Franklin Matters: 2024-06-16

Saturday, June 22, 2024

What's happening in Franklin, MA: Saturday, June 22, 2024?

Saturday, June 22

10:00am Franklin Historical Museum (always free)

10:00am Goat Yoga (Fairmount Farms)

10:30am Kick Off to Summer Reading (Franklin Public Library)

7:30pm Electric Youth Bon Voyage Concert (THE BLACK BOX)

8:00pm Karaoke Night (Raillery Public House)

Note - Franklin Pride Day rescheduled for Sunday, June 23, same hours 12 - 4 PM

** NO Town Meetings today

What's happening today in Franklin?

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Why are there multiple calendars?

There is a Cultural events calendar upon which other community events are layered to create the Community calendar.

Respectfully, the Library and Senior Center calendars are too full of events to include all their events so we tend to focus on the major events. Town and School meetings are also kept separate. Links for all the calendars are shared here:

The Cultural calendar displays only the cultural events

https://www.franklinculture.org/things-do/pages/calendar

Find the full Community event calendar https://bit.ly/FranklinCommunityCalendar

If you have an event to add to the calendar, you can use the form to submit it for publication: https://bit.ly/Submit2Calendar

The Library calendar of events -> calendar link

The Senior Center calendar of events -> https://www.franklinma.gov/node/39/events/month/39/2023-12

The Town meeting calendar is found https://www.franklinma.gov/calendar
The School district calendar is found https://www.franklinps.net/calendar-by-event-type/26

Davis Thayer Building Reuse Advisory Committee scheduled to meet Tuesday, June 25 at 7 PM

Davis Thayer Building Reuse Advisory Committee

Agenda & Meeting Packet

June 25, 2024 at 7:00 PM

Meeting will be held at the Municipal Building

2nd Floor, Council Chambers

355 East Central Street

Agenda:

1. Expressions of Interest Presentations (anticipated times)

a. 7:00 to 7:20 - Dean College
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/uploads/rei_davis_thayer_letter_of_interest_proposal_narrative_and_project_description_-_dean_college.pdf
b. 7:20 to 7:40 - Pennrose, LLC
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/uploads/pennrose.pdf
c. 7:40 to 8:00 - HFA and TMC Properties
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/uploads/tmc_hfa_davis_thayer_submission_email.pdf
d. 8:00 to 8:20 - Camford Property Group, Inc.
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/uploads/camford_property_group.pdf

2. Final Recommendation to the Town Council

a. Draft Letter https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/uploads/2024-06-26_davis-thayer_reuse_committee_recommendation.pdf

3. Adjourn

Davis Thayer Building Reuse Advisory Committee scheduled to meet Tuesday, June 25 at 7 PM

"The Town Council will consider a proposed FY25 Budget adjustment"

June 21, 2024

To: Town Council

From: Jamie Hellen, Town Administrator

Amy Frigulietti, Deputy Town Administrator

Re: FY25 Budget Adjustment

The Town Council will consider a proposed FY25 Budget adjustment to cut from municipal services in an eﬀort to restore some of the School cuts that have been proposed due to the failed townwide override vote on June 11, 2024.

We are proposing municipal budget adjustments before the Council for consideration this evening due to the overwhelming amount of public feedback from school parents, educators and stakeholders in the wake of the failed override vote. While we do not take these cuts lightly, we feel they are necessary to try and preserve some of the School cuts. With that said, we want to be clear that this is not a request that has been made by the Superintendent or School Committee. The decision to further trim from the municipal budget was examined, in response to public feedback, with the intention of presenting the next level of discussion and engagement on the town budget prior to the ﬁscal year beginning.

At the meeting on Wednesday, June 26th, we will present a brief slideshow outlining proposed cuts line item by line item and will have handouts. We are still working with our ﬁnance team on the slideshow, lists of cuts, communicating them, and revising the voting document for the Town Council to consider. Once ﬁnalized, we will publish these materials and will have all the information to the Town Council and the Community as soon as possible.

As we have mentioned many times before, the amount of work requested of our staﬀ far exceeds the actual staﬀ capacity. We all have so much going on right now, general administration of these types of items is very challenging to do.

The ﬁrst round of proposed cuts focuses on areas that generate little to no revenue. When the town considers cuts, we also have to be cognizant of the oﬀsetting revenues various departments bring in and potential cost increases associated with cuts, such as overtime, that may accompany a ﬁnal decision.

Please let us know if you have any questions and more materials will be made available next week.

The full Town Council agenda for June 26 -> https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/agendas/town_council_agenda_-_june_26_2024.pdf

The FY 25 Budget update memo ->

https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/uploads/8a._1_-_memo_-_fy25_budget_adjustment_-_google_docs.pdf

"The Town Council will consider a proposed FY25 Budget adjustment"

School Committee with a light agenda list has heavy discussions (audio)

FM #1238 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1238 in the series.

This session shares the Franklin (MA) School Committee meeting held on Tuesday, June 18, 2024. Five members of the Committee were present in the Council Chambers. Vice Chair Dave McNeill led the session as Chair D Callaghan and E Gallagher were absent.

