with regard to the project yes was the information i provided true and accurate to the best of your
knowledge yes and with that would you adopt what i had testified to the board about as your own
testimony yes and if you could take two minutes because i know the board has a busy agenda uh
Just introduce yourself and and about any anything in addition you want to add about the project in the area.
Good morning, everybody. My name is Andre.
I am I recently became a block captain in the neighborhood and very vocal point of the neighborhood as I host multiple cleanups.
also partnered up with a church
in Germantown Avenue
to pretty much have
a bunch of younger teens,
boys and girls, to offer them
free gym memberships
that the church has added
across their gym.
And also,
I became
close to
a lot of the
council members
put out
a bunch of legal businesses and things of that nature that's around the neighborhood that
provide local housing and also an office business because I noticed one of the things that's missing
in the neighborhood is a place where people to print paper, get any type of documents for
shipping, et cetera. And also, again, local low income housing with a little bit of luxury to it.
thank you um council before i give it to uh the board for questions could you put the drawings back
up sure questions from the board uh yes uh more a comment probably than a question uh it's clear
more a comment probably than a question uh it's clear that the um the first floor is based on the
drawings is probably eight inches above grade um and which means that the basement dwelling unit
will literally be 100 submerged below grade that is a real concern for me
Light and air
Quality of space
Is a huge concern
I realize you have the two
Means you have an egress well in the rear
And egress well in the front
But the entire unit
Will be underground
Literally underground
That is a huge concern
For me
I echo that sentiment
My question is for the
business on the commercial level is where's the storage is there storage for the commercial
uh no it won't be no uh storage it'll be closets uh like many closets they can have
but it won't be anything to storage and also a backyard use
so but there is no indicator of what type of business that you're you're uh looking to have
there yeah just uh just an office space uh really uh just somewhere they can sell office supplies and
access to print and paper, things of that nature.
And I guess my last question is, just in terms of, you know, the use of the building with
the four units plus the commercial, I'm trying to think, I know that's a commercial strip,
just the, you know, the impact of all this activity going on in this one building.
The building next to it, you said, is that your building as well?
Other questions from the board?
Andrew, just walk me through this as I look at the plan.
So the basement is a separate apartment, and then the first and the second floor are the combined commercial unit, and then the third floor.
I think it was the first floor is the commercial, right?
Am I correct?
And second and third are apartments.
Yeah, so the lower level is a two-bedroom dwelling, and above that will be the commercial floor, which will have its own interests for the commercial.
And the next level up will be a two-bedroom apartment, and the top floor will be a two-bedroom apartment.
Got it. So this is really a four-unit building with a commercial unit?
Correct.
okay and then is there a reason if i'm looking at the the second floor for the two one bedroom units
um are they both full kitchens because one of them is labeled as a kitchen and one of them is
labeled as a kitchenette i just want i mean it is a lot smaller like not a lot but it is smaller
than the kitchen but what's the what's the thought process around the difference between those two
units? So the same thing with the property next door, it'd be mirrored as a full kitchen
with all the appliances and everything that's needed. A very comfortable space also with an
added bar on the layout. I wish I can show you a video. I do have a video of the other property.
But yeah, it's a full kitchen for it. And that'll be for the nurses that'll be there.
That's how I'll be able to make it a low-income housing for the other units
because I have a relationship with the nurses where they'll be staying for a higher rent.
And like I said, a lot of the units will be the lower rent.
And then which ones are you anticipating are going to be the affordable housing units?
The two-bedroom apartments.
The one in the basement and the one on the third floor?
Correct.
So the second floor, the two one-bedroom units are really specific to the nurses.
Correct.
And then what's your plan long term should at some point in time this agreement with the nurses end?
Unless the hospital shut down, you know, it goes on.
There's no end of date.
There's no end of date. And how long have you been operating your other unit with nurses?
About a year and a half now.
A year and a half. OK.
My concern is that you've now got a second floor apartment that should you ever sell the building or should travel nurses be less popular than they were?
They've been more popular since COVID.
You have two units that don't really convert really well to functional full time living one bedroom apartments without some changes.
And so I think that from a plan, like from a from a building use and plan perspective.
From a building use and plan perspective, my concern is future flexibility if approved.
You have a lot of density and a lot of different uses in this building that would make it really hard in the future to convert.
Well, I definitely don't plan to sell at all, but if so, we could definitely...
Nobody does, you know?
Nobody does.
That's how real estate works.
i definitely understand so oh can i respond to the problem is that okay go ahead so i was just
saying as far as that uh converting the units uh well currently the units are all full kitchen they
all have separate bedroom full kitchen and a bathroom so uh being as though that you know it
has all the uh equipment that it needs to be a little bit of space uh there will be no
uncomfortability is actually it'll be set up like almost like a loft uh type of unit so it'll be
more than comfortable for uh a single parent or because even the nurses that come now they
normally come with either a pet or a dog or the child and it's more than enough space uh for them
to live there because of the full kitchen full bathroom um and again a nice size bedroom um
That's, you know, they can fit a queen size bed. And so that's one of the units, because your other unit is really more like a studio or an efficiency.
It's efficiency. Yeah. Yeah. So and again, it'll be a full kitchen on the other one as well.
Full bare form and also the bedroom. And the unit that we're looking at right now that currently doesn't have one drawn.
