Ban on Night Activities Lifted; Mosquito Illness No Longer Serious Threat

The recent frost removed the risk of mosquito-borne illness; Northborough lifted the night time ban.

The public health advisory has been lifted for evening outdoor activities organized by the town of Northborough. The National Weather Service reported that because of the hard frost that occurred over the weekend, all areas of Massachusetts except for Suffolk County and the Cape and Islands has drastically reduced the risk of mosquito-borne illness. As a precautionary measure, in early September, the Northborough Board of Health joined many surrounding towns and deferred to a warning issued by the Massachusetts Department of Health, and banned all Shrewsbury-organized evening events. "While individual mosquitoes may have survived in isolated sheltered areas, the risk of mosquito-borne illness should be virtually eliminated at this time in …

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Great Wall Closed Permanently for Food Violations

After four closings, and two revocation hearings, the Board of Health has closed the doors on Great Wall Asian restaurant.

The Northborouth Board of Health voted unanimously on Wednesday night to revoke the food license for Great Wall, an Asian restaurant located at 259 West Main St. "I have no confidence in this restaurant at all—none," said Glenn French, board member. "I don’t think they can straighten their act out. I don’t see any other arguments to be made. They had their chance, they had their opportunity, for good or bad, they had it, and they blew it. I gave ‘em a chance. I was overly optimistic that I thought this thing would straighten itself out. It’s the operators fault that this happened with the restaurant. It’s been a long time coming and it’s not a surprise, and I don’t have any kind words to put to it." The decisive, stern words came from …

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UPDATE: Great Wall Closed (Again, and Perhaps Permanently) for Three Critical Violations

Health Agent Jamie Terry reports that a recent inspection of Great Wall resulted in its closure. It will face a second revocation hearing on June 6.

Great Wall, the Asian restaurant on Main Street, was closed on Wednesday evening after an inspection resulted in three "critical violations" by the Board of Health. Two of the violations were related to temperature, and the third was inadequate sanitizer strength for the dish machine. One refrigeration unit read at a temperature of 50°F, and in the fridge were three food items that temped between 49°F and 52°F, according to Health Agent Jamie Terry. Great Wall's owners and management faced the Board of Health on May 14 for a revocation hearing resulting from a series of poor inspections and closings since its opening in 2009. In a hearing that lasted for more than two hours, two of the three board members voted to give the restaurant a "…

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Northborough Moves Toward Smoke-Free Town

Nortborough, which has a very low population of smokers to begin with, is moving toward officially banning smoking in or near municipal buildings and properties.

It may be more difficult for smokers in Northborough to light one up in the near future, as the Board of Health is considering changes to tobacco laws in town. A public meeting will likely be held in June, according to Health Agent Jamie Terry, to discuss revamped policies on smoking on municipal properties in Northborough. The policy, which is still being fine-tuned by the board, will also address penalties and regulations for businesses that sell tobacco. The policy, as it is written in draft form now, proposes to ban smoking in public areas that are municipally owned, such as the Senior Center, Fire Department, Police Department, the library, sports fields and parks. Terry says that 88 percent of Northborough residents are non-smokers, …

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Board of Health Gives Great Wall Final 'Last Chance' [Video]

The Board of Health voted 2-1 not to revoke Great Wall's food license.

In an act of leniency, the Board of Health will allow Great Wall Restaurant a last, last chance at keeping its business open. Voting two to one, after a two-hour plus hearing, the board is allowing the restaurant one last chance to completely clean up its act. Board members Glenn French and Dilip Jain voted in favor of letting the restaurant keep its food license, under strict provisions. Deirdre O'Connor voted no. "You are setting a precedent for how far a restaurant can push this," said O'Connor. "I am not willing to put the public at risk anymore. I understand that it's a question of livelihood versus lives." Great Wall will be on probation, as it was, until the board's next meeting in June, during which time it must implement a day of …

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Great Wall Faces License Revocation

After being closed down by the Board of Health, Great Wall made vast improvements. But with its history, even the slightest infraction brings the restaurant in danger of losing its license.

Great Wall Restaurant will again face the Board of Health, which will vote at its next meeting whether to permanently revoke the restaurant's license. After a litany of violations, the restaurant was closed down last month. It was the third time the restaurant had been closed by the Board of Health. Great Wall reopened on April 18, and Health Agent Jamie Terry said it had made vast improvements during the closing. "They had corrected all the violations that were outstanding," said Terry. "They closed so they could educate and train the staff about the serious nature of the violations in general, and those that happened specifically, so they could take appropriate measures so it doesn’t happen again." The restaurant is within a 4-6 week …

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By the Numbers

Litterbugs: How Many Violated (And Were Caught) in Northborough?

According to the Northborough police statistics, those cited for littering went up from 2010 to 2011.

As part of Northborough Patch's "cop stats" features, this week we take a look at violations pertaining to littering and illegal dumping. In 2010, seven incidences were cited by the Northborough Police Department compared with 12 in 2011. While this may be a relatively small number, Chief Mark Leahy said that the violation is still taken seriously. There are all kinds of litterbugs. That's what inspired the eruption of Earth Day, of course, and why Northborough has plans for its annual town clean-up. And technically, there is a fine. If you throw a McDonald's bag out onto the roadway, for instance, an officer can — and might — pull you over and give you a fine. But as Leahy says, much of the investigations are concerned with illegal …

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The Town Meets This Week

Here are some town meetings open to the public this week.

On Monday, Sept. 12, the Board of Selectmen meet at 7 p.m. at the town offices at 63 Main St. The agenda includes: Consideration of an application for outside and inside entertainment at Wegman's; consideration of an amendment of the license at JJ's Sports Bar and Grille regarding the condition of door monitors; approval of the childhood obesity grant, approval of cemetery deeds Other meetings this week: The Conservation Commission meets the first Monday of each month at 7 p.m. in Conference Room B of the town offices. The Groundwater Advisory Committee meets the second Tuesday of each month in Conference Room B of the town offices at 7 p.m. The Board of Health meets at 7 p.m. the second Wednesday of each month in Conference Room B at the …

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Patch Facts

5 Things You Need to Know Today: June 14

Here are five things from Northborough Patch this very Tuesday.

1.There is a legal clinic at noon followed by a blood pressure clinic at 1 p.m., both at the Senior Center today. 2. And the Senior Center continues to hop later in the day. At 4 p.m., it's "pizza and a movie" time. The Center's showing Charlie St. Cloud and dishing out slices of pepperoni and plain pizza. 3. The Board of Health meets at 6 p.m. in Conference Room B of the Town Administrator's building. 4. Apple Country Music sponsors a Music Together sing-along at the Nortborough Free Library at 10 a.m. today. 5. Making sure residents made note of the drinking water notice posted by the Town recently.

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