in their bathrooms there so we will uh change the existing bathrooms and make it kids friendly
So I guess the most important thing I want to press, you know, to point this out is that, you know, there are certain regulations that the state puts on child care facilities of this sort.
So you can and those and by the way, there there's inspections of by the state as well on a yearly basis.
So if the you know, if your needs change, you have to change with it, your physical building to make sure you comply with those state regulations.
is that correct yes the requirements are one toilet per 15 kids so if talking about 50 kids
so we need for uh the most and we are planning to do even more than this
other questions on the board yes the play area
outside outside we can have two play areas dedicated for uh the daycare
but did this what i saw was first it's uh the one in the rear is elevated and it looked like
it was
it didn't look like grass or anything
like that it looked like
some kind of gravel
or something
what are you going to do
about making sure that
the play areas are
safe for
the children
the two play areas are on both
sides of the building and they are not
elevated there is the grass area
maybe why don't you bring up the photos yeah yeah those photos please yeah i do and we are going to
change areas and make it kids safe with rubber squares avoid any incidents or any injuries
so obviously it's not going to stay the way it is right now we are going to uh
um to do full landscaping and change those areas into kids uh uh safe place to play okay i just
want to shoot from the floor plan perspective in the site plan this this is the play area here and
this is a player here is that correct no no one player is on the left side and the other one is
on the right okay so we got here and here right okay i apologize and then let's just get to the
pictures because i think that will say a lot so i think it's a better picture let's see so here's
the one area and i think again but you're yeah i'm talking about okay okay that's one of the areas
correct? That's right. We are going to put a fence to protect the kids and to cover the play
area and the play areas where we're inside this space up that building that you see on the right
there's one play area so and the kids are their own schedule when they can use the playground
so one group go at a time and there is another place and now this is this area
is also going to be landscaped into our play space this safe and like rubber
squares that will be able to play there okay and there's going to be fencing
around that too yes yes absolutely and i do believe in correct me if i'm wrong i see it from
here but let me just see what i thought i saw there is a fence but yeah it's a fence here it's hard to
there is a fence but yeah it's a fence here it's hard to see but you're gonna have a much nicer
fence yes we would like to replace it yes and it could be private too i guess the concern i have
is that a lot of the things that we're discussing about are things that are that could be depending
on the design of it outlawed in the rsa5 district and without seeing a plan for what it would go
back in is this just going to have to keep coming back to this board to get this daycare up and
running because right now we're only improving use but like for example in our rsa5 district
you can only have a four foot fence the fence that's currently there is bigger if she were
to replace that fence with the same size fence she would get another variance so she would need
another variance so and like there's no signing we haven't talked about signage these are all
things that in RSA 5 are very heavily restricted and like should we look at everything all at once
with a plan well so typically with businesses can I say something else about the fencing
um if you I mean I'm not the one who would say but um you would probably want to have a
an offense that is one where it's partially opaque so that folks can't watch these kids or
maybe do something to these kids because they can see them through this
of fencing, and that's going to take some approvals as well.
And again, my concern, too, is about the ground.
I'm not so sure whether just putting those rubber squares is going to be enough to protect
these children.
Well, so again, with the state regulations and the regulatory agencies, again, a lot
of times this board sees, you know, uses that, you know, they approve, you know, the follow-through
is sometimes tough. Here, there are certain regulations that go even beyond zoning for
safety reasons and such. So, I definitely think you have that added protection as a board to know
that there are regulatory agencies from the state that are going to look at this, not just the day
it opens, but they look at this every single year. So, you know, IRENA will be held accountable for
this. As far as the signage, that's a lot of times we, you know, because there's a whole process
that's, you know, a little bit more intense with the signage. We, you know, our client,
Irina wants to open up for business, right? She bought this property some time ago. She's gone
through this process. It's a lengthy process. It gets either lengthier when you add signage to the
equation. So, you know, that's something that she's going to deal with, you know, and she's
willing to piecemeal that portion of it in terms of the fencing. You know, we think that there's,
you know, we can work with the fencing that we have currently. And if we have to come back for
that, that's what she's going to do. I mean, you know, but she was really looking forward to
opening up this business. And she's, like I said, she's been in operation as a manager of these type
of facilities for almost a generation. And she's looking forward to opening up her own. And I think
the community as well. I mean, I don't know if anyone, you know, represented from the communities
here, but, you know, they spoke very highly of this project. Is the dumpster site staying the
same? Nope. That's not, that's not, that's an older photo, but no, it's not. It's going to be,
the trash is going to be stored on the property.
