[MNC-list] Call to Action to Oppose a 8-story 165 unit Apartment Building at Shurs and Main

[Kevin Smith]

 IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUESTED
PLEASE WRITE YOUR LETTER TODAY OR ATTEND THE HEARING Thank you for your
letters in opposition to 4045-61 Main Street
Now it's time to do more! 

THE HEARING ON WEDNESDAY MARCH 19TH RAN LONG WITH THE APPLICANT'S
ATTORNEY CHEWING UP THE CLOCK AS USUAL AND THERE WASN'T TIME TO TAKE ALL
TESTIMONY.

THERE WILL BE _RESUMPTION_ HEARING WEDNESDAY, MAY 7TH AT 2:00 PM.

The ZBA hearing for 4045-61 MAIN STREET, THE LITTLEWOODS PROPERTY
started,as scheduled, on March 19th 

Because of the number of letters of support and opposition, it was
decided by the ZBA that, after an hour of testimony from the applicant's
attorney, the hearing would stop and then resume on May 7th at 2:00 PM. 

It was because of significant numbers of the community writing in or
signing on for the Zoom link that this decision was taken - so thank you
to those of you who took some action; it had an immediate impact. 

The hearing next week is called a resumption hearing and the attorney
will continue with his testimony and call on various consultants to
provide supporting testimony. After that, questions and comments from
the ZBA Board and then the public will be allowed. 

 WE NEED PEOPLE TO SIGN IN AGAIN ON THE ZBA HOME PAGE AND SPEAK [1],
HOWEVER, BRIEFLY ABOUT THE PROPOSAL AND ANY DETAILS FROM THE TESTIMONY.
AFTER RAISING YOUR VIRTUAL HAND, THE CHAIR, WILLIAM BERGMAN, WILL SWEAR
YOU IN AND ALLOW YOU TO SPEAK; YOU WILL BE HEARD BUT NOT SEEN ON THE
SCREEN. IF THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE, THE CHAIR WILL TRY TO LIMIT THE
TIME THAT YOU SPEAK AND TRY TO INSIST THAT YOU SAY SOMETHING DIFFERENT
FROM PREVIOUS SPEAKERS BUT DON'T BE FLUSTERED BY THIS - SAY EXACTLY WHAT
YOU WANT, AS SUCCINCTLY AS POSSIBLE. 

THE ZBA SESSION BEGINS AT 2:00 PM BUT THE MAIN STREET CASE MAY NOT BE
THE FIRST CASE TO BE CALLED. 

THE DEVELOPER HAS GONE DOOR TO DOOR ALONG MAIN STREET, ASKING FOR
SUPPORT FOR THE SCHEME SO WE NEED AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE TO REGISTER
SOME FORM OF OPPOSITION SO THAT THE ZBA BOARD KNOWS THAT THE SCHEME IS
NOT LIKED BY THE COMMUNITY BEYOND MAIN STREET. 

WE APPRECIATE ANY HELP THAT YOU CAN PROVIDE. 

Watch the recording of the March 19 hearing [2]. The 4045 Main Street
testimony begins at minute 22 on the recording. You can fast forward or
rewind as you please. 

THERE ARE THREE WAYS TO ATTEND THE HEARING. 

	* Remotely with ZOOM. register for the zoom hearing [1] to attend via
zoom. 

To register your appearance for this case enter address 4045-61 MAIN ST
in the address field at the bottom of the registration form. 
	* In person
1515 Arch St.
18th floor, Room 18-002
Philadelphia, PA 19102 
	* By Phone 
If you don't have a computer, tablet, or smartphone, you can join a
hearing on any telephone. You will be able to listen to the hearing. To
join by phone, dial (646) 876-9923. When prompted, enter the following
information: 

Webinar ID: 820 8829 2595
Password: 634842 

To be heard at the appropriate time, you'll be instructed to dial *9 to
use the "raise hand" function and *6 to unmute and mute yourself. 

IF YOU JOIN BY PHONE PLEASE REGISTER YOUR APPEARANCE FOR THIS CASE BY
CALLING (267) 270-5548 ON THE DAY OF THE HEARING. Leave a message with
your name, contact information, and the address or appeal number for
which you would like to register. 
	* Letters (a little late for that maybe) 

Zoning Board of Adjustment
1515 Arch St., 18th Floor, Room 18-006
Philadelphia, PA 19102 

THERE ARE THREE WAYS TO WRITE LETTERS TO THE ZBA. 

	* To write to the ZBA you will need several pieces of information 

Appeal number: ZP-2024-003395
Meeting ID: MI-2024-006733
Hearing data and time: MAY 7, 2025 AT 02:00 PM
Property Address: 4045-61 MAIN ST 

You can also find this information on the ZBA website [3]. 
	* A good old fashioned letter (probably late for that) 

Zoning Board of Adjustment
1515 Arch St., 18th Floor, Room 18-006
Philadelphia, PA 19102 	* Email to RCOZBA at phila.gov

	* 

 Submit your letter through the on-line document system. [4] 

THE RESUMPTION ZBA HEARING FOR 4045-61 MAIN ST. IS SCHEDULED FOR
WEDNESDAY, MAY 7TH, AT 2:00 PM. THE APPEAL IS TO ALLOW AN 8 STORY HIGH
RESIDENTIAL BUILDING ON THE CORNER OF MAIN STREET AND SHURS LANE. MNC
HAS VOTED AGAINST THIS PROPOSAL ,CONSIDERING IT TO BE AN OVER-SCALED
DEVELOPMENT.

