2016-Annual Town Report - Laserfiche WebLink

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Public Health concerns of 2016 included hoarding, the opiate abuse crisis, tobacco sales to minors, rodents and housing. A more detailed summary is provided below: In 2016, the Mashpee Board of Health was involved with the first mandatory cleanout of a residential condominium that had sanitary code violations due to hoarding. The unit was condemned, the occupant was ordered to be vacated, a contractor was hired through the required bidding process and the unit was cleaned and restored to a habitable condition. A request for $45,000.00 was made to the Finance Committee of which $40,000.00 was utilized. One single family home hoarding case was completed after a year and a half effort by the homeowner and the Cape Cod Hoarding Task Force. Another hoarding case that was started during the fall of 2016 is on -going. This case is also a condominium but it has excessive clutter rather than sanitary issues. Due to the amount of time necessary to treat those afflicted with hoarding, funding for professional therapy must be allocated to treat this mental health disease. The Mashpee Substance Use Task Force was created in August, 2016 with the goal of preventing substance abuse through education. The task force is chaired by the Human Services Department with the Board of Health as a participating member. The opiate abuse crisis is forefront as no demographic has been spared from this on -going, pandemic -level occurrence. It will take a community effort to quell the tragedies that result from this abuse. The housing concerns of the past year include continued foreclosures of residential properties and a rise in rodent populations throughout the town. Bank foreclosed properties are often abandoned and left in severe disarray. Rodents, squatters and transients, often drug users, frequent these properties which take a tremendous amount of time to bring into compliance. The presence of bird feeders, raising backyard chickens and composting appear to be aiding to the increase in rodents. Two public seasonal flu clinics were held for our residents. Both clinics were open to the public 18 years of age and older. A total of 226 seasonal flu immunizations were administered. We would like to thank the Visiting Nurses Association of Cape Cod who helped create very smooth and orderly clinics and Christ the King Parish for use of their facility. Notable commercial and residential projects of 2016 consisted of the opening of Wildfire Brick Oven Pizza at 414 Route 151 with an authentic Italian wood - fired brick oven. Washashore Bakery took over the location that was formerly Farm House Table in Mashpee Commons. The Popponesset Country Store was operated by Joe Anastos, who also operates Ben & Jerry Ice Cream at the Popponesset Marketplace. One new residential kitchen was added that was called Trivilino's Bake Shop. Several commercial and industrial properties were developed in the Industrial Park and on Echo Road. One included the construction of the medical marijuana facility on Echo Road. Northbridge at Mashpee, an 82-bed assisted -living and memory care facility, was near completion of its permitting with proposed construction in 2017. Our re -appointed animal inspector; Veronica Warden, Assistant Health Agent, enforced our kennel regulations and inspected 10 barns and stables. There were no confirmed cases of animal or human rabies in Mashpee. Maintaining up-to-date rabies vaccinations for all cats, ferrets and dogs is essential in preventing human exposure. The environmental engineering firm overseeing the post -closure requirements for the Asher's Path Sanitary Landfill was maintained as Tighe & Bond. No environmental concerns that required any action were reported in 2016. In 2016, the Board adopted three regulations. The first was for a Rodent Control Regulation. The Building Department and Board of Health required a completed checklist for structures to be demolished. The Rodent Control Regulation set the requirements to be added to the checklist which included an inspection and abatement, if necessary. The second regulation adopted was for synthetic drugs. The adopted regulation makes it illegal to sell and distribute synthetic drugs that have hallucinogenic properties. The regulation was amended and approved as a town by-law to add the ability for the Police to arrest individuals that are transporting and possessing synthetic drugs. The third regulation was an amendment to the existing Tobacco Retail Sales Regulation. The amendment changed the minimum sales age from 18 to 21 years of age. The Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment provided the summer bathing beach sampling labor and administrative reporting to the town W.