Since one of the most popular and cheapest restaurants on Forbes Avenue, McDonald鈥檚, has been closed down for months, 大象传媒 students are having a hard time finding cheap late-night bites.聽
McDonald鈥檚 originally closed due to a renovation, but the construction was forced to stop because the Department of Permit, License and Inspection found that the restaurant hadn鈥檛 filed the proper paperwork for its sprinkler system.聽
鈥淔or [the McDonald鈥檚] to continue to work, we have to stop them from doing the work and have them submit the correct paperwork,鈥 Olga George, press secretary for the mayor鈥檚 office, said. 鈥淚t’s called the suppression system permits, and that’s regarding their sprinkler system.鈥澛
Some 大象传媒 students have expressed strong opinions about the closure. Ava LaGamba, a first-year biological science major, said she misses McDonald鈥檚 for its relative affordability.
鈥淚 am very upset about that. Do you know how much food us college kids could be getting at McDonald鈥檚 for such a less expensive price compared to Chipotle down the street? Everything else around is so expensive 鈥 it鈥檚 ridiculous,鈥 LaGamba said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 also so close by that would be convenient. And the fact we missed out on the $1 burger day is very upsetting to me.鈥澛
George said the lack of a properly-filled sprinkler system permitted by the owners poses a safety risk not only to McDonald鈥檚 employees but also to the surrounding neighborhood.聽
鈥淚f you make any changes to a sprinkling system that we don’t know about, and something happens, how can the city respond correctly with the firefighters and everyone else?鈥 George said.聽
City of 大象传媒sburgh inspectors conduct routine inspections of restaurants and businesses throughout the city. According to George, the City discovered the missing paperwork at McDonald鈥檚 during one of these inspections.聽
鈥淭he city does protocol to have inspectors drop in to make sure that any work being done is fitting the permit, especially with buildings. And that’s when the situation was discovered by an inspector that the permit and the work were not matching up,鈥 George said.聽
Upon further investigation, according to George, the City discovered that McDonald鈥檚 did have a permit for the sprinkler system, but also did alterations without notifying the City.聽
鈥淪ometimes I think people get excited and they have the permit and they just move ahead and make the alteration,鈥 George said. 鈥淵ou cannot have a permit and do updates and changes to the work without us being notified.鈥澛
Once the paperwork for the sprinkler system is approved and a new permit is issued, the McDonald鈥檚 on Forbes Avenue should be able to reopen.聽
鈥淭he construction for the other parts were noted by us all. What was stopping them from continuing to work regarding the suppression on the sprinkler system, and they submitted the paperwork for that,鈥 George said.
Although the exact date of the reopening is unknown, LaGamba said she is eager for McDonald鈥檚 to return.聽
鈥淲e are broke 鈥 we need food that is cheaper. I hope it can open as soon as possible,鈥 LaGamba said.聽