Circle K Pays County $175,000 to Settle Health Code Suit
Circle K Corp. paid Orange County $175,000 in penalties and legal costs Tuesday to settle claims that its local convenience stores repeatedly failed to clean up rat droppings, repair leaky plumbing or correct hundreds of other health violations in food storage and preparation.
The Phoenix-based chain, with about 70 local stores, admitted no official liability in agreeing to settle the case before trial, and county officials said they are satisfied that the stores now meet health codes.
But Senior Vice President Ray Cox, acknowledging for the first time any past wrongdoing on the part of the company, said in an interview: “There were some allegations that had merit, and we moved to correct them--apparently to the satisfaction of the (Orange County) district attorney’s office.”
While declining to specify health problems at the stores, Cox said: “There were probably some employees (who) failed to take steps that should have been taken. . . . We had some changes in store ownerships and in personnel, and things just fell through the cracks.”
But Cox added that the chain takes issue with the bulk of the county’s charges and agreed to pay the $175,000 primarily “just to get this thing out of the way.”
The settlement, reached after several months of negotiations, ends a consumer protection lawsuit filed last August by the district attorney’s office.
In it, the county accused Circle K of more than 700 health code violations at about 25 local stores from 1986 through 1988.
These alleged violations included raw sewage on storage-room floors; inadequate temperatures for hot food; no hot water; no soap or towels in many employee bathrooms; moldy soft-drink nozzles; rat and mouse droppings; insect and roach infestation; piles of trash, and poisons stored near food.
County health officials were not available to comment Tuesday on their continued monitoring of the Circle K stores.
But Deputy Dist. Atty. Wendy Brough, who handled the lawsuit, said in an interview: “It’s my understanding from the (Orange County) health agency that the stores are drastically improved and that the problems that motivated this lawsuit no longer exist.”
“I was pretty happy with the settlement, and I think it’s fair for everyone,” she added.
