B2 Metro The Boston Globe THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2019
BySteve Annear
GLOBESTAFFMirror, mirror on the bathroom wall, who has the greatest
toilet seats of themall?
As it turnsout, it could be the restrooms at the Natick
Mall.
The shopping center is one of 10 finalists in the Ameri-
ca’s Best Restroom competition, an annual contest hosted by Cincinnati-
basedCintas Corporation that pits potties from across the country against
each other in search of the king of the thrones.
“The reality is that restrooms matter to the public,” the contest’s website
states. “How a business maintains its facilities is a reflection of a business’
commitment to customer service. Cintas is on a mission to locate America’s
porcelain pioneers who are taking dramatic steps to create unforgettable
facilities.”
According to a Cintas spokesperson, the Natick Mall’s name was floated
by a member of the public throughthe Best Restroom website after nomi-
nations for the “search for stellar stalls” opened back in April.
The list of 10 finalists was announced on Monday.
The finalists wereselected “based on cleanliness, visual appeal, innova-
tion, functionality, and uniquedesign elements,” according to the company.
So what details, exactly, made the Natick Mall restroomslocated on the
first floor across from Nordstrom stand out fromthe rest of the restrooms?
“The Natick Mall restrooms include a waiting room with a chandeliercentered above. They also feature makeup stations and two private chang-
ing/nursing rooms with a lounge chair and outlets,” according to a press re-
lease highlighting someof the features each finalist offers to its patrons.
“Each stall also includes a marble shelf to hold your bag.”
Lindsay Kahn, a spokeswomanfor Brookfield Properties, whichowns
the mall, said the nomination was a surprise to the mall team, but they’re
“thrilled to be recognized for our restrooms.”
“We strive every day to provide our community with a welcoming, safe,
and clean environment,” Kahn said in a statement. “Restrooms are an im-
portant part of this experience and is a common search among guests when
planning theirvisit [to] the shopping center. This is morethan a fun con-
test to us. It is a great honor, and we are proud to be included.”
The Natick Mall is up against New York’s New Museumof Contempo-
rary Art; the Sea-Tac Airport North Satellite Terminal in Seattle; the Jupiter
Next hotelin Portland, Oregon; South Carolina’s JiannaRestaurant; and
several others.
The public can vote for the nicest restroomin the nation via an online
poll through Sept. 13. The winner will be announced sometime in the fall
and will earn a spot in the company’s “America’s Best Restroom Hall of
Fame,” as well as $2,500 in facility services to keep their restroomsspar-
kling clean.Steve Annearcanbe reached at [email protected]. Followhimon
Twitter @steveannear.Get a good seat at the Natick MallAROUNDTHEREGIONBOSTON16 petitions filed fornew laws, amendmentsAs many as 13 questions could be headed to the
2020 ballot and three addition Constitutional
amendmentswere proposedby Wednesday’s
deadline to file initial proposals with Attorney
General Maura Healey’s office for review. The
new laws proposed by the potential ballot ques-
tions range from the use of ranked-choice voting
in Massachusetts elections to a requirement that
all gun owners store their weapon in a certified
gun safe. The three Constitutional amendments
proposed would restore voting rights to people
with felony convictions, declare that corpora-
tions are not people and can be regulated by
campaign finance laws, and seek to restrict pub-
lic funding of abortion. The filings required only
10 signatures to initiate a legal review by the at-
torney general to make sure they qualify as ini-
tiative petitions for the ballot. Healey expects to
issue determinations by Sept. 4. If petitioners get
through Healey’s review, proponents would need
to collect signatures from 80,239 r egistered vot-
ers by Dec. 4, 2019 to clear the next hurdle to
qualify for the 2020 ballot.CONCORD, N.H.Prosecutors ask formore time in crashState prosecutors are asking for more time to
seek an indictment of a Massachusetts man
charged with killing seven motorcyclists and in-
juring three others in a fiery and violent crash in
late June, according to a court filing. Prosecutors
have until Sept. 23 to present evidence, but since
a Coos County grand jury does not sit in Septem-
ber, they have requested an extension until Oct.
