Community Walking – free & open to the public, through to May, 24, 2018

Franklin residents are invited to walk on the high school track or in the hallways. Walking is available Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM when Lifelong Community Learning is in session. There is no walking during school vacations. 

Walkers may use the elevated track when there are no games taking place in the gym. When there are games in the gym, walkers may use the high school hallways on the first floor. There will be signs in the Lifelong Community Learning Office to inform walkers whether the track or hallways are available.

Walkers should enter the Panther Door and go to the Lifelong Community Learning Office to sign-in and receive a guest lanyard. When they are finished walking, they go back to the Lifelong Community Learning Office, sign-out, and return their guest lanyard. The sign-in/sign-out process and the wearing of guest lanyards are part of the school safety protocol. 

For more information about Community Walking, please email us at lcl@franklinps.net or phone Lifelong Community Learning at 508-613-1480.

Community Walking – free & open to the public, through to May, 24, 2018

This was shared from the Lifelong Learning page
http://www.franklinlifelonglearning.com/adult_education/community_walking.php

In the News: Detour for Prospect St; mobilizing for justice; Tri-County to build playground

From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:

"The Department of Public Works began water pipe replacement work at the end of Prospect Street this week, causing a detour route that’s expected to last about three weeks. 

Construction will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to help the traffic flow as much as possible during busier hours. The detour route takes drivers from Washington Street, then to Lake Street in Bellingham."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20171002/franklin-prospect-street-detour-to-last-three-weeks

Upcoming Prospect Street Detour

"Mobilizing Congregations for Justice will take place from 1-3 p.m. Oct. 15 at the First Universalist Society, 262 Chestnut St. 

The suggested donation is $20 per person. Pre-registration is not required. 

The group will discuss what it looks like when the worship, music, board of directors, RE program and finance committee are brought into a shared vision and how the basic tools of community organizing can help get there."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20171002/strongfirst-universalist-society-announces-mobilizing-congregations-for-justice-eventstrong

"The Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School and the Plainville Public Library have announced a partnership that will give students the opportunity to create a new, interactive play structure area in the Children’s Library. 

The project will be educationally focused on curriculum for children from birth to age six. 

This project consists of federal funds provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners. The MBLC developed this direct grant program using federal funding to help libraries meet local community needs including financial and health literacy programs, STEM and STEAM projects, programs that help New Americans learn English and become citizens, programs that serve teen needs and projects that preserve valuable historical documents."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20171002/strongtri-county-regional-and-plainville-library-to-build-play-structurestrong

Tri-County & Plainville Public Library Team Up to Create an Interactive Play Structure in the Children’s Library

FinCom Meeting Sep 26, 2017 (audio recording)

This internet radio show or podcast is number 132 in the series for Franklin Matters. This captures and shares the audio recording of the Finance Committee (FinCom) meeting held September 26, 2017.




The first 20 minutes of the meeting covered the discussion of several FY 2018 budget adjustments and funding appropriations. Normally these are done closer to the tax rate hearing but some of the items were time sensitive. The Police radio and police canine dog replacement in particular were needed to be approved now.

The motions to approve these occur at the end of the initial segment, again about 20 minutes.

During the second part of the meeting, Town Administrator Jeff Nutting assisted by Deputy Administrator Jamie Hellen, Treasurer/Collector Jim Dacey and Deputy Treasurer Kerri Bertone provide some background on the OPEB obligation update, insights on the potential for water and sewer increases coming up for discussion in January 2018.

Jeff also recognizes Jim Dacey for his work in this his last FinCom meeting. He also provides some insights on the restructuring of the finance functions with Kerri proposed to replace Jim, and a new hire being sought to replace Susan Gagner.

Before the meeting closes, there is an update on the EPA stormwater regulations which have been held up by court suits. One that Franklin and MA participated in and then a counter suit.

Without further ado, here is the recording

-------------

This brings the recording of the Finance Committee (FinCom) meeting held Sep 26, 2017 to a close..

