Oakland – Last year, Mountain Mike’s Pizza was on a mission to take over the Oakland Hills, most notably Glenview. The pizza chain set its sights on a space at 4230 Park Blvd that was formerly occupied by Radio Shack. There was on problem: the Glenview didn’t want it.
According to a neighborhood survey, 79 percent of the over 400 respondents voted “no” – against Mountain Mike’s Pizza going in at 4230 Park Blvd.
To that end, a group of citizens challenged the Mountain Mike’s Pizza permit application a year ago January 24th:
From the Glenview “Glenviewlocal” Facebook Page:
Congratulations to the many hundreds of neighbors who sent letters/signed petitions/completed the survey, the dozens who generously contributed $2000 to make the formal Appeal possible, and to the entire community for doing whatever they can to preserve, sustain and improve our neighborhood. Special thanks to the core handful who put in soooo many hours of dedicated work doing the organizing, writing, petition circulating, lobbying, researching, etc., including our key GNA members Mike Pompa and Barry Lubovisky, GNA V.P. Valerie Ackerman, Board Member/Past GNA President Sue Grandt, GNA Member/Past President Michael Gabriel, GNA Member Leanne Grossman, and too many others to mention.
Below are links to the Mtn. Mike’s Appeal and the Attachments. WE WILL LET YOU KNOW WHEN THE APPEAL BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL IS SCHEDULED, SO STAY TUNED!
Allan Brill, President, GNA
MTN. MIKE’S APPEAL:
https://drive.google.com/…/1mrEUVKr290QCW3BJjs_DNVxvT…/view…
NEIGHBORHOOD SURVEY RESULTS:
https://drive.google.com/…/1WgMCFE–hsnZj7Lxu2H3c16Uh…/view…
NEIGHBOR COMMENTS TO PLANNING COMMISSION:
https://drive.google.com/…/1pqrEV8M4Y7WHNLAPny5zS6ZLa…/view…
The Dollar Shop Wins Over Mountain Mike’s In The Glenview
This is the latest news posted at the Glenview Listserv:
Many of you know there is a new tenant in the old Radio Shack location, which was the intended location of the proposed Mountain Mike’s restaurant. It’s a Dollar Shop privately owned by Casimira. I hope you have had a chance to stop by and welcome her to Glenview.
Even when it was obvious that Mountain Mike’s abandoned the project in Glenview, it took a considerable amount of time and effort before we were finally able to successfully obtain a refund from the City for a portion of the costs of the Appeal. Since the appeal costs were raised through community donations from Glenview residents, I was happy to present the amount of the refunded fees to the Glenview Neighborhood Association to help fund projects for the benefit our local neighborhood.
The positive outcome from your efforts was a result of unprecedented neighborhood activism and generosity in opposing the Mountain Mike’s proposal. We would also like to thank Councilman Noel Gallo for his role in bringing this matter to a successful conclusion during both the appeal process and during our attempts to seek a refund of at least some of the appeal fees. We are all very grateful to the unique character of our neighborhood in reaching consensus and support for concerted action.
Mike
But not everyone in The Glenview is happy with the business that’s gone in, rather than Mountain Mike’s Pizza:
I’m not sure what kind of victory it is that we have a store in the neighborhood that sells useless plastic that will end up in the bellies of sea turtles one day. Really, the store sells junk. Although, maybe the middle aisle showcases useful non-junk. I couldn’t say, because I was unable to navigate the too narrow middle aisle with my mobility scooter. The store is not ADA compliant. When the women behind the counter saw that their aisle was too narrow for my scooter, they just smiled and shrugged their shoulders. “Too bad,” they seemed to say.
Too bad, I agree. I will not patronize a business that blatantly ignores disabled customers.
Stay tuned.