The City of Medford fined the Domino's restaurant at 99 Mystic Ave. $300 on April 2 for staying open later at night than its permit allows.
Restaurants in Medford are barred from selling food past 11 p.m. unless they acquire a special permit. The city allows Domino's to sell pizza until 1 a.m. on weekdays and 2 a.m. on weekends.
Henry Askew, who has owned the local franchise since last year, said that his predecessor never experienced problems when he stayed open late. "The previous owner never got a special permit for it," he said. In the past, Domino's has stayed open as late as 4 a.m.
Early last semester, however, the city warned the store that it could be punished for late-night operation. Askew alleged that the warning was initiated by a complaint by Hakki Dengizli, the owner of rival restaurant Pizza Days, located on Boston Avenue.
This time, it was the Medford Police Department that reported a permit violation. According to an article in the Medford Transcript, police reported Domino's after witnessing the restaurant's staff "answering the phone and making deliveries after 2 a.m." Medford police could not be reached for comment.
According to Askew, his business is suffering for not staying open past 1 a.m., especially when the city has allowed Pizza Days to remain in operation until 3 a.m.
"We do lots of business [around closing time], but we have to stop," Askew said. "The phones are ringing off the hook."
Since this is the restaurant's second reported violation of the late-night operation rule in only a few months, Askew had to appear before the Medford City Council on April 1 for a hearing to decide the fate of his franchise. According to Medford Councilman Paul Camuso, the council could have gone as far as forcing the branch to close.
"We could have taken his license to operate away. But the council as a whole is business-friendly," Camuso said.
The councilman likened the violation to a speeding ticket. Someone caught speeding must appear in court and pay a fine; after enough tickets, a driver's license may be revoked.
"They have to follow ... the law," he said. "Just as if you were speeding."
In its hearing on April 1, the council decided that a $300 fine would suffice. "We wanted to give him another chance to operate within the confines of the laws of the City of Medford and the Commonwealth [of Massachusetts]," Camuso said.
Askew has attempted to secure permits to operate until 4:00 a.m., but he has been unable to attain them due in part to complaints from the restaurant's neighbors.
"Every time we asked [the city], we've been denied," Askew said. "The neighborhood doesn't want us to stay open late."
Camuso suggested that factors other than complaints may have contributed to the council's decision to deny the restaurant's various petitions for a permit.
"Every council [member] has their own reason why" they voted against the permit, he said, though he explained that concerns from neighbors did play a large role in their decisions. "I know there were a lot of complaints from the neighborhood."
Camuso added that Askew is "entitled to come back again and petition before the council."
Since last semester's initial warning, Askew had attempted to deliver from other Domino's stores outside of Medford that are legally able to operate past 1 a.m, but he ran into setbacks. "We were going to [deliver] out of Winchester," he said. "It was a big hassle."
Now Askew thinks using a different Domino's franchise might work. "We're looking at doing it out of another store," he said.
In all, Askew hopes to be able to resolve the situation and deliver pizza to Tufts students late at night again.
"I wish I can have my 4 a.m. hours back," he said. "Tufts students want it."
