott had said.
I further on, I stand in unity with Beer City.
It is a longstanding business of color that has been there through the toughest times and the best of times in Fishtown.
Developers, when they're putting new construction in sight, they can make arrangements with existing businesses in our neighborhoods.
instead of driving them out, which normally happens.
instead of driving them out, which normally happens.
So there could be an arrangement made with beer.
So there could be an arrangement made with your city
to make sure he stays in existence
and continues to support the neighborhood.
That's all I got.
Thank you very much.
I concur with your statement,
but that's a decision between the developer,
obviously, and the tenant.
If they can come to an agreement, that's fine,
but that's really not for us at the zoning board.
But we appreciate your testimony.
No, I know, but it kind of just should impact
in some ways that, you know,
So I understand from your decision-making, it can't be.
I just wish that we had developers
that actually wanted to develop in the neighborhoods
and not just come in and come out.
So I just feel bad for this business.
I really do.
But thank you for the time.
Understood.
All right.
Anyone else?
Something new and different.
There are no further hands at this time, Mr. Chairman.
Since there's no one else,
um mr feibusch does have uh 20 seconds to discuss exactly what's been raised about beer city
and i think it highly pertinent to uh to the comments that have been raised okay be extremely
brief thank you mr feibusch are you back on if you can hear me yes yes tremendous thank you so
i have an agreement of sale to purchase the property uh it was presented to me as it was
to be a vacant property. And I've obviously been caught a little bit off guard, both at the
community meeting and here in front of the zoning board with respect to the tenant that desires to
stay. I've been given different information. I'm happy to stipulate under oath here that I would
give your city the first opportunity to lease the space. I'm happy to accept that as a proviso if
it's an appropriate forum. But certainly if there's, I don't have a tenant in mind for the location.
We're designing a space that we hope can accommodate the most robust use here.
But I'd love an opportunity with a tenant that might be interested and viable in the space.
And we're some ways away there, but I'd certainly not only be open to it, but would embrace the notion that I may have a tenant that both the neighborhood supports and that can do well here at this location.
I thank you for that. And I think that's a good gesture, obviously.
see. Were you, when you were, the purchase of this was based on, you said you thought it was
all vacant? Mr. Chairman. The leases are running out, I assume. I have not, I have not purchased
it yet. I'm under contract to purchase it, but that was communicated to me. Yes, sir. Okay.
All right. But I can't, we appreciate the offer and your sensitivity to the community.
I don't believe it's anything that's enforceable though, through the zoning board.
thank you but we do appreciate that and i know you're a developer and you probably want to do
more business up there at some point so it's it's good to create those relationships all right
planning commission uh ron bednar city planning while this property is currently indicated for
commercial use on a city plan additional multi-family residential along this quarter
supports one of our major comprehensive plan goals of directing new mixed use development
to locations that have close proximity
to multimodal transportation facilities.
Project did complete the CDR process
and therefore we support the granting of the variance.
Thank you.
Sean, I got him a little bit later.
Were there any revised plans?
No revised plans, Chairman.
Okay, thank you.
MI 2020-003385, 701 East Gerrard Avenue.
My vote is yes.
my vote is yes my vote is yes my vote is yes my vote is yes okay thank you it is now 4 30
we're uh we'll come back for the beginning the 3 30 list in 15 minutes we'll be back
you'll give everyone a few minutes
and i believe we should be good to go sir they're all here
thank you good afternoon everyone my name is Frank DiCicco I'm the chair of the zoning board
of adjustment I'll be participating in today's hearing along with our vice chair Ms. Carol
Tenere board secretary confessor plaza and board members Mr. Thomas Holloman and Mr. James Snell
board administrator Mr. Jason Hand and our board attorney Ms. Rebecca Cole are also in attendance
For those of you who haven't yet participated in one of our virtual hearings, I'll go through
some of the basics of what you can expect.
First, we will be administering oaths to individual participants prior to their testimony.
Second, we'd like to advise everyone that this proceeding is being recorded and that
by participating, you acknowledge your agreement to be recorded, and this recording will be
And this recording will be available to the public on the web or otherwise.
available to the public on the web or otherwise.
Third, for anyone participating by phone, if you wish to testify, you must raise your hand by hitting star nine and then star six to unmute yourself.
I'll repeat. For anyone participating by phone, if you wish to testify, you must raise your hand by hitting star nine and then star six to unmute yourself.
Finally, to enter an appearance statement, call Google 267-270-5548 and leave your email address and the address of the property at issue. I'll repeat that also.
To enter an appearance statement, call Google 267-270-5548 and leave your email address and the address of the property at issue.
and i'd like to remind everyone please do not attempt to testify in the chat
all comments should be directed to our board administrator mr jason hand
with that i will read off the list of the continuances on the 330 hearing list number one
mi 2020-002744 1507 spring garden street number two on our list