By Dana Cole | BensonNews-Sun
Concerned about problems that have escalated into bad feelings between Little Caesars restaurant and the City of Benson, Mayor Toney King met with the restaurant’s owner and district manager Tuesday to try and find a resolution.
Those who attended the meeting include Little Caesars District Manager Rafael Carrillo, Restaurant Owner Stephen Rose, Little Caesars Contractor Reid Stinnett, and City Public Works Director Brad Hamilton.
The issue started when a City Gas Department employee poured red oil into the wrong chamber of a gas meter on Dec. 26, 2012 while installing the meter. The oil eventually made its way into gas lines feeding the restaurant’s pizza ovens causing the igniters to malfunction. While crews for the City of Benson have been working on the problem since the restaurant opened its doors in mid-January, the restaurant has been forced to close at different times, along with operating at reduced capacity because of recurring oven failures.
In a letter to the mayor, Carrillo said he is unhappy about how the restaurant’s owner was treated by City Manager Glenn Nichols during a March 7 meeting, where the issue was being discussed. In his letter to King, Carrillo said, it “was the worst meeting that I have ever attended.” Carrillo also noted that Rose owns six Little Caesars restaurants throughout Arizona, and this is the only location where he has been treated badly by city officials. Carrillo said that Nichols pointed out how long he has lived in Benson, and then questioned Rose about how long he has been with the City of Benson, knowing he had just driven down from Phoenix to attend the meeting.
