When county health inspectors visited Whole Foods Market’s Cupertino location in April, they found rodent droppings under the banana display. More were visible among the boxes of extra stock in the receiving bay and between cabinets in the juice bar. The store, which is just a few miles from Apple’s headquarters, has been shuttered since.
Whole Foods’ deli and bakery facilities had already been shut down due to rodent and cockroach concerns. An “adult female roof rat” was caught in the deli on March 26, according to the inspectors’ report, and German cockroaches “of all life stages” were seen near the bakery’s dishwasher. The April visit concluded that the problem had spread to the floor of the main facility — giving county health officials reason to suspend the store’s operating permit until it schedules a reinspection.
But there is still no reinspection on the books. Whole Foods representatives say a remodel has kept the store closed beyond the days or weeks it typically takes restaurants to respond to vermin infestations. County health officials said they OK’d the renovation plans this week, allowing construction to begin…