Massing comparison of 4100 Main (directly opposite 4045 and one of the
taller buildings on Main Street within the Historic District) -vs-
proposed 4045-61 (4100 Main 53'x100'x42'; 4045 Main 100'x400'x82') 

The applicant, Urban Conversions, and the present owners, the
Littlewoods Family Trust, have been preparing this appeal for a long
time and have asked pretty much every business and property owner on
Main Street for their support in the form of letters and a petition. 

To counter that effort, we need as many people in the local community as
possible to write to the ZBA (or give testimony at the hearing) in
opposition to the development. 

 	* The hearing is Wednesday May 7th at 2:00 PM.
 	* The Zoning Appeal number is ZP-2024-003395 and the Meeting ID is
MI-2024-006733 Please reference these, along with the address, 4045-4061
MAIN STREET, if sending an email.
 	* PARTICIPATE IN A ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT (ZBA) HEARING. [5]
Instructions on how to attend the hearing in person, or virtually, how
to email documents, or how to submit them electronically.
 	* ZONING HEARING INFORMATION PAGE. [6]
 	* DIRECT LINK FOR DOCUMENT SUBMISSION. [4]
 	* Design drawings from the developer. [7]
 	* Our letter to the Zoning Board. [8]

Below is a list of comments which you might want to pick and choose from
to include as reasons for opposition: 

 	* The proposal is for a change of use from 'medium industrial' to
'mixed use' with 163 residential units (1 or 2 bedrooms) with 162
parking spaces.
 	* The height of the building is 82' while the height limit for this
area within the Manayunk Historic District is is only 38'.
 	* The property is the last (or first ) one at the eastern end the
Manayunk Historic District along Main Street which was created to
protect Manayunk's historic character.
 	* The majority of the property, including all the frontage along Main
St., sits within the floodplain.
 	* Because the building sits in the floodplain, it is allowed to exceed
the general 38' height limit and be just over 50' above the Main St.
sidewalk. At 82' high, the proposed building is over 30' higher than the
allowable height.
 	* The parking is arranged on 2 levels; the lower level, with spaces
for 99 cars, is arranged along the Main Street frontage, which will need
to be evacuated in a flood event. There is no detailed plan for where
these 99 displaced cars will go for weeks while the property is cleaned
and repaired.
 	* There is no commercial space in the building - even though it
includes almost 400' of Main St. frontage.
 	* The proposed building stretches from end to end of the almost 400'
long property. The maximum setback along the Main St. facade (which is
predominantly 82' high) is only 5', so the building will appear as an 8
story solid wall on Main Street.
 	* The adjacent proposed building at 11 Shurs Lane, which received ZBA
approval last year, is only 3 stories of newly-constructed residential
units above a 1st floor level of parking and a small commercial space.
That scheme, which includes a small existing building which will be
retained, is, demonstrably, commercially viable as it proceeds through
design. By comparison, 4045 Main Street is double the height of that
building. There is no economic hardship argument that justifies that
this building needs to be 3 stories higher to be viable.
 	* As an alternative, a building with significantly less residential
units would need less parking spaces and could be significantly lower.
Providing a terrace at the 2nd floor level above the flood elevation
along Shurs Lane would provide public access and reduce the impact of
the mass of the building at this prominent intersection.

If anyone needs further information of has questions, please let us
know. -- 
Kevin Smith, President, Manayunk Neighborhood Council.
(p)215-487-2125  (f)215-487-3812
http://www.manayunkcouncil.org 

Links:
------
[1]
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0YCr-8pyQ-W_4o0Fc57Bsg#/registration
[2]
https://dpd-public-meetings.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/ZBA/ZBA_March192025.mp4
[3]
https://li.phila.gov/zba-appeals-calendar/appeal?from=5-2-2025&to=7-2-2025&region=all&keyword=4045&Id=ZP-2024-003395
[4]
https://redevelopmentauthority.quickbase.com/db/bsp2by6kc/form?a=API_GenAddRecordForm&_fid_38=MI-2024-006733&ifv=1&page=1
[5]
https://www.phila.gov/services/zoning-planning-development/participate-in-a-zoning-board-of-adjustment-hearing/
[6]
https://li.phila.gov/zba-appeals-calendar/appeal?from=3-16-2025&to=5-16-2025&region=all&Id=ZP-2024-003395
[7]
https://www.phila.gov/media/20250218122726/4045-61-Main-Street_2nd-Review_March-4.pdf
[8]
file:///s/www/mnc/zoning/main-4045-4061/2025-03-14-main-4045-65-mnc-zba-rco-appeal-ZP-2024-003395-MI-2024-006733.pdf
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