If the producers of C-SPAN and the Real Housewives franchise created a reality show about local politics, Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E would be the pitch. Monday’s episode featured Metropolitan Police Department Lt. John Hedgecock flattering fake ID craftsmen and a spirited defense of the Nation’s Triathalon. Of course, drunken students and Philly P’s also made appearances.

I wanted to look up crime statistics, but my laptop was stolen

Crime is down 10 percent from last year, according to Hedgecock. (And yes, that includes the recent thefts on and off campus.) Although there have been six more street robberies, the number of burglaries has decreased.

Lame-duck Commissioner Aaron Golds (COL ’11) asked Hedgecock about the recent crime wave around campus, specifically mentioning last week’s attempted abduction of a student. Hedgecock’s response referenced similar crime waves at American University and Catholic University.

“We are examining them to see if there is any link,” he said.

An audience member also asked Hedgecock about police action against drunkenness and public disorderliness. Inconsistent enforcement, Hedgecock said, makes it difficult to crack down on certain problems, such as under-age drinking.

“These fake IDs, they are really good,” Hedgecock said.

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Yesterday, the Georgetown Dish broke the news that the D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs granted Philadelphia Pizza Company a new certificate of occupancy in late September.

In an email to the Dish, DRCA Director Linda Argo confirmed the ranch-and-pizza hawker’s phoenix-like revival.

“The owners have altered the interior of the property and replaced the cooking oven with a ventless oven to be used to warm sandwiches and other food.  The owners have also removed the rooftop vent [and the] Certificate of Occupancy…was issued by DCRA on September 22, 2010,” Argo wrote.

In August, Philly P’s owner Mehmet Kocak filed for the certificate after he began to renovate the restaurant’s Potomac Street location. Kocak plans to reopen Philly P’s as a prepared food shop.

Georgetown residents are not pleased with the decision.

“We’re not happy. Nobody understands this ruling. The timing of it . . . it’s strange. It makes no sense,” ANC Comissioner Bill Starrels told the Dish.

If I were a betting blogger, I’d say that the city probably won’t let Mehmet Kocak reopen Philly Pizza. Call it superstition, but when your entire neighborhood is organized against you, the mayor’s attorney compares you to a brothel, and Mayor Adrian Fenty himself shows up at your store’s fresh grave to dance on it, that spells death for your chances of making it in Georgetown.

But Kocak isn’t so easily phased, and this week, he continued his bid to get a new Certificate of Occupancy from the Department of Consumer Regulatory Affairs—the same department that shuttered the same storefront back in March of this year. The Georgetown Dish reports that he went before the DCRA to make his case earlier this week. And while they’re light on the details, it’s clear from the attendance at that hearing—DCRA Director Linda Argo, a lawyer from Attorney General Peter Nickles‘s office, ANC Commissioner Bill Starrels, and the residents who fought to shut him down and their lawyer, Marty Sullivan—that Kocak is going to be under a lot of scrutiny.

Sullivan says that they already have reason to worry if Kocak does reopen Philly Pizza, or some other store at the Potomac Street location. While he’s advertising his new store concept as a prepared food shop, akin to Subway, Commissioner Starrels said that Kocak has also applied to operate a 500-degree-plus oven—for pizza.

“I don’t think [Kocak] has earned any credibility,” Starrels told the Voice in July. “I hope that Peter Nickles will do everything in the law and his power to protect my constituents from having to suffer under these people again and from this place reopening.”

I’m going to go look up the Vegas odds, but I’m guessing they’re not in Philly Pizza’s favor.

Yesterday, we cataloged the health violations of four Georgetown-area food establishments that had been pegged as “high-risk” by the Health and Regulations Licensing Administration within the last year or so—Leo’s, Epicurean & Co., The Tombs, and Bangkok Bistro.

Today, we’re running an accounting of the nine remaining restaurants whose two most recent food establishment inspection reports we acquired through a February Freedom of Information Act request. 

We found that Wisey’s, the Starbucks and the Cosi in the Leavey Center, Booey’s, Tuscany Cafe, the former Philly Pizza, and Midnight Mug were listed on at least one report as “medium-risk” establishments, mostly due to non-critical violations. Only two establishments, Vital Vittles and Hoya Snaxa, were never listed as risky establishments.

In total, they garnered 9 critical and 16 non-critical violations. Again, six critical violations that cannot be corrected on site result in the closure of the restaurant. Owners are usually given five days to rectify critical violations and 45  for non-critical violations or they risk closure.

