The Fresh Grocer at 40th and Walnut streets was found to be in compliance with Philadelphia health code at a hearing Tuesday morning.
The hearing followed a pre-court health inspection on March 26. The inspection’s complete results will not be made public until 30 days after the inspection, but Deputy City Solicitor Ann Pasquariello confirmed that “no significant risk factors were found.”
Fresh Grocer is “in compliance, which is what we wanted,” said Pasquariello, who represented the city of Philadelphia at the hearing. “We are concerned with the life, welfare and safety of people and work often with the Department of Licenses” toward those ends, she explained.
“I’m glad that Fresh Grocer is moving in the right direction,” said College sophomore Ben Moskowitz in reaction to the news. “But I wish they had been more honest about their closing from the beginning.”
At Tuesday’s hearing, Fresh Grocer was ordered to pay court costs to date, and another hearing was scheduled for June 22. According to Pasquariello, if another pre-court inspection before that date finds the store in compliance, the city will drop its case.
“With food establishments, compliance must be shown for two consecutive hearings. We like to see sustained compliance,” Pasquariello said.
In the afternoon of Feb. 17, Fresh Grocer shut down for the first time since its opening in 2001. An assistant store manager initially said the store’s closure was due to refrigeration and electrical malfunctions.
On Feb. 21, Philadelphia Department of Public Health spokesman Jeff Moran said the store closed following an order from the Common Pleas Court of Philadelphia. Fresh Grocer corporate spokeswoman Carly Spross called reports of a court order “entirely inaccurate” the next day, and said the store’s closure was voluntary.
Pasquariello later confirmed ongoing litigation against the 4001 Walnut St. Fresh Grocer and a court-accepted agreement to temporarily close following a health inspection that “didn’t bode well.”
Spross was unable to be reached after multiple calls Tuesday.
