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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-04-12 327 BOARD OF HEALTH MEETING APRIL 12, 1982 The regular meeting of the Board of Health was held Monday, April 12, 1982 at 7 15 p m in Room G-1 (Recreation Office) of the Town Office Building Members present were Mr James W Lambie, Chairman; Dr Linda Roemer and Mr George A Smith, Director of Public Health The minutes of the meeting of March 8, 1982 had one correction Page 4, paragraph two, had I N H and should have been N I H (National Institute of Health) , otherwide the minutes were approved as read Mr Smith told the Board about the collapse of the courtyard on April 7 at BATTLEGREEN the Battle Green Inn in the center He said he had sent a letter to the INN owners, Michael C and Ann L Hanafin notifying them their permit to operate a motel was revoked because the premises were "unfit for human habitation" at this time There are not enough exits available in and out of the build- ing since the collapse The jurisdiction of the building is with Mr Peter DiMatteo, Building Com- missioner now Constructional Engineers will decide the complete damage results that have taken place The integrity of the building has to be decided Mr Smith told the Board that he has been receiving calls from schools in REPORTING OF regard to the doctors not reporting communicable diseases to the local Boards COMMUNICABLE of Health He said a call came from the Montessori School claiming there DISEASES are diseases around and they are not being reported Mr Smith said there are quite a few cases of strep throat at this time - none are being reported The Board discussed that a letter should be sent to all Lexington doctors, reminding them that all communicable diseases are reportable by law Mr Smith said that Dr Erdos should be the one to write the letter and the members of the Board should sign it Mr Smith told the Board that he had received a call from the M D C in regard BOW STEEP' to the Bow Street manhole that is the dumping site for sewage from the sewage MANHOLD disposal trucks Only towns on the M D C are allowed to dump at these sites but the M D C has reason to believe that outside towns, namely Lincoln, have been coming into the Bow Street site There have been outside trucks seen there in the past The owner of Mal's car repair service has his station in front of the Bow Street site and he has, in the past, called if he sees out- side trucks that are not licensed here dumping sewage there The M D C is coming out to talk to Mr Wally Tonaszuck, Director of Public Works in the Town of Lexington about this Mr Smith said that a Mr Comeau from Concord has just applied to license two of his sewage disposal trucks in Lexington but before Mr Smith sends out his permits he would like to know that he is doing work in the Town of Lexington 328 This manhole at Bow Street is an unmanned site and therefore trucks can be slipping in and out of there unnoticed but the police cruisers in the area try to watch this particular spot Mr Smith said some towns charge a fee for trucks to dump at the M D C sites in their towns but Lexington never has, therefore, trucks would try to use Lexington where there is no charge Eventually the Board of Select- men will have to address this Mr Smith said the law requires that every town provide a manhole or sewage plant for the disposal of sewerage NEW HEALTH Mr Smith introduced our new Health Intern, Debora Chiklis, to the members INTERN of the Board of Health Debbie will be working and learning out in the field with Mr Smith one day a week until she get out of school in late April and will then work for the Director twenty-one hours a week until June 1983 Mr Smith told the Board that he had several good candidates to choose from but he feels he chose the best one for the psoition Mr Smith said that he had taken Debbie out in the field last week to Cory's, the restaurant in progress of being completed to open on May 1st , a tour of the collapsed courtyard of the Battle Green Inn and also on a food service inspection at Alexander's Convenient Food Market on Woburn St He also has arranged for the new health intern to spend one day at the Waltham Health Department to go out with the inspector on building inspections Mr Smith told the Board that he had a meeting last week with Dr Erdos HEALTH FAIR and Anne Scigliano at Symmes in regard to the Health Fair the Town is having on May 15th from 10 00 a m to 2 00 p m. at Fire Headquarters on Bedford St He said this will be a family-oriented program offering such programs as a complete blood profile, pulmonary function testing, diabetes screening, delayed language testing, hard of hearing screening, etc , plus some demon- strations performed - Hearing Aid Dogs, Choate/Symmes Lifeline Program, Choke-saving procedure, C P R. demonstration, Jaws of Life and Town Ambulance displayed Middlesex Lung Association will be represented as will the Cancer Society and the E P A with displays, plus the Nutrition Association All of these things will be free of charge but the Hard of Hearing Guild does want a donation Dr Cosgrove had asked the Rotary to contribute the donation but they are obligated to some other group this year Mr Smith thinks the Board of Health budget may be able to cover their donation FITZGERALD At 8 00 p m. Lisa Fitzgerald, her mother, Virginia Fitzgerald Lovett, and ANIMAL their attorney, Richard Miller came before the Board at Lisa's request because PERMIT she is asking for a variance to keep three extra horses on her property, making the total number of horses