COSI

An August inspection of the Cosi in the Leavey Center found three critical violations. The establishment was cited for needing to clean food contact surfaces and its “warewashing, sanitizing, frequency methods.”

“Resurface, clean, and sanitize cutting boards” for sandwich preparation areas and other cutting boards, the report said. “Adjust hot water on hand sinks in rear and prep area so [temperatures] reach 110 degrees; repair hot water gauge on dish machine.”

An inspection five days later confirmed that Cosi had corrected all of the violations, and a notice it had been given after the previous report was abated.

TUSCANY CAFE

An August inspection found that Tuscany Cafe had one critical and two non-critical violation. Several food storage units were missing thermometers, many food items were not labeled and dated, and employees were cited for personal cleanliness, although the only written note about employees was that they were seen not wearing either hats or hair restraints when handling food. The establishment was given five and 45 days’ notice to make corrections.

A subsequent inspection 20 days later found no violations and abated the five and 45 days’ notices, but still listed Tuscany as a medium-risk establishment, which is not uncommon for an inspection following up on a notice to correct violations.

The Corp, Wisey’s, and how gross Philly Pizza was, after the jump!

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Having successfully completed a months-long campaign to shutter Philly Pizza, today, neighborhood residents and community leaders received an additional surprise: a visit from Mayor Adrian Fenty, who drove up to the restaurant’s former home in his Smart Car just after 11 a.m.to make brief remarks about the closing of this drunk food hot spot.

“They did a fantastic job, didn’t they?” Fenty said as he shook hands with neighbors gathered to hear him speak, in reference to Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners’ efforts to shut down Philly Pizza after the city had revoked its license to operate.

Flanked by Attorney General Peter Nickles and Department of Consumer Regulatory Affairs Director Linda Argo, his podium positioned near where tipsy Georgetown students used to sit on the curb to enjoy their pizza with ranch dressing, Fenty congratulated ANC Commissioners Bill Starrels and Ed Solomon for their work to “shut down a nuisance business causing havoc in the community.”

He likened Philly Pizza’s closure to other illegal businesses that the City has targeted, like used car lots and nightclubs. Later, in his remarks, Nickles volunteered brothels and used car lots that the City had closed as a comparison.

“We listened to our Georgetown residents and it was clear this business was not being a good neighbor,” Fenty said.

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Today saw the end of a long campaign to shut down Philly Pizza’s location on Potomac Street, which has been operating illegally since its license was revoked in mid-February. Its doors closed last night, and today, they remain shut.

After a February 19 Board of Zoning Adjustment ruling that barred its continued operation and a subsequent order to vacate the premises failed to shutter the late night drunk food joint, Philly Pizza got taken to D.C. Superior Court, where a two day hearing that concluded this afternoon ordered the establishment to remain closed, or else find itself in contempt of the court.

Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Vice-Chair Bill Starrels said that as a result of the ruling, at today’s hearing, Philly Pizza agreed to remain closed. An e-mail from D.C. Office of Attorney General’s Michael Stern that Starrels provided to Vox reiterated the hearing’s success at shutting down the pizza joint for good:

“I am pleased to report that after a hearing for most of the day yesterday, when we returned to Court this morning Mr. Greenberg, the attorney for Philly Pizza & Grill, Inc., conceded our point to the Court and voluntarily agreed to close the establishment. We reduced that agreement to writing, and made it an Order of the Court.”

Well, almost certainly for good. Starrels said that Philly Pizza owner Mehmet Kocak has filed with the D.C. Department of Consumer Regulatory Affairs for a new certificate of occupancy.

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Looks like that’s it, Philly Pizza fans. On Friday, the fast-food favorite was issued a ‘notice to discontinue illegal use of premises,’ pictured after the jump, in accordance with the BZA decision made on Tuesday to shut the establishment down.

The notice informs the owners that “Philly Pizza must immediately cease operations at 1211 Potomac Street NW, upon service of this Notice. If DCRA determines that Philly Pizza is continuing, after service of the Notice, to operate at these premises, DCRA will request that the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia seek emergency injunctive relief in the D.C. Superior Court, on or after February 22, 2010.”

Thanks to Topher Mathews of Georgetown Metropolitan for sending us the doc!

“Comments of the Week” will run tomorrow

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A bureaucratic decision made at about 9:15 this evening may well be the end the Philly Pizza on Potomac Street. The District Board of Zoning Adjustment has just upheld the decision made by the D.C. Department of Consumer Regulatory Affairs to revoke its certificate of occupancy because it was operating as a fast food restaurant but was not zoned to do so.