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but I can't do it alone. I can use your help.

How can you help?

If you like this, please tell your friends and neighbors.
If you don't like this, please let me know.

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements.
Thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana" c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission

I hope you enjoy!



My notes for the meeting were also published here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2017/09/live-reporting-finance-committee-092617.html

------------------

You can also subscribe and listen to the audio on iTunes = search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters on iTunes

Franklin Town Council Recap - Sep 27, 2017

The Town Council approved land for sale (NuStyle), land for sale (Summer St to the abutter), approved the zoning change for the Union/Cottage St area, appointed a new Treasurer/Collector, held a public hearing on a bylaw amendment to correct inconsistencies in setback requirements, approved the corporate move on the liquor license for 99 Restaurant, approved funding for the rework of the police radio system for the north end of town and the purchase of a new canine (to replace Axe). These are among the key items from the Council meeting held on Wednesday, Sep 27, 2017.

The budget changes and the funding approvals had been before the Finance Committee (Tuesday, Sep 26) and gained their approval. 

The appointment of Kerri Bertone had been foretold in the move in August 2016 with her hiring as the Deputy Treasurer. The move in 2016 had been question by Debbie Pellegri who questioned the move and hiring again this time and was joined in the action by Judy Pfeffer. Both of these councilors voted against in the measure that passed by a 7-2 vote.

map showing the zoning change for the Union/Cottage street area

map showing the location of the NuStyle brown fields property on Grove St being put up via RFP for sale

The official "Actions Taken" report from the Town Council for Weds meeting
http://www.franklinma.gov/sites/franklinma/files/uploads/town_council_actions_taken_for_september_27_2017.pdf

Additional details can be found in my notes captured while reporting live during the meeting on Weds. 

• Live reporting: Closing items
• Live reporting: Legislation for Action
• Live reporting: License transaction for 99 Restaur...
• Live Reporting: Public Hearing - Bylaw amendment o...
• Live reporting: Town Council - Sep 27, 2017

From the archives:

In the Council Comments from Town Council meeting held 8/10/17, Debbie Pellegri raised questions about the appointment of the Deputy Treasurer/Collector reported to be passing over someone else in the office who was reported to be 'qualified'

In the video on demand archive, the Council meeting can be found here

http://view.earthchannel.com/PlayerController.aspx?&PGD=franknma&eID=382

Got to about 1:05 (one hour, five minutes) to catch the comments

The Franklin Matters meeting notes link for summary of 8/10/17

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2016/08/town-council-actions-taken-august-10.html

Franklin School Committee Recap - Sep 26, 2017

While I missed the first 45 minutes of the meeting on Tuesday night, it was for a good cause. I captured the audio recording of the Finance Committee meeting to share. Franklin TV was already recording the SchCom meeting for replay via video on demand.

When I arrived, the elementary school principals were reviewing their School Improvement Plans.

The plans can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2017/09/elementary-school-improvement-plans.html

This was the first meeting conducted with the new 'order of business' or agenda approved at the last meeting. The documentation to support the meeting flow can be tweaked a little to help it. With 'Discussion and Action' as well as 'Discussion Only' items and several items in each category, it can be confusing.

The policy documents were only released on Tuesday afternoon, too late for them to be shared and likely actually read to help prepare for the meeting. I raised this as an issue during the meeting and it will be addressed.

The policy documents can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2017/09/policies-for-discussion-action-items.html

The most interesting discussion was around the proposal for the FHS boys varsity basketball team to travel for a holiday week tournament in FL during Dec 2017. Ultimately, the proposal was sent back to come again with additional information for discussion before being voted on.

The School Committee will have a table at the Harvest Festival scheduled for Saturday, Oct 14.

The next regularly scheduled meeting, Tuesday, Oct 10, will be a budget workshop rather than follow the normal meeting agenda. The meeting will be held in the 3rd Floor Training Room at the Municipal Bldg at 7 PM.