at six. 329 Attorney Miller spoke first and said there is really nothing to add to what has been said in the past except Lisa has asked him to help her with this She is here tonight to ask to keep six horses on the property at 342 Bedford Street He told the Board that they could ask Lisa any questions they wanted to Dr Roemer said she didn't have any questions at all but she has been on the Board since last July and there has been many times there has been six horses on the property - two more than the permit was given for Attorney Miller said that Lisa did make a mistake by keeping six horses, he said it was a misunderstanding The Board feels that it is no misunderstanding but that Lisa is unrespon- 1 sive to the Board's letters or the regulations of the Board The attorney went on to say that Lisa has had horses since she was nine years old and she did have violations in her teens and manure problems but she is grown up now Mr Smith said the issue here is the number of horses that Lisa keeps on her property vs the number of horses stated on her permit Dr Roemer said she is not sure this is worth hashing all over again The Board has made it clear to Lisa that she is to keep four horses only on her property and Dr Roemer said, she personally, has gone by on many occasions and counted six horses She told the attorney that she per- sonally is not in favor of variances, and sine she has come on the Board in July, twenty-percent of the time has been spent on Lisa and the horses Dr Roemer said Lisa has only been in compliance with her permit for the past four weeks, and that is not enough because she has been "out of compliance" for years If her permit said, "Three", there were four horses and if the permit said "Four", she has been keeping six horses Lisa said the other horses were just visiting for the day She said she did have six horses for the month of February Mr Lambie said he has been by many times and found Six horses and then Mr Smith added that he comes by early every morning and there were six horses there during the whole month of August, in fact, for months, there were six horses there Mr Lambie told Lisa that she has paid no attention at all to what the Board has said or has not acknowledged any letter written to her in regard to her animal permit She was told to call the Board of Health Office any time she was bringing extra horses on the property to stay there temporarily but she never called the office, just did as she pleased After further discussion, Mr Lambie said the Board will not change its posi- tion at this time It is four horses only The attorney asked "The Board will not allow six horses at any future time?" Mr Lambie said, "We did not say that, but the Board is for four horses, only The Board is not willing to increase the number of horses at this time Lisa is very unresponsive to the Board's wishes 330 The Board said that they could apply again after Lisa has been in com- pliance for a longer period time and also that she have only four horses on the property in the meantime Attorney Miller said they will write a letter in June asking if it is appropriate to come back to the Board Meeting to apply again The attorney, Richard Miller, Lisa Fitzgerald and her mother, Virginia Fitzgerald Lovett thanked the Board and retired One of the Board members mentioned that someone they know had temporarily stabled their horse at the Cosgrove's barn on Wood Street and they said the barn was in appalling condition Mr Smith said the stables around Town have not been inspected recently because Barry Littleton was the animal inspector also, and he is not work- ing at this time Mr Smith said without a full-time dog officer and animal inspector, he himself, has had to spend too much time on dog problems Last week he spent time in court and has to go back again this week with dog cases CHILD Mr Smith told the Board that he had received a letter and some literature PASSENGER from the State Health Department in regard to the new Child Passenger safety SAFETY Law and the infant safety passenger seat LAW Most hospitals today usually have their regulations in regard to the new infant having to go home in a "government approved" infant seat as they leave the hsopital Some hospitals rent these seats out to the parents if they wish to do so Mr Smith said that the State requests that all local health departments put a news release in their local papers in regard to this Child Passenger Safety Law and that he will write something and have it put in the paper He said that the Department can purchase signs also about child safety and also signs in regard to "seat belts" for a reasonable price The Board liked the idea of the "seat belt" signs because it is very impor- tant for the toddlers to be buckled in Mr Smith is going to write to the Board of Selectmen for permission to post signs in different areas and he will also make them available to child care centers in Town GYPSY MOTHS Mr Smith said that the article John Andrews wrote for the Lexington paper in regard to Sevin and the gypsy moths has created some turmoil with residents He has been receiving calls from residents really upset and Mr Smith feels that Mr Andrews said a lot of unnecessary things One woman called crying because she is pregnant and afraid since she read the article The company that makes Sevin is going to put an article in the newspaper re- butting what John Andrews had to say 331 Mr Smith said the gypsy moth problem in the State seems to be coming a political thing There all afraid if they vote one way, they will lose votes and vice versa The gypsy