How you can tell a local economy is in the crapper

[Bernard_Monsha]

When the county start selling a free doughnut and coffee permit. It is a pretty bad state of things when you start pulling crap like this to generate revenue.

County pulls plug on free coffee, doughnuts at Camarillo store

By Mark Storer

Originally published 04:55 p.m., February 24, 2010
Updated 05:58 p.m., February 24, 2010

Ty Brann likes the neighborly feel of his local hardware store. The fourth-generation Ventura County resident and small business owner has been going to the B & B Do it Center on Mobile Avenue in Camarillo for many years. His company, Kastle Kare, does pest control, landscaping and plant care, and he’s a B & B regular.

So when he learned the county had told B & B it could no longer put out its usual box of doughnuts and coffee pot for the morning customers, Brann was taken aback.

“I was a little outraged, to be honest,” said Brann, 45. “They were putting this stuff out there out of the kindness of their hearts. They called it their little pink box of love. I thought it had to be a joke.”

An anonymous customer complaint to the county brought health inspectors to the store, who determined its tradition of more than 15 years of offering coffee and doughnuts to customers violated food-handling regulations.

“We’ve been doing this since we bought the place 15 years ago and the previous owner was doing it, too,” said Randy Collins, 42, co-owner with his parents of B & B. “We simply weren’t aware we were causing a problem.”

Inspectors told Collins that unless he was willing to install stainless-steel sinks with hot and cold water and have a prep kitchen to handle the food, he was violating the law.

“The state health and safety code talks about food regulations,” said Elizabeth Huff, manager of community services for the Ventura County Environmental Health Division. “Anybody who handles food is subject to the regulations.”

At issue is the level of permit required for a retail establishment to offer food to the public. “What some establishments do is hire a mobile food preparation services or in some cases a coffee service,” said Huff. “Those establishments have permits and can operate in front of or even inside of the stores. But where the public has access to food, permitting is required.”

Huff indicated there are several levels of permits, depending on the store’s needs. All carry various costs.

“We’re certainly working with the health department,” said Collins. “We want to be in compliance with the law.”

But some customers are upset.

“This is a small town,” said Brann. “I don’t think they did anything wrong, I mean, just coffee? Come on. This seems a little overboard and heavy-handed to me.”

“It’s the money, not the sanitation,” Thomas Frye, 75, of Camarillo said of the county’s motivation. “We’ve abandoned common sense where the need for licenses and fees are more important than tradition.”

Grace Pugliese, 70, of Camarillo said customers should be allowed to make up their own minds on a doughnut. “I understand where they’re coming from,” she said, “but we are losing that small-town feel.”

[Schadenfreude]

Damn bureaucrats.

[goddessofanime]

That's bullsh*t. It's not like they MADE the donuts on location

[Soluzar]

So what about workplaces that offer snacks, drinks and such to their employees? There are a few places like that, usually smaller companies where the atmosphere is very friendly. Are they violating some kind of law if they don't have the proper permits and facilities?

[Schadenfreude]

Imo, witch hunt for the guy who filed the anonymous complaint.

[Arnold]

Does that mean you have to have a permit to operate a vending machine?

[Old Ape Face]

Bah, Authorities are becoming more annoying by the passing day, it's like their only goal in life is to flex their mighty ban hammer muscles at the local businesses and tell them how to do their job.

Not to mention health administrators are OCD crazed lunatics who are too afraid to get their hands dirty.

But business is business, and we're all the same in the community so we must all act the same in society.

We are becoming more and more communistic by the day, always needing some kind of permit to do something.

Sounds like China and their birthday party license.

[waltsoph3]

And here you go people..another prime example of government butting in where they shouldn't.

[Spadesy]

I wonder who the douche king, entitlement-driven pu$$y was that complained to the health department in the first place…probably some passing businessman or a soccer mom from suburbia. Only in America.

[Bernard_Monsha]

Originally Posted by Spadesy

I wonder who the douche king, entitlement-driven pu$$y was that complained to the health department in the first place…probably some passing businessman or a soccer mom from suburbia. Only in America.

Probably one of the food inspectors who has a violation quota to fill.

[Spadesy]

Speaking of BS bureaucracy...all the units I've been to, there was one instruction: "I don't care how you do it, just get it done." And that we did.

The current place I'm at, majority of the management here are civilians, not military. And the environment...let's just say it wouldn't surprise me if they soon made it to where we'd have to have written justification for wiping our butts. :cursing:

[Caster13]

Originally Posted by Chuchuchrain

Imo, witch hunt for the guy who filed the anonymous complaint.

Agreed.

filler

[CrossboneGundam]

Originally Posted by Yukimura-Sanada

Not to mention health administrators are OCD crazed lunatics who are too afraid to get their hands dirty.

Something tells me you've never worked in the food service industry.

[Schadenfreude]

Originally Posted by Yukimura-Sanada

Not to mention health administrators are OCD crazed lunatics who are too afraid to get their hands dirty.

and I'm an OCD crazed cleaning lunatic who gives the place I work at a scrubdown at least twice a shift, and even still I wouldn't want to eat there after seeing behind the scenes.

[Old Ape Face]

Originally Posted by CrossboneGundam

Something tells me you've never worked in the food service industry.

I have, Actually, a Grocery store, and a Pizza Hut, neither of them I had to clean much.

Still I wouldn't stop offering free stuff for customers in a store that's not primarily a Food Store. If it's done properly.