Board of Health

Braintree Board of Health Meeting Held Via Zoom Thursday, July 13, 2023, 7:00 p.m. IN ATTENDANCE: Dr. Arthur Bregoli, Chairman Dr. Philip Nedelman, Vice Chairman Juliana Melchionda, Clerk ALSO PRESENT: Marybeth McGrath, Director of ML & I Kathleen Mahoney, Tobacco Compliance Officer Lyn Frano, Substance Use Prevention Coordinator Dr. Bregoli called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. by roll call vote: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Approval of Meeting Minutes: June 15, 2023 Motion By: Ms. Melchionda to approve the minutes of June 15, 2023 Second By: Dr. Nedelman Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes New Business: Sale of Tobacco Violation Hearings: Pond Street Variety, 305 Pond Street Mayur Patel, owner, was present before the Board via Zoom. Ms. McGrath stated a violation letter was sent to the store owner, Mr. Patel. She indicated she has the product that was purchased in her possession if the Board wishes to see it. Ms. Mahoney reported on June 19, 2023 she sent in a youth compliance officer who was able to purchase a pack of Marlboro Red for which she paid $13.00. Mr. Patel stated what happened is unfortunate and it is the first time in over twenty years this has happened. Dr. Nedelman asked if Mr. Patel disagrees with anything the compliance officer has stated. Mr. Patel stated he accepts that this happened and it was a big mistake. He stated no, he does not disagree. Braintree Board of Health, July 13, 2023 Page 2 of 5 Ms. McGrath stated this would be considered a first offense violation, which would be a $1000 fine and a five day suspension of the tobacco sales permit. Motion By: Dr. Nedelman to impose the penalty for a first offense violation of $1000 fine and five day suspension of tobacco license effective at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, July 14, 2023, for Pond Street Variety. Second By: Ms. Melchionda Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Circle K/Elm Street Mobile, 301 Elm Street Attorney Mike Savage was present before the Board via Zoom, representing George Greige. Ms. McGrath stated a notice of violation was sent to Mr. Greige and this is a first offense. She has the product that was purchased in her possession if the Board wishes to see it. Ms. Mahoney stated on June 19, 2023 she sent in a youth compliance officer who was able to purchase a tobacco product. She originally asked for Crave Clear and a female employee recommended something similar to Crave Clear. The youth said no and requested a pack of Marlboro Red which an older man sold to her. Attorney Savage stated his client has been in business for well over 20 years and has never had a violation. They are not making excuses for what happened. There was some confusion between the two employees, each thinking the other had gotten the identification. Motion By: Dr. Nedelman to impose the penalty for a first offense violation of $1000 fine and five day suspension of tobacco license effective at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, July 14, 2023, for Circle K/Elm Street Mobile. Second By: Ms. Melchionda Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Liberty Wine & Spirits, 296 Grove Street Mineshkumar Patel, owner, and Anthony Bellotti, store manager, were present before the Board via Zoom. Ms. McGrath stated a notice of violation was sent to Mr. Patel. This is a first offense under this ownership. Ms. Mahoney stated on June 19, 2023 she sent in a youth compliance officer who was able to purchase Marlboro Red for $13.65. The store employee asked her age and she replied 20 and he said okay and sold them to her. Braintree Board of Health, July 13, 2023 Page 3 of 5 Mr. Bellotti stated they are very surprised this happened as this employee has been employed for seven years and he always asks for identification. He stated there are no excuses and they are sorry this happened. Motion By: Dr. Nedelman to impose the penalty for a first offense violation of $1000 fine and five day suspension of tobacco license effective at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, July 14, 2023, for Liberty Wine & Spirits. Second By: Ms. Melchionda Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Granite Wine & Spirits, 715 Granite Street John Cao, Owner, was present before the Board via Zoom. Ms. McGrath stated a notice of violation was sent to Mr. Cao. This is a first offense under this ownership. Ms. Mahoney stated on June 19, 2023 she sent in a youth compliance officer who was able to purchase a pack of Marlboro Red for $13.67. Mr. Cao stated he is sorry this happened and promised it would not happen again. Motion By: Ms. Melchionda to impose the penalty for a first offense violation of $1000 fine and five day suspension of tobacco license effective at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, July 14, 2023, for Granite Wine & Spirits. Second By: Dr. Nedelman Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Dr. Nedelman expressed concern that there were so many violations on this one date. He asked Ms. Mahoney