This used to be a banquet hall, but we talked through that with the community.
so that is that's not part of her properly now i know what a dumpster was in that picture
no it's just that's on the public street okay all right thank you but we we probably all agree
at some point out you have to come back if you want a new fence we may have to come back for
the fence we'll we'll see what we can do here possibly signage as well um but you know we'll
go again it's she made a humongous event investment in this building it's going to
take some time to even get this building in the condition that's respectful you know respectful
to those children so um you know she's looking to spend almost probably a hundred thousand dollars
just in improvements in this interior in this property so any other questions from the board
what's the comments from our attorney
not at this time mr chair questions or comments from the virtual audience
there are no hands planning commission this is ron bednar city planning while this property is
there are no hands
planning commission
this is ron bednar
currently indicated for residential on the city plan given the physical circumstances of the site
it's documented use history we recommend request for parents be granted
mi 2024 004 343 3405 welshry i vote yes
cheryl gaston
i'm gonna know
it's not a gram my vote is yes i own my vote is yes
okay so what we're gonna have to do with this is alan we'll uh have our other members not here
view it online
Mr. Chair
it's fine we have a quorum
it's a three to one vote
it's a final vote
thank you
Alan you have your votes
thank you very much have a great day
is there anyone else in the
virtual audience whose two o'clock
case has not been heard
yes I have a
Frank Turner with a hand up and will be
allowed to speak
Hi, sir. Could you please state your name and spell for the court stenographer?
Frank Turner, you are allowed to speak. Okay. I've unmuted myself. Thank you.
My name is Frank Turner, spelled F-R-A-N-K-T-U-R-N-E-R, as it is on the screen.
Today, I represent ESPAN Trust, spelled E-S-P-A-N-T-R-U-S-T, who's the owner of 5231 Greenway Avenue, who I believe has a must-be-heard.
Hillary, didn't we continue this?
Yes, Mr. Chair, we called this case earlier and there was no response.
Mr. Turner, I called this earlier and you didn't answer.
My apologies. I had a little trouble getting into the Zoom meeting for the first maybe two minutes.
It'll be four minutes.
Are you ready to go with this?
Yes, sir.
Yes, Chairman.
MI 2024, 000899, 5231 Greenway Avenue.
Mr. Turner is the counsel.
Could you spell your name for the court sonographer, please?
Certainly.
Again, it's Frank Turner, F-R-A-N-K, last name Turner, T-U-R-N-E-R.
Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth?
Yes, I do.
Identify your client, please, in relationship to this property.
My client is East Band Trust, and they're the owner of the property.
Mr. Ranparik should be...
Mr. Chair, Mr. Chair, the only problem with moving forward right now is because we already continued the case.
If there were any members of the public who were here to hear this case, they no longer would be here.
because we continued it a good probably hour and a half ago i see my 2024 000 899
5231 greenway avenue this case is continued and we'll be in touch there and for for clarity i
apologize was it continued at the beginning of the meeting just after two o'clock
yes okay thank you thank you anyone else in the virtual audience
there are no hands chair all right we're going to come back uh in five minutes and we'll we'll
we'll handle the uh 330 list okay take everybody take a five minute break all right thanks
Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Bill Bergman, and I will be chairing this afternoon's EBA hearing.
With me is our board member, Cheryl L. Gaston.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
Our board member, Tanetta Graham.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
Our board member, Taya Nguyen.
Present, Mr. Chairman.
Also, here is our attorney, Hillary Emerson, and our deputy director for planning and zoning, Kathleen Grady.
Here's our virtual format.
The proceedings are being recorded. With your participation, you agree to be recorded. The video will be available by contacting email zbaexecutivedirector, all one word, at phila.gov. That's zbaexecutivedirector, all one word, at phila.gov.
For our court stenographer, we ask attorneys and witnesses to identify themselves before testifying.
For our court stenographer, we ask attorneys and witnesses to identify themselves before a testimony.
If you are participating by phone, press star 9 to raise your hand and star 6 to unmute.
To enter an appearance statement, call 267-270-5548.
Leave your email address and the address of the property in question.
And finally, the question box on the screen is not for comments or testimony.
All comments should be directed to our Deputy Director of Planning and Zoning, Kathleen Grady.
Let's look at our schedule.
Number one, MI 2024-002-432-739 Tyson Avenue, this case has been continued.
Are there any other requests for continuances?
I see no hands, Chair.
Okay. Case number five, MI 2024-002-704-225 West Seymour Street. No exhibits, first listing. Sean Ward is the attorney.
there are uh hold on chair
um i don't see sean words hand up i do have allison weiss with a hand up
shall i allow her to speak
Allison Weiss has been allowed to speak
Yes, thank you
Allison Weiss
A-L-L-I-S-O-N-W-E-I-S-S
Solo Germantown Civic Association
Affected RCO
You swear or affirm
To tell the truth, the whole truth
And nothing but the truth
So I've called 225 West Seymour Street
There is an attorney listed
He has not answered
We do not have any exhibits
yes uh for 225 and 227 west seymour street there has been no rco community meeting there has
so that would be the reason okay thank you very much weiss for bringing that to our attention
we appreciate it mr ward is there mr ward in the audience at all
no he is not so number five mi 2024 002 704 225 west seymour street and number eight
mi 2024 002 714 227 west seymour street we have no exhibits this is the first listing
Both cases are continued. Mark must be heard. Thank you.
We're going to start here with number two.
Number two, MI 2024-002-512-2104 North A Street.
Vern Anastasio is the attorney.
Vern Anastasio is coming back in as a panelist.
Afternoon, Mr. Chair.
Counsel, you've already been sworn a few times today.
Could you just state your name for the record?
Yes, sir.
Vern Anastasio, A-N-A-S-T-A-S-I-O, on behalf of the owner.
Could you identify who your client is, Mr. Anastasio?