This was said by lawyers from the municipality today during summary proceedings initiated by the founders of the pizza chain. Their buildings on Plantage Kerklaan, Overtoom and Haarlemmerdijk were closed a month ago by the deputy mayor, after several explosions occurred at the branches.
“Since the police consider recurrence of the incidents conceivable, there is a risk to public order,” the municipality said. The branches are in principle closed for six months.
The founders of ‘De Pizzabakkers’ asked for understanding for their situation during the hearing. Closing their businesses says they are costing them tens of thousands of euros a week, and they fear that they will soon go bankrupt if nothing changes. All requests for reopening have been rejected so far. Two weeks ago they also appealed to the mayor and the city council: “There is someone walking around who hates us so much that he wants to destroy us and our company.” All closed branches are owned by the founders themselves; other, non-closed locations are franchises.
‘Explosion’ at home
The owners would prefer that one of their branches – preferably the one on Plantage Kerklaan – reopen immediately, so that the insurer can cover the damage and they can retain their staff. According to them, that is the only way to avert bankruptcy. However, the municipality maintains the closure, because the police still assume a current threat after the series of explosions in recent months. For example, there was an explosion at the home of one of the owners and another suspicious situation.
However, the owners say these incidents do not appear to be related to the explosions at their facilities. The suspicious situation allegedly involved someone taking pictures of their house, while the explosion at the house only involved a small firecracker in the mailbox.
Current threat
The municipality emphasizes that the closure is not arbitrary, but based on continuous assessment by the police. Each location is assessed separately based on the current threat and the risk that new incidents may occur. According to the municipality, it is not so much the business operations or the background of the entrepreneurs that play a role, but public order is central. Even if the owners submit a request to reopen, it will first be checked whether the police estimate that the threat has decreased before a decision is made.
The court will give its ruling in a week, but this is a provisional measure, so there will be no final decision on the closure yet. In the meantime, the municipality has already given the owners permission to enter their properties and assess the damage. Tomorrow they will talk to their staff, because it is uncertain how business operations can continue in the near future.
According to one of the owners, the municipality has promised them in the corridors that they can enter the building at Plantage Kerklaan 2 to assess the damage. However, this has not yet been officially confirmed, the entrepreneur emphasizes.