if she had any idea why. Ms. Mahoney responded that this is a problem throughout the state and there is a high volume of sales. She was at some of these establishments doing education previous to these violations. She stated this is concerning. Dr. Nedelman asked how often inspections are done in Braintree. Ms. Mahoney stated she is consistently doing inspections, whether it be education or compliance. Request for Keeping of Animals (Chickens), Andy Vo, 578 Pond Street Andy Vo, the applicant, was present before the Board via Zoom. Also present were direct abutters, Mr. & Mr. James Green and Karl Kinsella. Ms. McGrath stated the applicant is requesting a permit for the keeping of eight chickens. She has done a site inspection. The coop and run would be located approximately 75 feet Braintree Board of Health, July 13, 2023 Page 4 of 5 from the back of the garage. The distance from the side property lines are 22+ feet and 34.5 feet. The rear property is 55 feet or more. The coop and run have to be completely secured and enclosed, with the mesh buried into the ground so no wildlife get into the coop. All abutters have been notified and she has not heard from anyone. Mr. Green, a direct abutter, addressed the Board. He stated he is completely opposed to this. He feels Mr. Vo has been dishonest when he has asked him questions about trees he has taken down and left on town property. On a nightly basis they are burning something in trash barrels which fills the neighborhood with smoke. He stated they have a lot of coyotes in the neighborhood which could be a problem. Mrs. Green stated the back area of the proposed coop is wet which could cause odors and she is concerned about the chickens escaping and eating their grass. Julia Flaherty, Town Councilor, was present. She stated she is educating herself on the situation. Karl Kinsella, a direct abutter, stated he objects to this application. Motion By: Dr. Nedelman to not approve the request for permit for keeping of chickens, 578 Pond Street Second By: Ms. Melchionda Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Dr. Nedelman noted that Mr. Vo can reapply in the future for this permit. Mr. Vo stated he would like to apologize to his neighbor for barbecuing and not clearing the trees. Request for Variance of Well Regulation, 31 Daniel Road (Roadway Setback) Ms. McGrath stated the applicant is requesting the placement of an irrigation well on his property. This meets all setback requirements for the property lines, but not the setback for the roadway. The proposed setback would be 26 feet as opposed to the required 100 feet. All direct abutters have been notified and she has not heard from any of them. She stated she sees no problem with this request. Ms. Melchionda asked if this would have to be approved by the DPW since it does not meet the roadway setback. Ms. McGrath stated no, but it will have to go through Dig Safe for utility setbacks. Motion By: Ms. Melchionda to approve the Variance of Well Regulation for 31 Daniel Road Second By: Dr. Nedelman Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes Braintree Board of Health, July 13, 2023 Page 5 of 5 Presentation: 84 Movement-Tobacco Picture Project Ms. Frano introduced the members of the 84 Movement Braintree Chapter, Andrew Fosco, Anna, Sam Longobardi, and Madison Keddy, all high school students. She stated the 84 is a statewide movement of young people in Massachusetts fighting tobacco. The name 84 represents the percentage of Massachusetts youth who did not smoke when the movement began in 2007. At present in 2023 approximately 97% of Massachusetts youth do not smoke traditional tobacco products. The use of traditional tobacco use has declined because of effective public health policies. Unfortunately, the tobacco industry has introduced electronic vape products which have attracted a new generation to nicotine. This is why they have created an 84 Chapter in Braintree. Ms. Frano stated in May 2023 the Braintree Chapter was awarded a mini grant to develop a point of sales photo project in Braintree focusing on big tobacco deceptive marketing. The 84 members presented the point of sales photos and explained the meaning behind them. Board members thanked the 84 members for their presentation and for getting the word out. Ms. McGrath stated Braintree is lucky to have this 84 Chapter in Braintree. Dr. Nedelman asked how other communities are dealing with the new regulations and fines. Ms. Mahoney stated she works with eight communities and they like that the state has imposed this schedule of fines and suspensions. She stated Braintree is ahead of the game with their regulations and she often references this in other communities. Informational: Ms. McGrath stated back in May there was a violation issued to Cumberland Farms and they were unhappy with the outcome and have now filed a complaint with the court system. Next Meeting: August 17, 2023 Motion By: Dr. Nedelman to adjourn the meeting at 8:07 p.m. Second By: Ms. Melchionda Unanimously Voted by roll call: Dr. Bregoli-yes; Dr. Nedelman-yes; Ms. Melchionda-yes