So this application is for use as a visitor accommodation in existing structure.
The proposed use visitor accommodation is prohibited in the RSA 5 zoning district.
Our vice chair has just a few questions for you.
And I will note that there's a letter of support from Point Breeze Community Development Coalition.
And you also have a petition.
Good afternoon, sir.
Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that is needed to proceed with this case five days in advance to this hearing?
Yes, I did.
Thank you.
please proceed and share your screen give me one second and i will note too you also have
your own petition that approximately 13 neighbors have signed that is correct okay you're coming up
proceed all right all right so i'm just showing um the first denial from the
for the permit
I'm just going to kind of scroll through all this
scroll through that because we have all that sir
I would get to the photos
I wanted to show
you said you had the
petition also
we have a copy
the petition came in
let me get to the photos then
and tell us what you want to do
yeah so um we've been airbnb and while i'm bringing the rest up i'm just going to kind of
talk um we've been airbnb in this for about the last year and a half um no issues we never had
any problems um so just trying to repurpose the property um and it's you know one of the main
one of our main sources of um income it's a single family home yes sir okay
just show us the photos all right
i'm gonna write up
so first i'm going to show the photo of i lost my
so this is the that's your posting yep it's the front of the property
with the posting okay um what is it else you want to see like the photos inside the place too
i do want to just show us a couple photos of what it looks like inside okay and you've been doing
this for a year and a half yeah about a year and a half and point breeze was voted five two in your
favor correct i'm trying to find the email where i have the photos at okay take your time
and the neighbors that you have are some live on the block they all it's all on on uh neighbors
that live on the block okay yeah my my grandparents actually live 21 23 which is the house you know
directly in front of directly in front of us.
I'm just I'm having a little trouble finding the.
All right.
So you did show us a picture of the front of the house.
That's correct.
And when I sent the documents in five days before, I included photos of the inside also.
OK, good.
All right.
Thank you.
Questions from the board.
No, Mr. Chairman.
No, Mr. Chairman.
No, Chair.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Not at this time, Mr. Chair.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
No, hands, Chair.
Questions or comments from the Planning Commission?
Ready to testify?
Yes, please.
Okay. The property is indicated for residential use on the city plan. Our adopted district plan
recommends no change to existing zoning at this location. There's no unique physical circumstances
or condition of the property that would be prevented from being used in conformity with
the zoning code. City Planning Commission recommends that the board deny the proposed
use variants for visitor accommodation. Thank you. MI 2023-006-284-2114 Reed Street.
I vote yes for a temporary variance that will expire 3-21-27.
Thomas Holloman, my vote is yes with proviso. James, now my vote is, oh, I'm sorry. No,
my fault, James. Sorry. James Snell, my vote is yes
with proviso. Yes, my vote is yes with proviso.
Thank you. You have your vote, sir. Thank you, sir.
Okay. Number eight, MI
2023-006275-2501
South 11th Street. Zen Jin is the attorney.
Um, Lower Moimensing Civic Association did not reach an agreement in this case.
The vote was two in support, three in opposition.
Council Member Squilla is leaving this up to the zoning board to make this decision.
Mr. Zen Jin.
Yes, good afternoon.
Good. For the record, could you please state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Yes, my name is Zen Jin, Z-H-E-N-J-I-N, 1617 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Suite 1838, Philadelphia EPA 19103, here on behalf of the applicant.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
Could you identify your client, the relationship to the property?
Yes, my client is Ms. Yang, Y-A-N-G, Xiaoli, X-I-A-O-L-I.
She should be here in the audience, and she's the owner of the property.
Okay, and our vice chair has just a few questions.
Good afternoon, counsel.
Do you agree to weigh the reading of the refusal or stipulate to its accuracy?
Have you emailed in all the required documents and exhibits that is 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'm going to share with the board what was previously submitted.
the exhibits. Can the board see the exhibits on my screen?
Yes. Thank you. So this is an application for a use of an existing property as a duplex.
