Another Family Dollar store closed because of rats

• Ally Lullaby
• Pass the Cheetos…Not all rats are cuddly pets, you know?

For the second time in two years, a midtown location of the North Carolina-based Family Dollar Stores has been closed by the Kansas City Health Department due to an ongoing severe rat infestation; inspectors had done three inspections of the same store – 1201 East Meyer Boulevard – since an initial complaint was filed earlier this summer. Two of the inspections revealed rat droppings and rat urine on store shelves.

In 2011, a particularly aggressive rat frightened a patron at the Family Dollar at 54th and Prospect. In a 2012 Pitch cover story about Kansas City’s rat problem, it was reported that the same customer filed a complaint with the Kansas City Health Department about witnessing the rat “tearing through bags of food.”

A follow-up inspection by an investigator with the department’s Food Protection Program suspended the health permit for the business after reporting “large amounts of rat droppings under shelves and shelves of merchandise.” The report also noted the inspector “observed various shelves of cat and dog food bags, candies and potato chips containing opened bags that had been chewed through.”

A new Family Dollar is opening this year at the Prospect location.