August 21, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Play Café clears the DRC
by JOEL HOFFMANN

Treehouse Play Café developer Sanjiv Jain has cleared another hurdle despite increasing opposition to the project.

Jain wants to demolish the existing building at 8524-26 Germantown Ave. to make way for a three-story structure that will cover 100 percent of the lot. He will ultimately need a zoning variance from the city to proceed.

The Chestnut Hill Community Association’s Development Review Committee voted 5-0 in support of the Café moving to the CHCA Board of Directors meeting on Aug. 28 with a positive recommendation — as long as six conditions are satisfied.

First, Jain must go to building and business owners who will likely be affected by construction in the alley behind the even-numbered side of the 8500 block of Germantown Avenue (the side of the Avenue the property is on) and get as many of them to endorse the project as possible.

Second, the Land Use, Planning and Zoning Committee must “iron out” lingering design issues for the project with the Chestnut Hill Historical Society and advise Jain as to their final preferences.

Third, Jain must agree to meet with the DRC if he decides to make any major changes to the project.

Fourth, the Chestnut Hill Parking Foundation must certify that it will rent Jain 15 or more parking spaces for storage and staging during construction.

Fifth, Jain must agree to meet with the appropriate CHCA subcommittees to discuss signage and interior and exterior lighting for the building.

Finally, Jain must agree to follow Germantown Avenue Urban Design guidelines.

Jain said he would fully cooperate with the DRC.

Suzanne O’Neill represented the Chestnut Hill Zoning Preservation Coalition at the meeting. The group sent a letter to the LUPZ last week expressing its opposition to the Play Café.

O’Neill said that Jain’s agreement with Andrew and Bruce Glendenning guaranteeing use of the alley during construction was only a draft and had no legal standing. She said that Jain had implied it was a binding contract that represented all of the affected neighbors.

Andrew Glendenning confirmed that he had thought the agreement was only a draft. He seemed perplexed by Jain’s presentation.

Still, Jain pressed the board for approval.

“This is the most passionate outcry from the community ever since I’ve been here for a project,” he said. “They live here. They have kids here. This is what they want.”

Jain said the CHCA subcommittees seemed to be getting lost in the details and emphasized that the Play Café would bring more business to the Avenue from a prime target market: stay-at-home mothers and children under 10.

“This solves a lot of the demands of the community,” he said. “This solves a lot of the hurts of the businesses here.”

Jean McCoubrey recused herself from the vote because she said her husband’s brother was providing free services to Jain for the project and could later benefit financially.

Bill Washburn was sworn in as a voting member of the DRC in her place.

Joanne Dhody voted affirmative despite having abstained from voting at an Aesthetics Committee meeting held before the DRC meeting, according to committee member Ron Recko.

The Aesthetics Committee voted 4-0 against supporting zoning variances Jain has requested for the project, Recko said, adding he was baffled that Dhody would vote affirmatively when she had abstained from the vote because she said she did not feel informed enough to vote.

In a follow-up interview, Dhody said she had thought it was premature for the Aesthetics Committee to vote on variances because building design issues had not been finalized.

Dhody said she voted at the DRC meeting because she believed it was reasonable to vote there given the conditions attached to the motion.  The plans have been stuck in the LUPZ for a year, she said, and she thought it was time to consider building aesthetics in more depth.