My notes summarized via Storify from the tweets sent during the meeting can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2017/09/live-reporting-school-committee-sep-26.html

new lane lines painted on the track that was redone recently at FHS

the track is protected for the football team to use

hopefully the track will be completed and ready for use soon

Register O'Donnell Hosts Computer Seminars for Municipal Employees

	Norfolk County Registry of Deeds
	Register O'Donnell Hosts Computer Seminars for Municipal Employees Recognizing the increased usage of recorded land documents by local Norfolk County city and town governments, Register of Deeds William P. O'Donnell recently hosted 2 free informational seminars on computer assisted land record research for municipal employees and community officials. "These computer seminars were designed to help municipal employees and community officials familiarize themselves with our computer system and promote best practices when researching on-line land document information," noted Register O'Donnell. Seminar attendees learned how to navigate the Registry's online research page www.norfolkdeeds.org and to access documents such as deeds, mortgages, mortgage discharges, Homesteads, decisions, orders and permits. All of the Registry's land documents are online and are accessible within 24 business hours of recording. The Norfolk County Registry of Deeds state-of-the-art computer system has more than 6 million land document images available for viewing, dating back to President George Washington's administration in 1793. Register O'Donnell noted, "An important relationship I highly value is the one between the Registry of Deeds and the 28 municipalities in Norfolk County. Local agencies continuously depend upon us to provide them with easily accessible and accurate land document information including assessors, zoning boards of appeals and conservation commissions." Additionally, there were several Registry staffers on hand, including Register O'Donnell, who were available to assist and answer questions. Each individual who attended the seminars received reference materials for their office use. Register O'Donnell concluded, "I was delighted to see the tremendous response we had for these computer seminars. Furthermore, the interaction we had with our partners in local government left no doubt in my mind that these seminars were of great value and assistance." To learn more about these and other Registry of Deeds events and initiatives, like us at facebook.com/NorfolkDeeds or follow us on twitter.com/NorfolkDeeds and instagram.com/NorfolkDeeds. The Norfolk County Registry of Deeds is located at 649 High Street, Dedham. The Registry is a resource for homeowners, title examiners, mortgage lenders, municipalities and others with a need for secure, accurate, accessible land record information. All land record research information can be found on the Registry's website at www.norfolkdeeds.org. Residents in need of assistance can contact the Registry of Deeds Customer Service Center at (781) 461-6101, or email us at registerodonnell@norfolkdeeds.org. Register William P. O'Donnell Norfolk County Registry of Deeds email: registerodonnell@norfolkdeeds.org phone: 781-234-3336 web: http://www.norfolkdeeds.org

Norfolk County Registry of Deeds, 649 High Street, Dedham,, MA 02026-1831 Sent by registerodonnell@norfolkdeeds.org in collaboration with Try it free today

Register O'Donnell Hosts Computer Seminars for Municipal Employees

Help the Community Garden rebuild their garden beds

Hello Gardeners, (and friends of gardening!)

ALL-HANDS BUILD DAY SCHEDULED FOR SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15 9:00 AM TO FINISH.

ALL GARDENERS are needed for build day. Arrive before 9:00 AM on 10/15/17.

Sign-up: Respond directly to bonnie.kaiden@gmail.com or leave message at mobile 413-281-0487. I will contact you to confirm and answer questions.

OCTOBER 7: WORKDAY: WORKERS NEEDED TO PRE-CUT WOOD FOR BUILD DAY. CHOP SAW WILL BE ON-SITE. Respond to: bonnie.kaiden@gmail.com. Rich Clauser will be on-site to direct this work.

TEAM LEADERS NEEDED FOR BUILD DAY: Respond directly to bonnie.kaiden@gmail.com. Rich Clauser will contact you to coordinate and train team leaders.

WHAT TO BRING:

• Battery-powered power drill/screw driver (if you have) - bring drill bit kit
• Wrenches
• Screwdrivers, Hammer
• Shovels
• Gloves, hats
• *Wear enclosed shoes

REFRESHMENTS WILL BE AVAILABLE!

