A hearing for the 4001 Walnut St. Fresh Grocer to discuss health inspection results will be held this Tuesday, March 30.
A pre-court inspection at the store will occur prior to the hearing. However, the date of the inspection will not be released to the public, according to Divisional Deputy City Solicitor Ann Pasquariello.
“The prosecuting lawyer and the sanitarian will discuss the results of the pre-court inspection, and decide where to go from there,” Pasquariello said.
According to Pasquariello, “the city’s health department requested that the law department sue this establishment.” The city originally filed a complaint against Fresh Grocer on Oct. 21, citing health inspection results from Jan. 23, 2008; Apr. 1, 2008; Sept. 11, 2008 and Jul. 9, 2009.
On Feb. 16, an inspection of the store by the Office of Food Protection at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health revealed multiple violations of Philadelphia health code.
Among other violations, the report cited “mouse feces observed on floor in chip area, under freezer cases in water area, on jello and noodle shelving all in retail area.”
The next day, Fresh Grocer agreed before a city judge to temporarily close rather than proceed with the full hearing scheduled that day.
Fresh Grocer store managers initially attributed the store’s closing, which lasted into the afternoon of Feb. 18, to refrigeration problems that precipitated electrical malfunctions. However, on Feb. 21, Philadelphia Public Health spokesman Jeff Moran said a court order shut down the store.
Carly Spross, corporate spokeswoman for Fresh Grocer, said Feb. 22 that the order to close down the store came from the CEO of Fresh Grocer and claimed reports of a court order forcing the store’s closure were “entirely inaccurate.”
In an e-mail the same day, Spross wrote that Executive Vice President of Fresh Grocer Grant McLoughlin confirmed concurrent refrigeration issues, “which is why one of [Fresh Grocer’s] associates relayed that information upon questioning pertaining to the store’s voluntary closure.”
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