Redford Township overrun by pizza-loving rats, residents say

Rats in Redford Township apparently love pizza. Little Caesars pizza that is.

Greg Hartle, who leaves near the Little Caesars location on west 7 Mile Road, told the Free Press that rodents track entire slices through the neighborhood.

"They will drag a half a pizza into their den in probably 15-20 minutes," he said.

Hartle, who has a home on Poinciana, said residents got sealed bins for garbage day to combat the problem, but the "flagrant dumping" of food has made the rodent issue worse.

"It's 99.9% Little Caesars," Hartle said. "They dump so much food it's ridiculous. ... They've increased exponentially, ten-fold in the last six months."

Just a few days ago, Hartle said he saw some rats dragging slices of pizza through his front yard and down into a tunnel they'd carved out in his flower garden.

"I was just furious. ... (I) went and got the manager and his first response to me was, "Are you sure it's my pizza?"

Jill Proctor, Little Caesars corporate communications manager, said the company has asked the landlord at the Redford site for a bigger dumpster.

"The trash removal service outside of this store location is shared with other property tenants and provided as part of the rental agreement with our landlord, who has arranged for it to be emptied daily," Proctor said in a written statement. "Our store crew regularly cleans the surrounding area in the alley in between the times when the dumpster is emptied. We have contacted our landlord to request both a larger dumpster and more frequent emptying."

Hartle said he's met with Redford Public Services Director Mike Dennis to come up with solutions.

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Dennis confirmed he's been working with residents and that both the property owner and the two tenants — in addition to the Little Caesars there is also liquor store on site — have been issued multiple citations for property maintenance and rodents.

"It is very much on our radar," he said.

Dennis said the very first ticket in the cycle is $75, but that price will increase if they aren't paid.

He told the Free Press that he's been communicating with the parties involved to come up with a plan to better manage the solid waste generated.

In terms of solutions, Dennis said they are considering moving the dumpster and creating separate trash receptacles, and Dennis said he also spoke to the Little Caesars District Manager when he was on-site Monday who told him they're looking into new options for rodent control.

"Our staff has been on site... it has been a priority for us, we just have to go through the due process," he said.

Contact reporter Aleanna Siacon at ASiacon@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @AleannaSiacon.