We look forward to your responses and to working with you to re-build our garden on October 15. We also need people to cut wood on Saturday October 7 Workday.

On Behalf of your Committee,

Bonnie Kaiden
Chair, Franklin Community Gardens

a garden bed without the old falling apart wood frame

new wood delivered and ready for cutting building

what the new wood frames will look like

Note: after visiting and reporting on the Community Garden progress since the garden was born in 2011 I finally obtained a garden bed this year. It was a wonderful experience and I look forward to more growing seasons.


Photos from 2011
https://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_sherlock/sets/72157627530923300/

Birthday party in 2012
https://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_sherlock/sets/72157629949244080/

FHS Cross Country results - MSCTA Frank Kelley XC Invitational - Sep 30, 2017

The Mass State Track Coaches Assoc (MSCTA) Frank Kelley XC Invitational was held on the Wrentham Development Center grounds on Saturday, Sep 30, 2017. The races are by grades so you don't get a good view of the 'team' results/ However, the runners get experience on the course and the times can be compared.

The top Franklin results from each race are listed here. The links to the complete results for each race are also provided. If I missed some Franklin runners it was not my intent.

The results are shown on each line in the order of
Finish - Runner# - Name - Grade - Time


Boys 5k Run CC Open
9 2279 Goldman, Ryan 11 Franklin 17:24.69
14 2263 Barrow, Daniel 11 Franklin 17:31.71
46 2296 Ross, Cooper 11 Franklin 18:37.52
47 2288 McKenna, Owen 12 Franklin 18:40.40
57 2300 Siders, Zachary 12 Franklin 19:05.35
64 2282 Jacobs, William 12 Franklin 19:15.03
69 2311 Zaffino, Nicholas 11 Franklin 19:19.67
71 2293 Quinn, Nicholas 09 Franklin 19:22.18
77 2299 Shumway, Matthew 11 Franklin 19:28.81
100 2292 Parkman, Bryce 12 Franklin 19:58.03
125 2295 Richert, Nicholas 12 Franklin 20:56.47
129 2278 Flynn, Ian 12 Franklin 21:06.79

Complete listing for Boys 5K
http://www.mstca.org/Fall_Season/Fall%202017/Boys%20D1%205K.htm


Boys 3k Run CC Grades 11-12
100 2264 Bokelman, Nicholas 11 Franklin 12:18.20
110 2283 Karp, Matthew 12 Franklin 12:35.64
111 2271 Corcoran, John 11 Franklin 12:36.88
122 2310 Winiker, Jared 11 Franklin 12:58.24
123 2287 McGonagle, Mike 12 Franklin 13:02.23
128 2289 Miklas, Stuart 12 Franklin 13:08.23
133 2307 White, Jared 11 Franklin 13:22.99
136 2281 Hertzberg, Brandon 12 Franklin 13:30.80
147 2286 McCarthy, Andrew 12 Franklin 14:41.96

Complete listing for Boys 3k Run 11-12
http://www.mstca.org/Fall_Season/Fall%202017/Boys%20D1%2011-12.htm


Boys 3k Run CC Grades 9-10
5 2267 Cashin, Luke 09 Franklin 10:26.45
26 2303 Vining, Tyler 10 Franklin 10:54.83
28 2304 Walmsley, Declan 09 Franklin 10:56.42
31 2308 Whitmore, Cutler 10 Franklin 11:01.08
81 2309 Whitney, Wyatt 10 Franklin 11:38.97
104 2306 Whalen, Miles 09 Franklin 11:51.67
138 2277 Fila-Montgomery, Quinn 09 Franklin 12:07.87
175 2297 Rossi, Andrew 10 Franklin 12:27.82
185 2262 Angermeier, Josh 10 Franklin 12:32.97
198 2269 Cerier, William 09 Franklin 12:40.91
202 2291 Park, Ethan 09 Franklin 12:44.72
223 2266 Bryan, Shane 09 Franklin 12:56.90
253 2285 Linkkila, Matthew 09 Franklin 13:29.62
257 2265 Bryan, Luke 09 Franklin 13:32.95
259 2272 Coyne, Harry 09 Franklin 13:33.87
261 2274 Dexter, CJ 10 Franklin 13:37.16
275 2312 Zercie, Joseph 09 Franklin 14:04.78
281 2275 Dombrowski, Adam 09 Franklin 14:15.70
286 2284 Klawson, Hunter 09 Franklin 14:33.33
294 2273 Delvecchio, Travis 09 Franklin 15:03.20
295 2290 O'Rourke, Ryan 09 Franklin 15:03.62
305 2276 Donahue, Trevor 09 Franklin 16:15.41
306 2301 Souza, Camden 09 Franklin 16:16.34