Say it again. I'm sorry. In the you saying on the second floor unit right now in the front, that that is a full one bedroom,
because right now that is shown and drawn as an efficiency yes it's a it's a full one bedroom
where's the other room going to go bedroom right you said you i'm sorry you said the other room
in the front of the building you have an efficient apartment there's a living sleeping area and then
there's the kitchen and then there's the bathroom and then if you go into the hallway and you go
into the other unit there's a kitchenette as listed on the plan there's an open space and
And then there's a living, a living, sleeping space.
What I see right now is a studio, a one bedroom apartment, which you are designating for the nurses, a retail space and two, two bedroom apartments, which you are designating as affordable.
OK, I just wanted to confirm all these.
Any other questions from the board?
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Just briefly, Mr. Chair, I think this is probably a question for Mr. Hainsworth. Do you currently have a contract with PHA to provide affordable units at this property?
Yes, for the existing building next door. It's actually a PHA residence on a bottom floor, lower level. And on the top floor, I have a partnership with the homeless shelter. And it's a resident there with her.
but for this particular property have you made arrangements with pha to offer affordable units
yes at this time you have a question behind you actually yeah my the reason for my question is
whether board member shaheed should recuse himself in this matter he's not here he's not here oh he
you say you have a contract with PHA what type of do you have a HAP contract with PHA do you have
a project-based voucher contract with PHA or you just you completed their section 8 course and you
are allowed to right to section 8 so I so I currently have a voucher that I have a PHA I
currently have a pha resident inside the the neighboring property so you also you have a
you have a voucher or your tenant has a voucher yeah they're different different things
i apologize the tenant has a voucher right right so they are they that still makes this a private
building that is allowed to rent to section 8 tenant this is not a project that would have a
contract with pha it just means that you are approved pre-approved by pha to accept vouchers
which is very different than having a like formal contract you can end that at any time
you can end that next month if you wanted to so i mean it is like of course it's a good thing like
we need more section 8 landlords in philly but that is different than having a contract with
We need more Section 8 landlords in Philly, but that is different than having a contract with PHA.
Ms. Wynn, I think Mr. Hainsworth would agree.
I'm sorry.
Go ahead, Andre.
Counsel, please proceed.
Sorry, Mr. Chair.
What I was going to say is that I would think Mr. Hainsworth would agree as a proviso, Ms. Wynn, to this application that he would do what is necessary to ensure that the two units for the basement and the third floor would be affordable, either through a contract with PHA or as a condition of approval, so to speak.
So PHA doesn't typically do contracts like that. So it's actually a question for Hillary. It's like, what, if that is what we're trying to do, I don't know that that can be restricted in a proviso. I think it could, like right now it's sort of a goal. The goal is to have these be affordable, but there's no long-term affordability restriction that's sort of restricting the units to that use.
they could flip any any point if it's just section eight i feel like that has been the like the case
for the use has been that like we need these actually that's the case for the hardship right
now right and and you're right and i think the other thing that we could consider you know if
was inclined is is as i do with um you know we do similar applications with the impact group and we
those types of lots are deed restricted for affordable housing so that's also another
possibility for that because I think Mr. Hainsworth is committed to that for purposes of
those units and the way this is designed and wants it to mirror what he's done next door
and because he's a member of this community he believes it's obviously as important as everybody
else that these opportunities be provided so that's how is the trash going to be collected
with all of this activity in the building Andre do we still have you I don't know if I still have
Mr. Hainsworth, but I know his connection was a little off. But in the rear, we do have a rear
yard. So we were going to designate an area for individual trash containers and then out front
on trash days. That's also the use for the commercial trash too, right? Or the commercial
storage as well? It'll be, we're going to designate an area for all the units to be able to use that.
You know, as we were saying, we don't really anticipate that the commercial use will be
something that would generate that type of stuff
because it's going to be more office oriented
we will make sure we can address
a sufficient area in the rear
to allow everybody
but there's no way for everybody to get to the rear
that's the problem
you're landlocked
I don't know if that's the case
I'm here now
you got some building next door
and you're parking
there's no breeze
the question came up on the trash
yes so it's actually uh it's actually going to be a a private uh trash company that's going to
it's going to be a dumpster in the back of the building and on the hilton street exit like it's
uh the intersection of block is germantown and hilton on the hilton street is a pathway to go
in the alleyway that the trash company will come and empty out the trash it will not be the trash
will not be located in the front of the building it'll be a private dumpster in the back of the
building, there'll be access to both buildings.
So how do the tenants and the units get to the trash?
So they go, they go to the Hilton, uh, the Hilton act is a, like I said,
the intersection of Germantown Hilton, it's a, it's a walkway path, uh,
that goes on the back of the, the back of the building.
And that's where they would insert the trash.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
i see no hands share any commission
morning chairman to the board my name is michael gall i'm still at the city planning commission
m-i-c-h-a-e-l-g-a-l-l you swear or firm to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth
i do please proceed thank you the comprehensive plan recommends a change in zoning at this location
from CMX2, commercial mixed use, to ICMX, industrial and commercial mixed use. The appellant has
demonstrated that the impacts of a multifamily mixed use proposal would not be detrimental or
out of character to the neighboring community and would be in character with the dense multifamily
and mixed use nature of the Germantown Avenue commercial corridor. But the inclusion of four
units represents an overbuilt to this location given its zoning and location. There is no unique
physical condition or circumstance, which would prevent the property from being used in conformance
with the zoning code, which already allows two units and a commercial space by right.
The City Planning Commission recommends that the board deny the proposed dimensional variances