Plainville Board of Health Adopts Body Works Regulations on Split 2-1 Vote

NORTH ATTLEBOROUGH — July 15, 2026 — Plainville Board of Health adopts body-works licensing regulations on a 2-1 vote, approves two land-use variances, and confronts a clerical staffing loss. Chairman Lou LeBlanc and Vice Chair T.J. Fairbanks voted July 15 to enact Chapter 580 Body Works Regulations, effective immediately, over the objection of Member Bob Davis, who called the ordinance "an unfair double standard" and said it imposed an "undue burden on businesses." The regulation requires board consultation with the police department for all license applicants and triggers an automatic denial — subject to board review — for any applicant with a misdemeanor or felony conviction in the past five years; affected businesses have up to 60 days to comply. The board also unanimously approved a septic variance for 38 Miramichi Street, allowing a four-foot groundwater separation instead of the required five, and a well variance for James DeCito of 8 Oxbow Drive, permitting an irrigation well 35 feet from the front property line rather than 50. Health Director Deborah Vell disclosed that clerk Sydney Freeman left July 1 after budget cuts reduced her hours below 19 per week and eliminated her benefits, leaving the two-person department without clerical support and warning that the office may close without notice during inspections.