What are the procedures, if any, to ascertain the health impact of new development on neighborhoods and sensitive populations?

How should the Planning Commission , local community groups or ZBA respond when negative health impact due to development activity occurs?

How do the Planning Commission, ZBA and CDC's safeguard neighborhoods from negative health impact of development activity, especially in regard to sensitive populations?

Mind being more specific?

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Site at corner of Sydney and Devon in East Mt Airy near Sedgwick Station R7 was changed to residential from industrial at some point. Where would the record of this be located?

Zoning application to ZBA was submitted by Henry Clinton from Eckert, Seamons, Cherin and Mellott

Henry Clinton lists "coal bins" as former use of site though research and records show much more extensive industrial use that was omitted from zoning application.

Interesting that William (Bill ) Ewing also has association with
Eckert, Seamons, Cherin and Mellot.

Ewing is also on the board of ACLU, Philadelphia Center for Public Justice and gives money to NIM ( Neighborhood Interfaith Movement that supports Environmental Justice.

Ewing has also served on the ZBA and very active with East Mt Airy Zoning. He lives in the neighborhood and yet the environmental health problems created by the project that Eckert, Seamons, Cherin and Mellott promoted have never been
rectified.

As the person made ill by these hazards, I can say that my civil rights have been violated over and over again and those organizations that supposedly serve to protect civil rights and take care of environmental l injustices have denied me access their help.

Also ALL city agencies, state and federal agencies have denied me access to help and protection and all of the above have protected and covered up the health hazards and harm that has been done.

My home is surrounded on two sides by site under development
that is sandwiched between the SEPTA R7 line at the Sedgwick station.

This former vacant lot was an industrial site sine 1876 .It was a on ramp for the railroad and then a large coal yard for many decades. The Trains would stop and dump coal in the brick coal bins. There was a gasoline station for the coal trucks and records of one underground gasoline tank leaking.

After the coal era it was the site of a masonary company and a site for a contractor's business and automotive storage/ work. A neighbor used to work at the contractor's yard when he was a teen and reported daily illegal dumping of oils and fluids directly into the ground behind my house.

The zoning application to build town homes on the site only stated former use as vacant coal bins. Yet researched showed much greater environmental contamination.

After they were granted zoning, they received violations from the Water Department for contaminated soil, Violations against Clean Streams Act and more.

This project put me in the ER or hospital treatment 3x and I'm still ill because of the exposure of contaminated dust and chemical vapors released during demolition and excavation.

My house is directly adjacent to this project. The City never told me of the dangers that I would be exposed to nor protected me.

It would seem to me, that the City would concern itself on the health effects of a project before they allowed it.

Also that the city would have a responsibility for the re- zoning of and industrial site to residential to make sure the site was environmentally clean and ascertain health hazards to near by neighbors.

A "sensitive population" is any population like children elderly or those with existing health problems or sensitivities that might be more adversely affected by these exposures.

In this case, a contaminated industrial site was allowed to go forward to build residential without any safeguard of health hazards for nearby neighbor and even when I was displaced from my home for ten months due to illness and by doctor's orders, the city did nothing to safeguard or protect.

It seems to be this "zoning" is illegal in the first place and the local politicians and lawyers friends of politicians have done a lot of work to cover up this fact in spite of the fact that "Environmental Justice" is the big political platform these days.

My civil rights have been violated over and over again in this fiasco.

My Council Woman Donna Reed Miller put her stamp of approval on this project as did the Planning Commission and ZBA.

I figure they have some kind of responsibility to make sure a project is not going to harm the neighbor or cause health problems.

There must be some kind of protocol that ZBA and Planning and City Council must use to insure environmental hazards do not cause harm and protect adjacent neighbors.

When did this piece of land get changed from Industrial to Residential and how was that possible without any environmental clean up required? Some clean was done, but only AFTER the harm was done and violations cited and the harmful exposures were hidden from the neighbors.

I don't think any of this was done legally. One attorney said "only in Philadelphia". Any other place, this project would have been permanently shut done.

I have a long paper trail. I'm the poster child of BAD Planning and Bad Zoning and Bad Councilmanic Zoning influence and Bad decisions and cover ups by some of the most VIP DEMOCRATS in the City.

I am a democrat but wrong is wrong.

You had to ask .... as though Mad's 1000 other threads on the same topic weren't enough.

__________________
---Shosh

I don't get any help
and I'm still ill.
and it could happen to anybody.

This city seems to think its okay to hurt their citizens like this.
I don't think its okay and I'm tired of paying the price for others mistakes.

I assume there are requirements to do soil testing. I would look into the test results that were submitted. Also, if you have the papertrail that you say you do, I would speak to the press and find a lawyer.

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I'm in this Village. My house is in this Village. I guess some villagers have rights and protections and others don't.

Repeated requests from me and my doctor failed to get a response on soil. I'm not the only one that smelled the chemical vapors. Air Management can never find dust here even though it gets over everybody's cars and is clearly visible on many many days.

The press doesn't respond. Local press hides the story away even though I gave them copies of the violations and photos.

I want to know about the Zoning. When did it get changed from industrial to residential?