La Milagrosa was a center for the Catholic Hispanic community for roughly a century at 1903 Spring Garden St. before it closed its doors back in the summer of 2013. At the time, we weren't sure what would ultimately happen to the building but we speculated that it would be sold to a developer and converted into apartments. Demolition seemed like a remote possibility, as the building is located inside the Spring Garden Historic District.
By August, a developer had come forward to buy the property, paying $750K. Within a year, they came before the ZBA with a plan to convert the building into a 7-unit apartment building with four parking spaces in the rear. The variances were granted and we're fairly certain that the building has been renovated and is now occupied. So… what's with the zoning notice on the front door?
It turns out the variance was appealed by a neighbor on 19th Street whose property sits on the other side of tiny Monterey Street. First the ZBA ruling was appealed to the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas where it was upheld. Then it went on to the PA Commonwealth Court, which found (in a lengthy and incredibly wonky decision) that the ZBA erred, and now the project has to go back to the ZBA, roughly three years after it was first presented. Hence, the zoning notice.
Thankfully for the developer, the issue is not the use of the building, as the property is zoned multi-family and is permitted to hold 7 units by right. Nope, it's the parking in the back that's causing all the trouble. The neighbors assert that any cars pulling out of the parking space behind 1903 Spring Garden St. pull onto their sidewalk, causing damage over time. Reading through the wonky legal decision, it does appear that the ZBA erred in the reason for granting the variance. That being said, we can imagine a scenario at which this project comes back to the ZBA and gets approved all over again but with different reasoning, despite the three years of litigation.
If you're a huge zoning nerd, we'd suggest coming out to the ZBA hearing on March 22nd where it's sure to get both nitty and gritty into the depths of the code. Uh, see you there?