Dighton Board of Health Selects Nurse, Moves Against Contractor and Vendor

DIGHTON — July 1, 2025 — Dighton Board of Health recommended a new public health nurse, threatened a septic contractor with license suspension, and demanded $75,000 from Hannaford at a special July 1 Zoom meeting. Acting Chairperson Tammy Melo and board member Vinnie Heert unanimously selected Rebecca Mitchell as the town's public health nurse candidate over a second finalist, citing Mitchell's energy and vision. The two-member board also voted to compel septic contractor Divine to appear at the July 24 regular meeting to answer for a pattern of permit violations, unreported work, and a Title 5 inspection that town engineer Jerry said should have been a failure — warning that failure to appear would trigger immediate license suspension. On finances, the board voted to send Hannaford a formal demand letter for $50,000 in arrears dating back to 2022, plus a $25,000 current balance, giving the chain 30 days to pay before the account is referred to a collection agency; a new contract already requested by town accountant Serena will require all future orders to be paid on delivery.