After battling a long court case and continuing to operate illegally for 19 days, Philly Pizza and Grill closed its doors permanently on March 9.

Philly Pizza was served a certificate of occupancy removal notice on Feb. 19. According to a press release from the mayor’s office, Mehmet Kocak, the owner of Philly Pizza, has reapplied for a certificate of occupancy.

Philly Pizza’s certificate of occupancy was initially revoked by the DCRA in October on the basis that Philly Pizza was operating as a fast food restaurant on a residential street that is not zoned for such an establishment. Philly Pizza appealed the decision to the Board of Zoning Adjustment, which unanimously voted against Philly Pizza’s appeal on Feb. 16.

D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty gave a speech in front of Philly Pizza on March 10 along with DCRA Director Linda Argo and D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles, congratulating the Advisory Neighborhood Commission, which had strongly campaigned for Philly Pizza’s closing. Fenty compared the closure to other moves the city has made during his time in office to crack down on illegally operating businesses.

“We listened to our Georgetown residents and it was clear this business was not being a good neighbor,” Fenty said in his speech. “While we do not celebrate closing businesses, we will continue to ensure businesses are following regulations and take strong action if they do not.”

Bill Starrels, Vice-Chairman of the ANC and a primary advocate for the closure of Philly Pizza, said he thought the appearance of the mayor, the director of DCRA and the attorney general seemed to send a strong positive message.

“The mayor was sending a message that this city has rules,” Starrels said. “Hopefully that keeps the next person from breaking the rules.”

Since the official closure, Kocak has applied for a new certificate of occupancy. The application has been received by the DCRA and has yet to be decided upon, Argo said in a press release.

Starrels said that it was his understanding, although he was not positive, that the certificate of occupancy would be for the current location.

“I don’t see legally how [Kocak] could resurrect his certificate of occupancy,” he said.

artin Sullivan, the attorney representing the ANC, said that he felt the application for a certificate of occupancy should be denied as Kocak has not done anything to change the nature of the establishment.

“Mr. Kocak admitted in the hearing that most take-out takes place after midnight, and any dine-in happens before midnight, followed up by a claim that to close at midnight would be economic suicide,” Sullivan said. “Based on all that, even he understands that he will never operate as a `restaurant’ as such term is defined in D.C. law.”

DCRA Zoning Administrator Matthew LeGrant and Kocak could not be reached for comment.”