Hookah lounge pitched to Brooke health board

WELLSBURG -- On Monday the Brooke County health board heard a proposal for a hookah lounge and was updated on the local status of COVID-19.

Business owner Justin Dixon approached the board about plans in Weirton to open a hookah lounge, where adults could gather and smoke shisha from a waterpipe.

Derived from a tobacco leaf, shisha often is soaked with various flavors, such as mint, vanilla and peach, and has a calming effect, said Dixon, who said he was first exposed to it while serving in the military in the Middle East.

He said he has operated such lounges in Texas, where they are fairly common, but was aware of only Pittsburgh lounges in the local area.

Dixon said he envisions the local lounge including arcade games and also catering to families on movie and other theme nights when smoking wouldn't occur. He said he'd like to feature comedians and other entertainment to offer something for area residents to do.

In recent years, the board amended its smoke-free policy for public places to include casinos after their owners complained the inability to smoke kept away customers.

The only other exception has been the Garden Grill Steakhouse in Weirton, which has been permitted to maintain an enclosed cigar bar provided its owners conduct third-party private testing to show its air handler system has prevented the spread of smoke and met other conditions.

Bolen told Dixon he would need to show the board his own plans to contain smoke from the shisha.

The board advised Dixon to submit such plans to Bolen for its review while cautioning him against investing in such measures without its approval.

But after he left, board members voiced concerns about Dixon's plans to serve food and admit minors, albeit in hours separate from those designated for smoking, and that permitting the hookah lounge would set a precedent for other exceptions to the smoke-free policy, which was intended also to protect employees and vendors serving businesses from secondhand smoke.

They agreed to notify Dixon of their lack of support.

Also on Monday, Bolen told the board the number of COVID-19 cases has greatly declined, which he attributed to the large number of people of who have been voluntarily vaccinated.

He said for a time the department was receiving reports of 25 to 30 new cases each day and nearly all of the long-term care facilities in the county had reported cases, but that has changed.

Bolen said 39 percent of the county's residents, or about 8,500, have received at least the first dose of vaccine and about 17 percent are fully vaccinated.

He said the number doesn't include those who have been vaccinated at local pharmacies and outside the county.

Bolen said since the vaccine became available, the department has administered it to 300 to 500 people per week. He said in addition to using the Wellsburg Fire Department's social hall, staff have taken the vaccine to senior apartment complexes and some homebound residents.

Bolen said in the near future the department is expected to receive the single-dose vaccine produced by Johnson & Johnson, and he's hopeful staff will be able to perform the vaccinations at their office within the next few months.

He acknowledged state officials are investigating four COVID-19 related deaths that weren't reported but said it's likely they were an oversight.

He and April Eltringham, the department's community wellness coordinator, said out-of-state deaths, recorded by doctors there, were among the many submitted to the state through a process that was changed a few times since the pandemic began.

Bolen said the department will continue to offer free COVID-19 testing from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Tuesday except today at the Wellsburg Banquet Hall on 12th Street.

In other business, the board reappointed John Cunningham and Joe Ierise as its chairman and vice chairman, respectively, and welcomed new member Carrie Estrada, a Follansbee resident with a background in nursing.

The board also includes Mary Blum and Jennifer Cross.

(Scott can be contacted at wscott@heraldstaronline.com.)