Complete listing for Boys 3k Run 9-10
http://www.mstca.org/Fall_Season/Fall%202017/Boys%20D1%209-10.htm


Girls 3k Run CC Grades 11-12 Division 1
1 833 Clermont, Nicole 12 Franklin 11:23.58
3 841 Hartnett, Kate 12 Franklin 11:48.90
12 863 Walbert, Katrina 11 Franklin 12:28.05
16 840 Gutkowski, Ella 12 Franklin 12:38.99
18 834 Cummings, Brianna 12 Franklin 12:42.25
20 856 Osborne, Brandi 11 Franklin 12:48.87
21 837 DiGiacomo, Julia 11 Franklin 12:50.32
35 832 Bruns, Maura 11 Franklin 13:19.49
38 862 Viera, Mary 11 Franklin 13:29.30
39 830 Barry, Erin 11 Franklin 13:30.30
40 845 Kim, Kimiya 11 Franklin 13:34.74
44 849 Malachowski, Stephanie 11 Franklin 13:45.41
55 843 Houlihan, Molly 12 Franklin 13:59.36
62 835 Davis, Elizabeth 11 Franklin 14:04.06
80 844 Johnson, Caroline 11 Franklin 14:21.29
95 861 Stavely, Kate 11 Franklin 14:32.02
100 853 Morris, Rachel 11 Franklin 14:39.10
101 855 Nesbit, Alexandra 11 Franklin 14:39.93
123 848 Longobardi, Julia 11 Franklin 15:24.31
147 847 Kroon, Jennifer 11 Franklin 16:40.30
149 860 Stahl, Hannah 11 Franklin 16:55.70
151 846 Knous, Avery 11 Franklin 17:23.94

Complete results for the Girls 3k Run CC Grades 11-12 Division 1
http://www.mstca.org/Fall_Season/Fall%202017/Girls%20D1%2011-12.htm


Girls 3k Run CC Grades 9-10 D1
10 842 Hawkins, Sydney 09 Franklin 12:29.75
62 839 Giuliano, Sarah 10 Franklin 13:49.99
94 859 Schratz, Gina 10 Franklin 14:23.60
98 831 Brady, Sydney 09 Franklin 14:27.23
111 858 Rios, Fernanda 09 Franklin 14:45.10
163 836 DeMarino, Emily 10 Franklin 15:41.36
165 850 Marchese, Kimberly 09 Franklin 15:43.08
170 857 Parker, Christine 09 Franklin 15:47.12
171 838 Forcina, Jacqueline 10 Franklin 15:48.69
182 851 McCaffrey, Erin 09 Franklin 16:09.71
208 854 Myers, Kaylee 10 Franklin 17:01.43
209 852 Modak, Samhita 10 Franklin 17:03.46


Complete results for the Girls 3k Run CC Grades 9-10 D1
http://www.mstca.org/Fall_Season/Fall%202017/Girls%20D1%209-10.htm


All the MSTCA results can be found http://www.mstca.org/Fall_Season/Fall%20Past/Fall%202017.html

FHS Panthers

Updated to add 2 girl runners missed the first time around

April Verch Band at Circle of Friends - Oct 14

Bow. Feet. Voice. A trifecta of talent, keeping tradition feisty.