“Basically, they will have to close that location as soon as the City decides to enforce the decision,” Student Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Aaron Golds (COL ’11) said. Golds said it is unclear when the City will do so, but, “it could be as soon as tomorrow.”

Matt Kocak, the owner of Philly Pizza, said that he was not sure if he would appeal the BZA’s decision.

“I don’t know yet,” he said. “The door is open.”

The final vote by the board was unanimous, with all five members voting to reject Philly Pizza’s request to repeal the decision of Matthew LeGrant, the District Zoning Administrator, to revoke their certificate of occupancy. Although residents who lived near Philly Pizza gave testimony about the crowds and noise the establishment drew, the board members said that the question that had to be resolved was whether Philly Pizza was acting as a fast-food establishment or a restaurant.

Today’s hearing was the second session of Philly Pizza’s appeal of the DCRA’s decision, which the DCRA made on October 19. An over-seven-hours affair, groups who were opposed to Philly Pizza’s continued operation used today to make their case against reversing DCRA’s decision. (At the first hearing, Philly Pizza’s owners and legal representation argued that they were operating as a sit-down restaurant, not a carry-out establishment.)

Terrell Hill, an investigator with the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs who visited Philly Pizza three times undercover early this school year, testified that on his first visit he only observed one person besides himself actually sitting and eating in the restaurant. Everyone else who came into Philly Pizza ordered food, paid for it, and left, he said. When he was shown around the establishment by the owner on a fourth visit where he announced himself as an inspector, it became clear that Philly Pizza was not using non-disposable table ware, a requirement for a restaurant.

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Monday night’s marathon Advisory Neighborhood Commission meeting was one of the most contentious in recent memory, with most of the meetings devoted to a controversial Department of Parks and Recreation agreement with the private Maret School for developing a new artificial surface and pool at Jelleff Field, located on 3625 S Street NW.

But first, other orders of business: Apart from the controversial Jelleff Field matter, the ANC passed a resolution expressing its support for renewing a five-year moratorium on liquor licenses in Georgetown, meaning no new liquor stores will open in the neighborhood.

The Commissioners also briefly reflected on Philly Pizza and Grill, noting in passing that they expect it “to be taken care of” on February 9, when the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment convenes to make a decision about Philly P’s appeal of the revocation of its license, which Philly Pizza very well may lose.

Georgetown is also set to lose three stoplights. After a successful experiment to see if a four-way stop would be as effective as a stoplight in controlling traffic using blinking red lights, the Department of Transportation will replace those stoplights—at 33rd and Q Street, 34th and Q Street, and 34th and Reservoir—with stop signs.

Jelleff Field: In what appears to be an increasing hallmark of the Fenty administration, the DPR agreement was characterized by its utter lack of transparency, occurring with neither competitive bidding nor community input.

Just two weeks ago, Mayor Adrian Fenty (D) disclosed in a press conference that the deal with the Maret School would grant the private institution exclusive use of the new field from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on weekday afternoon for the next two ten years. In exchange, the Maret School will be installing a $2.5 million upgrade to the facilities.

The agreement had slipped entirely under the radar of the ANC, so the tension was palpable as representatives from several community organizations took the floor before an unusually packed audience.

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A six-plus hour hearing to decide the fate of Philly Pizza & Grill?  Repeated explanations of the difference between fast-food establishments and restaurants? Arguments about silverware and dishwashing techniques?

All this has happened before, and all this will happen again.

Here’s the abridged version of the hearing held yesterday by the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustments to determine whether Philly P was in violation of its certificate of occupancy and should be closed: those in charge pretty much decided nothing. Time ran out shortly after John Patrick Brown Jr., Philly Pizza’s legal representative, and owner Mehmet Kocak closed their argument. The BZA will convene again to make a decision about the appeal on February 9. In the meantime, Philly P’s will stay open under the conditions of the Stay of Enforcement passed back in November.

The BZA hearing revolved around Kocak’s appeal of the Zoning Regulator’s decision to revoke his business’s Certificate of Occupancy. Kocak sat with his attorney, Brown, armed with photos, non-disposable plates, and desperate words for clemency, all to demonstrate that his restaurant was a sit-down and not take-out affair.

“I have put a lot of time and energy into making sure that people of all ages and nationality can enjoy my restaurant … Nobody told me I was doing anything wrong … I don’t want to burn my bridges,” Kocak said.

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