Stores, preschool face rat problem

LYNN – Two Boston Street convenience stores were fined for rodent infestation and a preschool at 11 Webster St. was ordered to clean up its site after droppings were found and holes were identified in the building’s foundation.Inspectional Service Department (ISD) Health Inspector James Wilson said $300 tickets for rodent infestation were issued to the owners of the buildings that house Lynn Neighborhood Mart and Lucky 7.Wilson ordered each store to immediately install Dumpsters, be professionally exterminated and have the area baited every two weeks.”Both places had trash all over the ground and there were tons of milk crates everywhere that rodents can hide in,” he said.Wilson said he investigated the situation after he received a complaint.According to city records, Q Vo Dang of Nashville, Tenn., is the owner of the Lucky 7 building, and Phuong Nguyen, of Saugus, is the owner of the Lynn Neighborhood Mart building.ISD labeled both sites as ongoing problems.Rodent infestations and trash concerns also surround Project Children Preschool on Webster Street that abutter Dina Kennedy said she would like cleaned up.”My husband has gone over there in the past and spoken to someone at the building because their trash has blown all over the place with dirty diapers and it was just gross,” she said. “This has been going on for years?you wouldn’t believe the amount of rats I’ve seen running around there.”ISD Food Inspector Abel Ouanes said he visited the preschool, which is owned by Gregg Neighborhood House, on March 25 after receiving a complaint and said progress is being made to correct the rodent problem.”I noticed three major holes underneath the foundation, and that tells me that rodents are there,” he said. “I told them to fill them immediately with a mix of cement and glass, because rats will eat through just cement, but they don’t like the mix.”Ouanes said the building has been exterminated in the past, but with the presence of several visible holes, rodents would continue to flock to the area searching for food.While open bait is not allowed on a piece of property where children are present, closed bait that can only be opened with a key is recommended.Ouanes said the toddler center was also ordered to bait the basement and outside areas, and store garbage in containers with sealed lids instead of housing it in the basement.”There isn’t enough room on the property for a Dumpster, so they were keeping trash in the basement,” he said. “They really don’t generate that much trash, but I noticed a lot of light coming into the basement from holes in the ground, so the rats can definitely get in there.”Ouanes also ordered old wood be removed from underneath the main entrance door, where rats could easily gain entrance to the building.After receiving the city’s order, Project Children now has until Friday to take care of the problems.If the deadline passes, Ouanes said their license would be revoked.”They understand what needs to be done,” he said. “It just needs to be done by this Friday.”In addition to the issues at Project Children, Ouanes noticed piles of trash and debris at a nearby house that he said he plans to issue an order to for it to be removed.”I saw a lot of trash and none of it was sealed and there were a lot of rats running around,” he said. “So, whoever complained about Project Children thinks that the problem is coming from them, but this neighbor has a big mess to clean up. I took pictures of the house, and pictures don’t lie.”Calls placed to Project Children were not returned as of Wednesday.