View this in your browser The April Verch Band Oct 14th 8PM $25 Canadian performer April Verch and her band will be appearing at the Circle of Friends Coffeehouse on Saturday, October 14th at 8PM.  April is a multi-talented performer known for her fiddling, vocals, and step dancing.  While Verch is perhaps best known for playing traditional fiddle styles from her native Ottawa Valley, Canada, her performances extend into old-time American and Appalachian styles and beyond, for a well-rounded tour-de-force of North Americana sounds. Verch tours with world-class musicians as a trio, featuring acoustic guitar, mandolin, bass and clawhammer banjo in addition to Verch's vocals, fiddle and foot percussion. One might suspect a performer with as many talents as Verch would pause to take a breath, or need to somewhat compartmentalize her skills during a live performance. But on stage, Verch is almost superhuman, flawlessly intertwining and overlapping different performative elements. She stepdances while fiddling. She sings while stepdancing. Sometimes she sings, steps and fiddles all at once, with apparent ease and precision. Verch is - as they say - a triple threat in performance, her live show a beautiful companion to her music: versatile, robust, and masterfully executed.  http://aprilverch.com/ The Circle of Friends Coffeehouse is a non-profit organization affiliated with Franklin's First Universalist Society. Concerts are presented in a smoke free and alcohol free environment at the Society's handicapped accessible Meetinghouse, 262 Chestnut St. in Franklin, and begin at 8:00 PM; doors open at 7:30 PM. Beverages and gourmet desserts will be available. Tickets for this shows are $25.  Please call (508)528-2541 or visit http://www.circlefolk.org/ to purchase tickets or for more information. Upcoming Shows Oct 28       Christine Lavin and Don White Nov 4        Eric Schwartz Nov 18      Richard Shindell Dec 9        Winterbloom

Circle of Friends Coffeehouse · First Universalist Society · 262 Chestnut St · Franklin, MA 02038 · USA

Last Call: Boys and Girls Youth Soccer Clinic - Oct 15

Presented by the Franklin High School Soccer Program

Instruction Provided by: FHS Soccer Team Members and Coaches

All skill levels welcome

Grades 1-6 boys 9-10:30 am Grades 1-6 girls 11-12:30 PM- Cost $25

The clinic will run rain or shine

Location: Franklin High School New Turf Field.

Content: The clinic will focus on skills and techniques for any level player.

Equipment: sneaker or cleats, shin guards and a soccer ball. 

Payment: Send the form with a check payable to Franklin Soccer Boosters by October 8, 2017: Kathleen O’Neil at 560 Coronation Dr., Franklin MA 02038. Email: franklinsoccerboosters@gmail.com

Boys and Girls Youth Soccer Clinic - October 15

LET'S LAUGH TODAY in Franklin is on Wednesday, Oct 11

Let's Laugh Today in Franklin is on Wednesday, October 11 (and every second Wednesday of the month) from 7:30pm to 8:30pm at the Meetinghouse of the First Universalist Society in Franklin, 262 Chestnut Street, Franklin. 

Enjoy this delightful practice, appropriate for all ages and levels of fitness.When we laugh, we energize our bodies and revive our spirits. All that is involved is deep breathing and a few stretches, playful laughter exercises (no jokes or comedy), clapping and deep relaxation. 

It has many benefits besides the joy of laughter. It can strengthen the immune system, combat the negative effects of stress, and is a powerful antidote to depression and anxiety. $5 donation to the church, $10 maximum per family. Please bring your water bottle because laughing can be dehydrating. 

Led by Certified Laughter Yoga Teachers, Linda and Bill Hamaker. See www.letslaughtoday.com for opportunities to laugh in other towns. If you have any questions, just call them at 508-660-2223 or e-mail 
billandlinda@letslaughtoday.com.

LET'S LAUGH TODAY in Franklin is on Wednesday, Oct 11