Quick recap:

Elementary Report Card Update, modifications made since last meeting, approved later in session
EFD - Meal Charge Policy & EFD-R - Meal Charge Policy and Procedures both approved
Fee Increase Vote, due to failed override, a number of fees were approved for an increase
Superintendent’s Evaluation Report, discussed and approved with a rating of “Proficient”
FY 2025 Budget Update, was available on the website, at least as of Friday. With failure of the override program and staff cuts to live within the original amount provided by the Town $75M, hence 37 positions cut, 33 were educators. Difference between "reduction" vs "eliminated" explained
Multiple citizen comments, mostly passionate advocating for restoration of music and art programs

The recording runs about 3 hours minutes, so let’s listen in. Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1238-franklin-ma-school-cmte-mtg-06-18-24

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The Franklin TV video is available for replay -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcxG4nP96wQ

FY 2025 Budget update ->

https://www.franklinps.net/sites/g/files/vyhlif4431/f/uploads/budget_update_to_sc_6_18_24.pdf

Agenda doc -> https://www.franklinps.net/sites/g/files/vyhlif4431/f/agendas/scagenda_6-18-24.pdf

Meeting packet folder -> (other docs released for this meeting, some of them available after the meeting) https://www.franklinps.net/district/meeting-packets/pages/june-18-2024-school-committee-meeting-packet

My notes in one PDF -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bPdSl_iiJ_lSDyK8hAT9Rt262UZpM8dI/view?usp=drive_link

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We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.

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

How can you help?

If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors
If you don't like something here, please let me know

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

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/ or www.franklin.news

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!

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You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

School Committee with a light agenda list has heavy discussions (audio)

Sign up for the FREE Stop the Bleed Training Course scheduled for July 24

Stop the Bleed Training Course

The Town of Franklin Health Dept. & Fire Dept. Present: STOP THE BLEED, a training course in how to recognize life-threatening bleeding and act quickly and effectively to control it. Become empowered to make a life or death difference when a bleeding emergency happens.

Wednesday, July 24 from 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM at the EOC Classroom located at Franklin Fire Headquarters, 40 West Central St.

Shared from -> https://www.franklinma.gov/home/news/stop-bleed-training-course-2

Download the flyer as a reminder or to share -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/14S3CDUhPVM3K5gxYdx9RKM2oB0rnyuZs/view?usp=drive_link

HMEA IncreABLE day, Sunday, June 23 at King St Memorial Park

"We’re only a few days away from incredABLE Day, and we can’t wait to see you all! It’s been a while since we’ve hosted incredABLE Day, so we’ve compiled some answers to our most frequently asked questions so you know what to expect. Check them out!"

What is the HMEA incredABLE Day?

"HMEA’s incredABLE Day is back! Join us for a day of family fun with the HMEA community. All ages and abilities are welcome to join us for food, games, a 1-mile walk, raffles, and so much more!

This event is free to attend, though donations and fundraising are strongly encouraged and appreciated. All proceeds benefit the programs of HMEA."

Find out more about the incredABLE Day -> https://www.hmea.org/incredableday/

HMEA IncreABLE day, Sunday, June 23 at King St Memorial Park

FAQs shared from -> https://www.instagram.com/p/C8Zl8edx_R5/

Beaver Street Interceptor: Construction update for week of June 24, 2024

Beaver Street Interceptor (BSI)

BSI Construction Update for the Week of June 24th!

Monday (6/24) - Friday (6/28) the construction crew will conduct test pits on Rt. 140 from Old West Central to Beaver Street, on Beaver Street from Rt. 140 to the Recreation Center and on Fisher Street. Between the hours of 7am - 4pm expect lane closures on Rt. 140 at the Grove Street intersection, Rt. 140, Beaver Street, and Fisher Street as this work progresses.

Starting Monday (6/24) thru Friday (6/28) between 7am to 5pm, the cleaning and lining of the existing Beaver Street Interceptor will be occurring on Cottage Street from Union to Saxon, and Fisher Street to Hayward Street and on Hayward Street as well. During this time by-pass pumping will be set up and should not cause any service disruptions.

At the Franklin Recreation Center, the construction of the new Beaver Street Interceptor Pump Station will continue this week. There is a new way in and out of the Recreation Center, please follow the posted signage. During times of drop off and pickup backup onto Beaver Street may occur.

Please reference the interactive map below and posted signs for details and updates.

We appreciate the public's continued support and understanding and will
continue to communicate regularly via social media, our dedicated email list, and the construction map below as work progresses.

BEAVER STREET INTERCEPTOR HOTLINE: 508-553-5526
(PLEASE LEAVE A MESSAGE AND WE WILL RETURN YOUR CALL)
EMAIL: BSI-info@franklinma.gov

Beaver Street Interceptor Rehabilitation/Replacement Project

This project consists of the replacement and repair of Franklin's largest piece of sewer infrastructure, originally constructed in 1914.

Beaver Street Interceptor: Construction update for week of June 24, 2024

This site and map will be updated on a weekly basis to convey upcoming construction activities for the Beaver Street Interceptor (BSI) Construction project.

Interested in receiving email updates regarding the
Beaver Street Interceptor Rehabilitation/Replacement Project?
Please subscribe here (select Beaver Street Interceptor from the list).

Shared from -> https://www.franklinma.gov/water-sewer-division/pages/beaver-street-interceptor

Franklin Youth Open Track & Field meets set for Tuesday's in July

Franklin Youth Open Track & Field

Coach Bailey (@FranklinHSXC) posted on Fri, Jun 21, 2024:

"The summer youth meets are back! Join the FHS and Tri-county track and field teams as we host three open youth meets beginning on July 9th.

The entry fee gets you unlimited events so don't t miss out. Any current or former track athletes are welcome to volunteer"

Shared from -> https://t.co/qjEy1UNNvv