18, the panel’s next scheduled meeting date, ac-
cording to a motion filed Wednesday in Superior
Court.Prosecutors said it’s important for authori-
ties to thoroughly investigate the case before pre-
senting indictments, and that an attorney for the
defendant, Volodymyr Zhukovskyy agreed to the
motion. Zhukovskyy, 23, of West Springfield, was
arrested on seven counts of negligent homicide
on June 24, and he waived arraignment on the
charges the next day, entering a not guilty plea.
He’s beenheld without bail pending a trial or a
formal bail hearing.NEWTONCrystalLake closedforswimmingdueto algaeThere will be no swimming allowed at Crystal
Lake for at least a week due to heightened levels
of algae were found in the water, the mayor’s of-
fice announced Wednesday. “No one — humans
or pets — should have contact with the water,”
the office wrote in a community update e-mailed
to residents. Anyonewho comes in accidental
contact should rinse of immediately, the state-
ment said.HARTFORDMGMsuesovertribalcasinodealCasino developer MGMhas filed a lawsuit chal-
lenging the federal approval of a deal that would
allow Connecticut’s two Indian tribes to open a
third casino in the state. The lawsuit, filed
Wednesday in Washington D.C., challenges the
Department of the Interior’s approval of amend-
ments to the gaming compact between the state
and the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan
tribes. MGM says the approval creates an unlaw-
ful advantage for the tribes in competing for casi-
no rights off of tribal lands. (AP)POLICEBLOTTERRCARJACKINGBoston police on Wednesday ar-
rested a 21-year-old Randolph woman and an
18-year-old South End resident for allegedly
cruising around in a vehicle that had been stolen
the day before during an armed carjacking in the
city. In a statement, police identified the Ran-
dolph woman as Shaasia Edmonds and the
South End man as Makel Lopes. Both were
booked on charges of receiving a stolen motor
vehicle. It wasn’t known if they had hired law-
yers. Police arrested them around 2 a.m.
Wednesday in the area of Dudley and West Cot-
tage streets in Dorchester, police said. “Officers
conducted a traffic stop and removed both occu-
pants from the vehicle. The female operator [Ed-
monds] stated she was given the keys by a thirdparty and was unaware the vehicle had been sto-
len,” the statement said.ROILSPILLBoston firefighters cleaned up a 50-
gallon oil spill after a truck overflowed at an auto
shop in Charlestown Wednesday morning, the
Boston Fire Department said in a tweet. The in-
cident occurred around9 a.m. at AAMCOTrans-
missions & Total Car Care at 125 Cambridge St.,
the tweet said. No one was injured, and the auto
shop was not evacuated, a manager at the shop
said.RMANSTRUCKBYCRUISERA 79-year-old Brain-
tree man was struck by a police cruiser that was
headed to a medical emergency call in Quincyon Wednesday morning and later taken to a Bos-
ton hospital in critical condition, authorities
said. Quincy police said the victim, Giovanni An-
gelucci, was struck just after 7:20 a.m.“As offi-
cers responded, with emergency lights activated,
an officer struck a male pedestrian as he crossed
Independence Ave. near Goddard Street. The pe-
destrian... was transported to [Boston Medical
Center] in critical condition,” Quincy police
wrote on Facebook. Quincy police Captain John
Dougan, a departmentspokesman, said the offi-
cer was also taken to the hospital to be checked
out and has been placed on temporary leave
while the investigation proceeds. The Wey-
mouth police Crash Reconstruction Unit is inves-
tigating the incident, officials said.GETSMARTByMaria Lovato
GLOBECORRESPONDENT
The danger of Eastern equine encephalitis
being spread by mosquitoes in a section of
Southeastern Massachusetts has risen to a lev-
el that will require aerial insecticide spraying
this week.
The state Department of Public Health has
designated 20 communities as high risk.
Spraying will occur in targeted areas in Bristol
and Plymouth counties beginning Thursday,
authorities said. EEE has been foundin 164
samples this year, about half from species of
mosquito capable of spreading the virusto
people.
