BEN's Bulletin: Senior Village and the Crossing

Moving forward (with a Master Plan in hand!)

BEN's Bulletin (02/24/25)   New year, new Plan! Thanks in part to the consistent support of BEN, the 2025 Master Plan Update unanimously passed the Planning Board & Town Council last month. The Plan lays out a strong vision for a Franklin with complete, inter-connected neighborhoods that balance the Town's environmental, economic, and housing needs. As always, feel free to join our monthly meeting (every third Thursday at 7pm) at Franklin TV or virtually at the following link: meet.ben4franklin.org. Key Agenda Items We return to our regularly-scheduled programming of providing BEN's Take on upcoming meetings of interest. Click HERE for live links to the agenda items. What We're Consuming Can luxury housing do anything for homelessness? (Justine Underhill) Donald Shoup had a major impact on cities (Congress for the New Urbanism) Nook and Cranny Urbanism: How To Maximize Every Inch of Space (Strong Towns) Reach out with any comments or questions. Thanks! The BEN Brigade Know someone else who may be interested in this content? Please share! Newsletter Sign Up Ben 4 Franklin, 23 Hutchinson St, Franklin, MA Send free email today

Representative Roy Calls for Primary Seat Belt Law at the Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts Advocacy Day

On February 4th, 2025, the Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts (BIA-MA) hosted their annual Brain Injury Annual Advocacy Day at the Massachusetts State House. They were advocating for bills requiring commercial health insurers to cover cognitive rehabilitation services for survivors of traumatic brain injury (TBI), continued funding for the Statewide Head Injury Program, and State Representative Jeffrey N. Roy’s primary seat belt bill. 

Rep. Roy attended the Annual Advocacy Day to show his support and addressed the crowd about HD.1180 An Act establishing a primary seat belt law. As he noted in his remarks, “Seatbelts offer the best defense from injury or death in car crashes. Seat belts promote safety, save lives, and save money.”

Rep Jeff Roy addressed the crowd

In fact, statistics demonstrate that we could save 45 lives, prevent 500 injuries, and save $525 million over 5 years with a primary seat belt law in effect. According to a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine, the single greatest opportunity to improve health and reduce premature deaths lies in personal behavior and seat belt use is yet another form of impaired driving that must be addressed. Massachusetts ranks 46th in the nation in seat belt use, lagging the national rate by nearly 10 percent, reinforcing the need for this legislation.

Held at the state house every year, the BIA-MA event provides information on legislative ambitions to constituents, survivors, and elected officials. The push for advocacy does not stop with their policy agenda, as the event is also provides a platform for survivors of traumatic brain injuries to share their personal story on the significant impact of TBI. 

(L-R) Ali Rheaume, Rep Jeff Roy

During the event, Franklin’s Ali Rheaume, a traumatic brain injury survivor., shared her own experiences, stating, “Brain injuries are ‘invisible", meaning you cannot see what the impact is simply by looking at someone. I may look good, but you have no idea that I actually feel confused, foggy, or even in pain. 

“You may get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, drive to work, navigate work all day, and not have to think twice about any of those actions or decisions. For someone who sustained brain injury, every task is a big deal. Choosing your clothes, remembering a schedule, and problem-solving along with sudden issues that arise such as traffic, can all be extremely difficult. It takes cognition, which is affected by brain injury, and that is why we are strongly advocating for new laws, such as Rep Roy’s bill.”

The BIA-MA also presented attendees with an “Unmasking Brain Injury” exhibit. This offered compelling visual insight into TBI survivors’ everyday experiences through their artistic works. Through the speeches of Massachusetts Legislators, BIA-MA, MassAbility, and other survivors, the annual Brain Advocacy Day hopes to ensure stories like Rheaume’s are heard throughout the state. 

For more information on the Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts, please visit https://biama.org/.

Rise Up meeting on Saturday, Feb 15 feaures "special discussion about disability awareness & advocacy"

Hi all,

Rise Up is this Saturday and we will have a special discussion about disability awareness & advocacy!

