The Observation Deck

I am on Zappitelli’s email list and this was sent out yesterday:


All Good things must come to an end…….

And we were good, and we had fun, and Zappitelli’s on Madison is now coming to an end….

We all know that Adam and crew have been vacillating for some time now, do we stay, do we go, do we wear the red pants with the green shirt or will we look like a Christmas tree…..so many decisions, never the right answer – but Mother Nature made that decision for us! The three (and counting) days without power was the det var droopen som fick bagaren att rinn over, the se oli viimeinen pisara, the c’est la goutte d’eau qui fait deborder le vase, the straw that broke the camel’s back! No more fighting with City Hall; or the Lakewood Lawyers; or the idiots that have nothing to do but call the parking violation police, and the lovely people that want to dine in inspector, and the ‘don’t know if I’m going to stay so I don’t want to spend thousands of dollars on a permanent sign’ inspectors – Adam and his Money Men (the REAL Owners) decided that it wasn’t worth the expense of starting over again, so we shall bid you adieu (all these foreign languages are making me want to order French fries or something).

We’ve had an absolute wonderful year, met so many wonderful people and had a ton of fun throughout this amazing ride we’ve called Zappitelli’s on Madison, it’s been a wild one and will cherish the many memories! We will keep this e-mail list JUST in case we do decide to do something else on the west side, so we will keep in touch! In the meantime, if there are any gift certificates or if you have won any of the Zapp’s Cash in one of our many fundraisers that we had donated to, please let us know. We would like to find a way to repay you, even if we have to come cook at your house!

Stay tuned, if we get power shortly we may be able to have some sort of Buy Buy Bash – you, our dear e-mail list fans – will be the first to know!!


Hugs to all – we shall see you soon!!


Adam and Laurie (Mom)

Kristine Pagsuyoin wrote:No more fighting with City Hall; or the Lakewood Lawyers; or the idiots that have nothing to do but call the parking violation police, and the lovely people that want to dine in inspector, and the ‘don’t know if I’m going to stay so I don’t want to spend thousands of dollars on a permanent sign’ inspectors (Mom)

Kristine

What I have found so odd about all of this, is the above statement. For a city that wants
store fronts filled, and wants businesses, his seems an odd comment from them.

I remember over a decade ago, when Angelo's moved into the recently vacated Milander
Hardware store, they had a visit by the building department. They were told to get rid of
half of their seats. This was after EVERY STEP OF THE RENOVATION had been approved
and signed off on by the city. The exact amount of seats in every drawing, were approved
but after buying them and opening up, were told to get rid of them.

If I remember the story correctly one day the owner was telling Steve Davis, and Steve
called then City Council President and Councilman for Ward 3 Robert Seeley and explained
the problem. Bob came in mediated a compromise with some other businesses in the area
that if I am not mistaken was a trade of pies for parking, and today it is one of Lakewood's
favorite pizza establishments.

How sad that a group of investors can come to Lakewood, throw down a good product,
many say the best in the city, and have the whole thing come to an end because of
city inspectors, and the inability of the Ward 3 Councilman or any council member to
try to negotiate some kind of settlement with all parties. This is what government is about.

However the Ward 3 Councilman is on record saying the pizza was nothing special, the
same term he has used to describe the city, the Library and the Lakewood schools. So it comes
as no surprise that he turns his back on successful businesses while he chases what many
at City Hall call "Shawn's Folly" a dream of a boutique hotel, possibly built in the downtown
Lakewood Park he has worked so hard to take away from the residents. Which is a far
better location that next to the Brew Pub he was hoping to turn St. James into.

This year we had a similar incident at Barroco's. They added a backroom, that was not
into compliance with the building department. I called Councilwoman Mary Louise
Madigan, and she worked them through the system and got it done. However after
opening, it was shut down a day later because of parking, or let's say lack of it. While
having lunch with Mayor Michael P. Summers, Juan came over and I introduced him to the
mayor, and he told of the problem and the mayor did not even blink an eye, he said, "I
think we could give you access to Madison Park like we do Mahall's." The mayor who had
not been there before had just finished "the best ham sandwich in Lakewood," seemed
eager to see these guys stay.

However the fallout from all of this is amazing. You have very successful store owners
warning others that "Lakewood is a great place to do business but City Hall will try to
stop you at every turn." While this is an over simplification, it is one of the statements
many have made to me. Even when I point out that some at City Hall seem to fight for
business, they ask about the great divide or inability for planning, the ABR, building and
inspectors to talk to each other and get on the same page. When I mention planning and
building are the same department, their eyes turn to saucers in disbelief.

Now, there are two sides to every story, and we never want inspectors to do anything less
than a perfect job, after all, buildings are inspected for the safety of the owner, the tenant,
the people coming and going, the buildings next door, and those that might buy the building
own the road. But the back and forth of being approved and being shut down for what was
approved seems to really drive business owners crazy.

As for the Zapitelli study. I really like Adam, Laurie and the entire gang. They serve the
best pizza in town when they are on their game. However at one point, early on the threat
was put out, "If we do not get... we are leaving Lakewood." If that is your depth of
commitment to Lakewood, then maybe you should go, and to be honest I lost my desire
to have Zapitelli's Pizza. Because right down the street was a pizza shop that many say
had the best pizza in town, and he stayed, and he fought, and he won the battle with
the help of City Hall, and at no point did he ever say, he was leaving.

This is the essence of Buy Local, stay local. It is not just a slogan, but the ideal way to
pay back those that have invested in Lakewood. However, in Lakewood with so many
it is just a cool thing to say but not do.

Adam, Laurie, and crew you will be missed, it was an interesting run.

.