No humanor animal cases of EEE have
been detected so far in Massachusetts this
year. The last human case in the state oc-
curred in 2013.
Here is what you need to knowabout East-
ern equineencephalitis.
What is EEE?
It is a serious and potentially fatal disease
that can be spread from mosquitoes to other
animalsand humans. Those underthe age of
15 are particularly at risk, according to the
Department of Public Health.
The virus is rare, and the last case of a hu-
man infection in Massachusetts was in 2013,
officials said. During the last two outbreaks,
the first from 2004 to 2006and the second
from 2010 to 2012, 22 humans were infected.
However, a high risk of the occurrence of
human cases is present this year, the Depart-
ment of Public Health said. This is because
thereare an abundance of infected mammal-
biting mosquitoes, and environmental condi-
tionsare optimal for mosquito breeding.
State officials say the month of August is
when the chance of infection fromthe virus
peaks.
What are theMass.communitiesat risk?
Berkley, Bridgewater, Dighton, East
Bridgewater, Halifax, Plympton, Rehoboth,
West Bridgewater, and Whitman are the latest
communities to be deemed high risk fromthe
mosquito-borne disease.
The 13 communities previously identified
are Acushnet, Fairhaven, Marion, Matta-
poisett, Rochester, Taunton, Carver, Easton,
Freetown, Lakeville,Middleborough, New
Bedford, and Raynham, officials said.
What will the sprayinginvolve?
The insecticide Anvil 10+10 will be
sprayed from an airplane for several days
from dusk until midnight, officials said.
Anvil 10+10is made from sumithrin, a
chemical that is used to kill mosquitoes and
rapidly decomposes and deactivates when ex-
posed to light and air, officials said. Piperonyl
butoxide is also used in Anvil 10+10 to en-
hance the sumithrin.
The aerosol droplets from the spray kill
mosquitoes on contact in the air. It is regis-
tered by the US Environmental Protection
Agency and used regularly in 10 other states,
the Department of Public Health said.
The EPA says sumithrin can be used for
mosquito-control programs withoutposing
unreasonable risks to human health when ap-
plied according to the label. It will not affect
the water supply and will be sprayed at night
when bees are most likely to be in their hives
and fish are least likely to be near the surface
of pools, state officials said. Still, residents can
choose to reduce exposure by staying indoors,
keeping pets inside, and covering outdoor fish
ponds, officials said.
The schedule and length of the aerial
sprayings is dependent on the weather and
the insecticide’s effectiveness. The Depart-
ment of Public Health and Department of Ag-
ricultural Resources are encouraging resi-
dents to check the Massachusetts govern-
ment’s website for updates.
What areas are in thespray zone?
Raynham, Taunton, Dighton, Berkley,
Freetown, Acushnet, Whitman, East Bridge-
water, West Bridgewater, Hanson, Bridgewa-
ter, Halifax, Plympton, Kingston, Carver, Mid-
dleborough, Lakeville, and Rochester are in
the spray zone in their entirety. Easton, Nor-
ton, Rehoboth, Swansea, Fall River, Dart-
mouth, New Bedford, Fairhaven, Brockton,
Rockland, Hanover, Pembroke, Duxbury,
Plymouth, Wareham,Marion, and Matta-
poisett are partially in the area to be sprayed.
How can weavoid mosquito bites?
Residents in the affected areas can protect
themselves by staying inside from dusk to
dawn, the peakmosquito hours, applying in-
sect repellent, repairing screens in doors and
windows, protecting pets, and draining stand-
ing water, officials said.
Maria Lovatocanbe reached at
[email protected].
A primeron EEETheMetroMinuteDAVID L. RYAN/GLOBE STAFFTHEYDIDN’TGET AWAY— For the first timein eightyears, youngwomen werethe only oneswho caught fish at the Save
the Harbor/Save the Bay’s Annual Youth FishingTournamenton Wednesday. Grace Burns(left) usedher leg to hold up her
fish, the largest caught. AboutBoston 50 teensspent the morning on donated charter boats fishingin Boston Harbor.