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Board of Health hears restaurant reopenings, nursing-home plumbing problems and unpermitted microblading
Summary
At the Lowell Board of Health meeting April 2, Senior Sanitary Code Inspector Matthew Sheen reported five business transfers including a reopened downtown Subway, ongoing compliance problems at Northwood Rehab and a $300 fine for an unpermitted microblading operator at 1075 Westford St., Unit 203.
Senior Sanitary Code Inspector Matthew Sheen told the Lowell Board of Health on April 2 that the department recorded five business transfers in the reporting period, including two brand‑new establishments and the reopening of a downtown Subway.
“I'd like to say that Subway Downtown is open. It's back open now,” Matthew Sheen said during his report.
Sheen summarized enforcement work at Northwood Rehab, where he said the hood system remained nonoperational and the facility's ancillary systems were out of compliance. He reported sewer problems affecting the facility from March 21 through March 25 and said the facility relied on Styrofoam to‑go containers and was unable to perform linen services until roughly 2 p.m. on March 25, when those services were restored.
“I try to go out there once a week, you know, just to see what's going on,” Sheen said, describing ongoing site visits to monitor remediation.
Sheen also described an inspection triggered by an anonymous complaint about unpermitted microblading. Inspectors visited five businesses that appeared in an online search; three were not offering the service, one could not be accessed, and one — listed in the report as 1075 Westford Street, Unit 203 and doing business as Indulgence Aesthetics — was confirmed to be offering microblading without a permit. Sheen said the owner of the business paid a $300 fine; the person who paid the fine is not the operator who performed the procedure, and the operator had not applied for a permit as of the meeting.
The board discussed the ordinance language that allows it to deny a license after a fine, and members noted that any license decision would require the applicant to appear before the board.
Sheen said the development services team will continue routine inspections, including six‑month school inspections scheduled for April.
Ending: The board heard the report without taking a separate formal vote on the items Sheen presented; staff said follow‑up inspections and permit checks will continue.