I'm sorry, I'm going to jump to the refusal first. So this is zoned in the CMX1 district.
The property was previously used as a law office and a single-family dwelling.
And at some time in the past, some time ago, it was converted to a two-family.
My client actually purchased the property just in the last year.
It was purchased with the thought that it was a two-family dwelling.
When they went to get rental license, of course, it shows that it is a single-family with an office on the first floor,
a commercial type use. So when we went before the RCO, one thing that the RCO and people attending
did acknowledge is that the property has been in this kind of a condition of two family for some
time, well before my client acquired the property. Whether that was ever converted legally, that
doesn't seem to be the case since the city search still comes back as a law office and
a single residence above. The reason they did not reach an agreement partly is because the
RCO board generally has reservations about any conversion within their area, and that's always
been my experience with this particular RCO. As you can see, there's also non-opposition and
support from some of the board members, as everybody do understand that this has been
in this two-family youth situation for quite some time.
Now, the photos also verify that this property was always separated.
always separated. The history of the property as an office and a single family above actually goes
The history of the property as an office and a single family.
back quite some time. This is the corner property. The first floor and the second floor are two
separate units. While the first floor might have been used as an office, it certainly is now set up
as a single family. As you can see, it is not a new renovation. This has been in this condition
for some time, and it was actually acquired by my client in this particular condition.
So at this point, we are really here before the board to legalize this use, to avoid having
to be forced to essentially convert the first floor back to an office, try to rent it, and
then figure out whether that's a feasible use, and then if not, come back to the board
again to ask for the residential use.
Again, this has been in this format for quite some time, and the neighbors mostly acknowledged
that when we went to the presentation.
And that is the primary reason we're asking for the board's consideration to allow what is an existing condition to, although it is nonconforming, to continue and be legalized as a legal condition.
I'm happy to.
Why don't you bring your client on and adopt your testimony, okay?
I'm going to stop sharing it for now.
Ms. Yang, can you raise your hand virtually to be identified?
I don't know if she's...
Yeah, she's there.
Personal last name Yang is allowed to speak.
Hi, could you please state...
Hi, could you state your name
is spelled for the court stenographer?
Hi, my name is Sally Yan.
First name X-I-A-O-L-I,
last name Yan, Y-A-N-G.
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.
Ms. Yang, did you see my presentation and hear my testimony before the zoning board?
Yes, I did.
Can you verify what I have stated is true and correct and adopt it as your own testimony?
Thank you.
Questions from the board?
No, Chair.
Questions or comments from our attorney, Hillary Emerson?
Not at this time, Mr. Chair.
Questions or comments from the virtual audience?
No hands, Chair.
Planning Commission.
Ron Bednar, City Planning.
The property is currently indicated for commercial mixed use on the city plan, given the documented use history of the site.
We recommend that the request of variance be granted.
Thank you.
MI 2023-006275-2501 South 11th Street.
I vote yes.
James Snell, my vote is yes.
Ishmael Shaheed, my vote is yes.
Counselor, you have your votes.
That's three votes.
Thank you.
Have a good evening.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
We're going to go back to, here it is.
Mr. Garrick, MI2023-006332-1227 West Hyoga Street.
Benjamin Garrick has been promoted.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
We're here.
We're here.
Hi, could you put your video on so we can see?
This is the whole stop thing.
i said the whole stop we're trying to turn it on it says you can't start your video because
the host has stopped it i'll start my video now okay all right all right so mr garrick
can we put it on now
here we go can you see it okay all right so mr garrick you're the one that's going to have to
testify okay okay so first tell us what you're doing okay um my mom and my dad this house been
in the family for a long time my father passed away my mom had it but it was a two two family
household it's been registered since i was born so once my father passed away it went to my mother
and it was so i guess the taxes were so high so she switched it to a single then my mom passed
so I inherited the property
so I was trying to
reinstate it back as it
originally was
is there something
you can show that it was always a duplex
it should be
It should be in the fire. It should be in the city.