moths are certainly a problem Some houses have them inside, too At Christmas they cam in on same Christmas Trees and they also have been known to come in on firewood The gypsy moth usually hatches between May 15th and June 15th and then people will be going through the usual aggravation DMSO DMSO was discussed briefly and then it was tabled for the next meeting Mr Smith told the Board that he had received a call from a resident that she had purchased "frozen doughnuts" at Medi Mart with an out-code of September 1981 She had also called Medi Mart and the doughnut company be- cause she claims her children got sick from eating them. Mr Smith said shoppers never read the codes on food while they are shopping and only after they go to use them do they notice they are out-of-date code He said frozen foods coding is a voluntary gesture on the part of the com- panies that package them ANIMAL The Board of Health briefly discussed the animal regulations that are in the REGULATIONS process of being revised Each member had been mailed a copy for their comments The members were in agreement that the regulations covered most areas of keeping animals in the Town but have decided they will have further discussion on the ' manure storage and disposal When the regulations become finalized, they will be sent to Mr Norman Cohen, Town Counsel, for final review Mr Smith said the regulations become law when they are published in the local paper PODIATRIC Mr Smith had received a letter from Arthur G Swedlow, D P M , Podiatric MEDICINE Medicine & Surgery, of 114 Waltham Street wanting to run a screening clinic LETTER in Lexington and sponsored by the Board of Health Mr Swedlow had approached the Lion's Club suggesting they sponsor it but they have other obligations and was not interested in running this so Mr James Cataldo suggested he contact the Health Department The Board discussed this briefly and decided they did not want to sponsor this clinic but they will "hold" for Dr Erdos' opinion ORGANIZA- Mr Lambie had drawn up an "operating guidance plan" for the Board of Health TIONAL to look over and prepare for the most effective way the Board of Health and WORK-PLAN the Health Department can function and also to set priorities for the Board of Health to deal with Mr Lambie feels it is worth a certain amount of work to see what is the most effective way to promote health and prevent and control disease and nuisances within the Town of Lexington 3 32 Dr Roemer said she thinks this proposal should be held in abeyance until the dog situation is settled and George gets rid of the dogs Debbie, The new health intern, will be all setted in her job by then, also The following permits were signed by the Board Disposal Permits E A Comeau, Inc 2 sewage disposal trucks 144 Sudbury Rd Concord, Ma Mobile Server Permit Charles D Aker 242 Lincoln St , Lexington Mfg Frozen Desserts Permits Alexander's Convenient Store 335 Woburn St , Lexington, Ma Food Service Establishment Permits Lexington Masonic Associates Hancock Church of Christ Harrington Rd , Lexington, Ma 1912 Mass Ave , Lexington Lexington Christian Academy Kentucky Fried Chicken 48 Bartlett Ave , Lexington 211 Mass Ave , Lexington Bora Bora Restaurant Denny's Restaurant 177 Mass Ave , Lexington 438 Bedford St , Lexington Minuteman Regional Tech School Sheraton-Lexington Motor Inn 758 Marrett Rd , Lexington 727 Marrett Rd , Lexington Arno's Delicatessen Arrow Vending for Tektronix, Inc 321 Woburn St , Lexington 482 Bedford St , Lexington Recreational Camp Permits Lexington Christian Academy 48 Bartlett Avenue, Lexington J W Hayden Recreation Center 24 Lincoln St , Lexington Animal Permits Lisa T Fitzgerald David L Gennaro 342 Bedford St 108 Winter St , Lexington Marian M McIntire John D Brucchi 205 Wood St , Lexington 63 Paul Revere Rd , Lexington 333 Animal Permits (continued) Wilson Farm, Inc Eugene F Delfino 10 Pleasant St , Lexington 94 Reed St , Lexington Tom & Carla Fortmann Roger Trudeau 5 Harrington Rd , Lexington 7 Volunteer Way Kreb's School Foundation Carl Canzanelli, M.D 453 Concord Ave , Lexington 21 Heritage Drive, Lexington Brita Swenson Fred Hopwood 210 Marrett Rd , Lexington 172 Burlington St , Lexington Gerald Myron Cupp James V Cosgrove 171 Woburn St , Lexington 307 Wood St. , Lexington Dudley West 33 Oak St , Lexington Funeral Director Permits John B Douglass Louis Spencer 51 Worthen Rd , Lexington 52 Waltham St. , Lexington Arthur F Douglass Alice M McCarthy 51 Worthen Rd , Lexington 80 Bedford St Lexington Swimming Pool Permits Swim-Safe - Millican Pool 90 Hancock St , Lexington J W Hayden Recreation Center 24 Lincoln St Peacock Farms Association Swimming & Wading pools Peacock Farm Rd Lexington Christian Academy/Meadow Breeze Day Camp 48 Bartlett Ave Lexington Chalet, Inc 440 Bedford St , Lexington Sheraton-Lexington Motor Inn 727 Marrett Rd , Lexington Minuteman Associates One April Lane Five Fields Pool 19 Barberry Rd 33 4 Temporary Permits - April 19, 1982 Lexington Lion's Club - Pretzel Cart (along parade route) St Brigid's C Y 0 St. Brigid's Church Lexington Freidns Community Residence Visitor's Center St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church Youth Group In front of Visitors Center Lexington High Band Fund, Inc Emery Park at Depot Square First Baptist Church Youth Fellowship 1580 Mass Ave , Lexington at church St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church 18 Meriam St Lexington V F W #3007 Auxiliary (Robert Lemos) Esso Station at Woburn St Rotary Club Pancake Breakfast Church of Our Redeemer Rotary Club - Two more permits for stands