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Businesses at Glendale strip mall are struggling after power turned off

Posted at 8:59 PM, Aug 17, 2017
and last updated 2017-08-18 09:17:45-04

Several Glendale businesses are left in the dark after the power to their strip mall went out Sunday night.

"This is very weird to have the feeling of a restaurant that's been here 25 years to not be functioning,” said Mama Lupitas’ owner Mark Tafoya.

The handful of shops and restaurants have been battling bleak conditions for four days. 

At Mama Lupitas, Tafoya was forced to throw away $10,000 to $12,000 worth of food. 

"If the solution doesn't get fixed pretty quickly here, we're going to have to make a decision about whether we're going to keep our doors open or not,” Tafoya explained.

The decision has been hanging over Tafoya’s head much like the darkness that fills his kitchen. He’s been calling and texting his landlord, demanding a solution to the problem. Tafoya tells us his landlord keeps telling him the power issue will be fixed soon.

But so far there’s been no progress.

It’s not just the restaurant dealing with the loss of energy. A convenience store three doors down has a beer fridge with a temperature of 100 degrees. Food like ice cream and chocolate is melting and customers are no longer coming in. 

"The ice machine outside isn't working and customers expect cold beer and cold drinks. When they find out they go somewhere else,” employee Nayel Daghlawi.

ABC15 called the property manager but he hung up on us when we asked when the power would be returned. He then ignored our next call. 

APS confirmed to ABC15 that the issue is the landlords to fix. At this time, there’s nothing the utility company can do.