City Cites Fresh Grocer for Rodents 

by Jim Foster

Editor

Local resident Laverne Williams went shopping at one of Fresh Grocer’s newest stores on August 18th.  Imagine her surprise when walking down one of the aisles a rat makes a dash in front of her apparently on his way to the next meal.  It has been nearly a month since she reported the incident to the store management at Chew and Wister Streets, and has yet to receive satisfactory responses as to what the store and its senior executives are going to do to show her what steps have been taken to remedy the problem.

They admitted they had a “mice problem” on the spot, and they insisted she did not know the   difference between the two. Ms, Williams assured them she did and wanted an explanation and from someone above the assistant store manager she was directed to that day.  Taking her complaint to the Fresh Grocer corporate offices has brought a series of unreturned phone calls, postponements and finally broken appointments to meet at the store site with a Vice President for a walk-though with explanations of what new steps have been implemented with assurances they are taking it seriously. Frustrated, she contacted the Health Department where she was told that the city already knew they had a rodent problem there and had cited them for it previously.

The 9th District inspectors told her that it was supposed to be scheduled for a re-inspection in 30-45 days but no indication that had taken place. After reviewing reports supplied by the City Health Department it was learned that the first complaint for the Chew Avenue store was received in June and the inspection revealed rodent droppings, among eight other other non-compliance categories. A re-inspection on July 31st found the rodent dropping situation not corrected, and two other sanitary issues still out of compliance. It should be noted that Ms. Williams experience was on August 18th, after the second inspection.  The summary statement on the June 21st report says: “This inspection has revealed that the establishment is not in satisfactory compliance and that current management practices have allowed unacceptable public health or food safety conditions.”  The notes on the July 31st inspection report state: “Risk Factors.”

A call to LaSalle University which had participated in the shopping complex known as The Shoppes at LaSalle apparently brought a follow up call from Vice President Ross Del Romano who had broken previous appointments with the statement “What do want from us?”

As Ms. Williams explained to me what she wants is what most of Germantown, and now Mt. Airy, wants from Pat Burns’ Fresh Grocer organization, and that is honest and responsible communication with the community that has brought millions of dollars to their door while they brush off the public and the community at every turn in the same cavalier and condescending manner they have with regard to the new project they have started at Chelten and Pulaski.

It may be time to put the numbers on the table for all to know.  It is definitely time for the elected officials in this city and state to take a serious look at what they are protecting by keeping silent about the deal they made in the dark, and how Burns’ organizations are planning what would be another example of community profiteering with a “public be damned” attitude.

Burns Fresh Grocer corporations have opened 7 Fresh Grocer stores in the last several years and did so under programs that brought them hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer funded grants under programs that claimed that only with massive public funding would quality and nutritious food be brought to urban neighborhoods in clean well maintained surroundings.

Subject to upward revision, reportedly Burns entities have received $500 million in such grants with promises to the communities that fills pages on their website with glowing rhetoric and photographs of store interiors including one of Burns showing First Lady Michele Obama the Progress Plaza store.

To quote from their Mission Statement: “The Fresh Grocer is committed to understanding the needs, tastes, and heritages of the communities in which our stores are located, and makes it a priority to offer an assortment of products and services to meet those various needs.  The Fresh Grocer is committed to improving food access and to promoting the health and wellness of our customers and communities”

If that rat were an isolated incident one might be somewhat understanding and forgiving, but it is not only the Chew Avenue store that has been cited for rodent infestation. A larger version of that issue required city legal action last year at their 40th and Walnut Street store in University City. It seems that rodent problems and other citations went on so long, and there were multiple deadlines for compliance that went unresolved, that the City Law Department had to shut down the store.  For three days “corrections” were made while the Fresh Grocer told the community it had “electrical refrigeration problems.”

  The Daily Pennsylvania newspaper reported that was a cover story for the rodent problem.  The intervening of the Law Department and closures of that type are rare and only in the most serious of cases.  A request with the Health Department for inspection records brought recent ones for four of the five city stores.  All of these stores had violations that had not yet been corrected and three cited “Risk Factors” and one a pending court hearing. The Health Department is holding confidential its recent report on the 5601 Chestnut Street store under its “30 day rule,” but admitted it has violations. Considering the circumstances, the public is entitled to know what level of compliance and responsibility one might expect as the Burns’entities break new frontiers in our neighborhood.

At press time Fresh Grocer had failed again to call Ms. Williams on an appointed date to set up a store inspection for the Chew Avenue location. 

At this juncture two of our Northwest elected officials have come forward in support of the community efforts to put a stop to what are considered unjustified building permits and violations of the Germantown District Zoning Overlay which prohibits any more Dollar Stores. They would be State Representative Rosita Youngblood and Senator Shirley Kitchen, in whose districts the site is located.  That hearing is to be held at the Zoning Board of Adjustment on September 21.  In addition there is specific evidence that Mr. Burns’ company did not properly comply with some of the essential requirements for the $4 million in new state grant money he expects to be receiving in October.  This request was rushed through in the waning hours of the Rendell Administration along with a number of others that are being scrutinized by the new administration.

As of this moment we know that five of the five city Fresh Grocers have had or still have rodent infestation or are out of compliance for other reasons, and one took a city legal shutdown to correct. There may be more to learn.

If half a billion dollars that does not have to be repaid cannot buy a community honest communication and safe well-maintained rodent-free grocery stores what can? 

Maybe those elected officials from the Mayor on down would care to tell us.