Acushnet Select Board appoints temporary inspector, flags health agent vacancy

ACUSHNET — March 25, 2026 — Acushnet Select Board unanimously fills two service gaps while flagging a deepening health agent shortage. The two-member board, Chairman Mark Warner and member David Hinckley, approved a one-day liquor license for the Rebel Brew Run event tied to the St. Francis Xavier road race — correcting an oversight from a December vote — and appointed Mike Redlawn, a former local inspector now serving as deputy commissioner in Hingham, to cover Friday building inspections while Commissioner Vavola is temporarily unavailable. Warner reported the town has received four resumes for the vacant health agent position but that none of the applicants has experience with septic systems or restaurant inspections, prompting outreach to the town of Rochester about a possible shared-services arrangement. Warner floated compensating elected Board of Health members to take on inspection duties, warning, "Who is going to be doing these jobs in the future?" In the meantime, the board said septic work may fall to outside engineers at greater cost to permit applicants.