Date: Saturday, February 15th

Time: 10:00 AM  -11:00 AM

Location: Franklin United Methodist Church, 82 West Central Street, Franklin (Parking and ramp/door on the left side)

Agenda: 

- open social time

- introductions

- presentation/discussion about disability awareness & advocacy

- announcements

- wrap up

See you Saturday!

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This one-hour social meet-up is intended to be a safe space for:

• individuals navigating life with disability to meet others they can relate with
• community partners to learn more about the population and share resources
• support persons to meet other support persons

For additional information about this event, please visit ->  https://alirheaume.com/rise-up

Rise Up meeting on Saturday, Feb 15 feaures "special discussion about disability awareness & advocacy"

(BEN) 4 Franklin to be recognized as a "Rookie of the Year group" by Abundant Housing MA, Inc

Over the past year, two new pro-housing groups have really made an impact in their community and hit the ground running. To celebrate their achievements, we will be honoring Norwood For All and Building Equitable Neighborhoods For Franklin as this year's Rookies of the Year! 

Launched in May 2024 by resident advocates, Gino and Pandora Carlucci, Cobi Frongillo, Mark Minnichelli, Maxwell Morrangiello, Ndoumbe Ndoye, Lisa Oxford and Emma Snellings, Building Equitable Neighborhoods (BEN) 4 Franklin’s mission is to advocate for a Franklin with abundant, affordable housing for all, a walkable, economically vibrant downtown and neighborhoods that evolve in a fiscally responsible manner. 

Building Equitable Neighborhoods (BEN) 4 Franklin

BEN envisions an inviting, diverse, environmentally sustainable, and fiscally strong Franklin where all can be engaged and find a home.  BEN advocates for smart land use practices and zoning policies in the areas of housing, transportation, economic development, culture, environmental sustainability and fiscal solvency. 

In a year, BEN 4 Franklin has…

• Built a growing base of 90+ pro housing advocates
• Hosted a launch event in May that featured a panel discussion on pro-housing advocacy on the state and town level
• Hosted a Jane Jacob's Walk to stimulate conversations about density, walkability and zoning in downtown Franklin
• Tabled at Franklin's annual Strawberry Stroll and Harvest Festival to gain interest in BEN’s cause
• Successfully advocated for the reduction and elimination of parking minimums for Franklin’s proposed 3A district. On August 14, nine town councilors voted unanimously in support of Franklin’s proposed zoning ordinance to comply with the MBTA Communities Law! In contrast to towns that have settled for “paper compliance”, Franklin went steps further: concentrating the new zoning district in the downtown core, allowing for mixed use development to stimulate a walkable, livable district, removing parking minimums for commercial properties and reducing parking minimums from 1.5 to 1 spaces for residential properties
• Appointed numerous BEN-affiliated members to the Zoning Board and Master Plan Committee
• Created website and regular newsletter featuring “BEN’s Take” on proposed development projects and policies before planning and zoning boards

📰 BEN's Bulletin: New Format, MBTA Communities

Key meetings, events, and resources!

BEN's Bulletin (07/08/24)   We've launched and now we're shaping up! This is the new format of our newsletter, where we'll be sharing information on key meetings, events, and resources. Please feel free to provide feedback. As always, we meet every THIRD THURSDAY at Franklin TV (unless otherwise noted). Our next meeting is July 18 at 7 PM. All are welcome! Our agenda and previous minutes will be shared in advance of the meeting. Key Agenda Items It'll be a relatively quiet season for meetings, but BEN's keeping an eye on MBTA Communities Act compliance and the Master Plan.  For live links and photos, see the items on our Google Doc. What We're Reading Starter homes begin with starter lots (Commonwealth Beacon) How Creative Design Can Turn Strict Zoning Codes Into Success Stories (Strong Towns) The senior struggle to age in community (Commonwealth Beacon) Reach out with any comments or questions. Thanks! The BEN Brigade Know someone else who may be interested in this content? Please share! Newsletter Sign Up Ben 4 Franklin, https://ben4franklin.org/ Send free email today

Building Equitable Neighborhoods for Franklin (BEN 4 Franklin) schedules launch events - Friday, May 10 & Saturday, May 11

BEN 4 Franklin is pleased to invite anyone who lives or works in Franklin to our two public launch events: 

launch party - May 10

On Friday, May 10, 2024, Ben 4 Franklin will host a launch party at 7:00 PM at the Franklin TV Studio, 23 Hutchinson Street. In addition to a short speaking program with featured speaker Jesse Kanson-Benanav, Executive Director of Abundant Housing Massachusetts, this interactive event will be a place where attendees can share memories of Franklin from the past and envision Franklin in the future through discussion, storytelling and artistic expression. Light refreshments will be provided.  

