La República Mini Market Avoids Suspension By Board Of Health After Failed Inspections

La República Mini Market, the island's Dominican specialty market that opened in 2025, will be allowed to continue operations after demonstrating that it has addressed issues that led to repeated health code violations at its Amelia Drive location. But the Board of Health will allow town staff to impose a lengthy suspension of the market’s licenses should it fall out of compliance again.

“If there’s another [failed] inspection, it’s not going to be a five-day suspension,” Board of Health member Kerry McKenna said. “It’s going to be possibly more days or possibly a revocation of the license.”

Town staff had initially asked for a five-day suspension of the market’s license, but at the meeting, chief environmental health officer John Hedden said that, because the market has come into compliance with health codes since the most recent violation, they no longer wanted the license to be suspended.

“We don't want to be punitive with enforcement ever,” Hedden said.

The market failed four health inspections over the past year-plus. Despite repeated efforts to enforce compliance with health codes, La República continued to sell food that had been handled and packaged in violation of its permits.

“The Health Department initially sought compliance through a cease-and-desist directive,” a memo from the health department reads in part. “When the prohibited activity continued, monetary citations were issued. Despite these progressively stronger enforcement measures, the same prohibited activity was subsequently documented again. The repeated violations, including continued noncompliance following prior enforcement, demonstrate that previous measures have not resulted in sustained compliance.”

La República was selling products including meat that had been removed from their initial packaging, handled by employees, and repackaged individually without appropriate labels. As a retail market, La República does not have the authority to handle or package food products in the way that was observed by health inspectors during repeated inspections.

“I can’t get past the severe public threat that this could cause,” Board of Health member Amy Beaton said. “If we continue to have a non-compliance here, it creates a risk for our community.”

In an Instagram post shared on Thursday, La República co-owner Wilbert Garcia addressed the situation, emphasizing that the market had passed the Health Department's most recent inspection, and that rumors of the business closing were unfounded. He thanked the market's customers for their support:

Several other violations, including some related to food temperature and storage, were observed at earlier inspections. After the third time the market was found to be out of compliance in June, the Health Department issued a $1,000 fine, which La República paid. Despite this fine, they were still out of compliance when the health department followed up in August.

“It's disappointing for our inspectors to go back and see repeat violations like this,” Hedden said. “It's unfortunate.”

That led the Health Department to threaten suspension and bring the issue before the Board of Health. At that point, La República came into compliance. The owners communicated with the town staff and provided a plan to rectify the previous health code issues. When health inspectors returned to the market in advance of the Board of Health’s latest meeting, they found no issues.