No Hookah Bars for Milford

Milford's Board of Health has issued a regulation that will ban hookah bars, or cigar bars.

Milford won't be the place for a hookah lounge, or a cigar bar either. The town's Board of Health on Monday voted unanimously to ban smoking bars in the town. This would include cigar or hookah bars, which have become popular in college towns and cities in recent years. Hookah bars feature flavored tobaccos smoked through hookah pipes and Middle Eastern foods. Patrons can share the waterpipes through multiple hoses. According to Paul Mazzuchelli, the town's health agent, state law now requires that enclosed workplaces with one or more employees be smoke-free. The intention is to protect employees from secondhand smoke exposure. The law does allow an exception for "smoking bars," but with this local ban, which comes in the form of a health …

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Early Garbage Collection Friday

Milford will collect trash and recycling on an earlier schedule Friday, to try to get it done before the storm hits.

Milford will still collect residential trash and recycling on Friday, the day of the storm. But residents are encouraged to put it out earlier than normal to allow the town's workers to beat the storm. The following note from Paul Mazzuchelli, Milford health agent: "Because of the potential snow storm predicted to be coming on Friday, curbside rubbish/recycling will begin one hour earlier on Friday." Curbside pick-up will begin at 6 a.m. instead of 7 a.m. Resident cooperation is greatly appreciated by the Milford Board of Health."

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Health Inspection Reports

Restaurant Inspections: Royal Buddha, Five Guys, Eva's Pizza and More

The following inspection reports of restaurants and other food serving businesses were submitted in November and December.

Editor's Note: the following statements and notes were made in Milford Board of Health inspections of restaurants and schools. Eva's, 55 Water St., Nov. 2: One violation: scrape cutting boards and sanitize. Other notes: Mold on splashboard on back of three-base sink; everything else very good. New menus being printed. Charlie's Pizza, 40 Spruce St., Nov. 2: Four violations: scrape cutting boards better; food contact surfaces need to be better; stovetop in back needs to be cleaned; no paper towels in the bathroom; scrape buildup on floor around fryer. Notes: Need to do more frequent cleaning and general cleaning. Trattoria 89 Centrale, Nov. 2: No violations. Need a handwash sign, one at the station downstairs and one in the men's room. …

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Health Inspection Reports

Restaurant Inspections: Panera Bread, Sal's Pizza, Tony's Place and More

The following restaurants and kitchens were inspected in October and November.

Editor's Note: the following statements and notes were made in Milford Board of Health inspections of restaurants and schools. Wendy's, 128 Cedar St., Oct. 30: One violation here. Needed additional thermometers in some of their coolers and freezers. Panera Bread, 91 Medway Rd., Oct. 31: Five violations noted here. These included the following: box of food stored on the floor and one box of food not properly covered in the walk in freezer; cutting board in need of replacement due to wear; plastic utensils are to be stored with the handles facing the user. Sabor De Minas, 122 E. Main St., Nov. 5: Five violations here, which included the following: one food strainer disposed of due to wear and one food strainer has to be cleaned and sanitized…

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Mosquito Spraying in Milford, Following West Nile Discovery

Forty-nine streets in Milford will be sprayed for mosquitoes on Monday. The designated area is where a mosquito was trapped with the West Nile virus late last month.

Editor's Note: the following news release was distributed Friday by Paul Mazzuchelli, the Milford Board of Health agent. The Central Massachusetts Mosquito Control project will be spraying areas of Milford around Godfrey Lane in response to a finding of West Nile virus in a mosquito collection. This is the same type of truck-mounted spraying that occurs every summer. Streets will be sprayed after 7:30 p.m., and should conclude by midnight. [Editor's Note: see attached PDF for list of streets.] Generally, there is no need to relocate during mosquito control spraying. The pesticides have been evaluated for this use and found to pose minimal risks to human health and the environment when used according to label directions. Please close street…

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West Nile Found in Milford Mosquitoes

The state Department of Public Health has announced that mosquitoes collected in Milford in late August tested positive for West Nile virus.

Milford has joined a list of communities in Massachusetts where mosquitoes have been found carrying the West Nile virus. The state Department of Public Health reported the finding on its website, based on mosquitoes collected Aug. 29. West Nile is a disease spread by mosquito bites that can have results ranging from mild fever to encephalitis or meningitis, according to the state. [Editor's Note: see attached PDFs for more information, in English, Spanish and Portuguese.] The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 2012 has been a record-setting year for incidents of West Nile cases, most being reported in Texas. To avoid contact with mosquitoes, the Central Massachusetts Mosquito Control Project recommends:

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Garbarge and Recycling: the New Rules

Milford residents have admitted they're still a bit confused about when garbage and recycling are delayed for holidays. The collection schedule will be delayed by a day this week, for Memorial Day holiday. Here are the rules for delayed collections

UPDATED: Trash is being collected a day later than normal in Milford this week, due to the Memorial Day holiday. We're reposting the announcement in case it was missed on the site last week. Original story: The Milford Board of Health has decided to collect the garbage and recycling in Milford more promptly in 2012. That is, the town will have fewer delayed collections due to state or federal holidays. On Monday, the federal Memorial Day holiday, there will be no collection. As a result, every regular collection day that week will be pushed back a day. So, Monday collections will be picked up on Tuesday, and Tuesday collections will be collected Wednesday, and so on, until Friday, which will be collected on Saturday. Memorial Day is one of…

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