Jane Jacobs Walk - May 11

On Saturday, May 11, 2024, there will be a second BEN 4 Franklin launch event: Cobi Frongillo and Franklin Matters’ Steve Sherlock will be leading a 90-minute Jane Jacobs Walk (rain or shine!) at 10:30 AM starting from the Franklin TV Studio, to explore the history, physical structure and architecture of Franklin’s built downtown environment. The community walk-and-talk will be one of thousands of Jane Jacobs Walks that take place every May in honor of the late social activist and placemaker. The walk will be accessible to wheels and paws, and participants are invited to gather afterwards at La Cantina Winery to share thoughts and observations. 

For more information and to RSVP for either or both of the two launch events, or to sign up for BEN 4 Franklin’s mailing list, please visit: tinyurl.com/ben4franklin

Visit the web page for more information -> https://ben4franklin.org/

"Lean In Girls" starts April 22 - Learn more and register today!

"Here at Children's Museum of Franklin, we're passionate about the importance of empowering girls.  

The Lean In Girls curriculum, a subset of Sheryl Sandberg's original Lean In program, was established in 2023 as a “leadership program that helps girls see themselves as leaders in a world that often tells them they’re not.”

Over the course of the program, through strength-building activities and discussion, participants will learn resilience, confidence, and inclusivity.

This is a free program!"

Learn more & register -> https://www.childrensmuseumfranklin.org/lean-in-girls

"Lean In Girls" starts April 22 - Learn more and register today!

Mass Creative offering an Advocacy & Organizing Fellowship

via Michael J. Bobbitt (@mbobbitt) 

"Great opportunity for people want to deepen their arts advocacy knowledge. Apply for this fellowship."

Via Mass Creative

"We're happy to announce that we're relaunching the MASSCreative Advocacy & Organizing Fellowship! This is a stipended year-long leadership development cohort for artivists, creative workers, & emerging cultural leaders. "

"Applications are now open & close on September 22nd. Visit the link to learn more & apply today!  https://mass-creative.org/resources-for-fellows… "

Shared from -> https://twitter.com/mbobbitt/status/1701654327616548944

Mass Creative offering an Advocacy & Organizing Fellowship

"The site operates as 'a nonpartisan, open source, and nonprofit project;”

"ONE OF THE most well-worn complaints among political watchers in Massachusetts is that the government can be, well, hard to watch. The state Legislature is one of the least transparent lawmaking bodies in the country – exempt from public records laws, with decisions often made in closed committee sessions with little revelation about who voted for or against a given piece of legislation.

Being generally outraged about local government on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites may be cathartic, but is perhaps not the most efficient way to push for change. Now a team of volunteers is taking a swing at making online engagement with the Legislature feel a bit more civil, structured, and achievable for individuals and organizations.

The website MAPLE (the Massachusetts Platform for Legislative Engagement) launched this month, focused on encouraging and facilitating public testimony on legislation. The Legislature does collect and post some public testimony already, but the MAPLE group is trying to improve what they see as an imperfect system. A motivating question for the co-creators was whether the online spaces where the public gathers to express views online could “be designed better to allow us to channel our energy for productive improvements for the communities that we touch?”

Continue reading the article online at Commonwealth Magazine ->

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/the-download/a-digital-push-for-more-legislative-participation-2/

Check out the MAPLE site yourself here ->  https://www.mapletestimony.org/

 

"The site operates as 'a nonpartisan, open source, and nonprofit project;” 

Behind stall doors | Caroline Williams | TEDxAmherst (video)

Via State Rep Jeff Roy: 

"I met Caroline Williams three years ago when she was a student at Medway High School. She shared her passion for an issue involving menstrual equity that we turned into a piece of legislation. She has been a fierce advocate for the bill and shares herstory in this TEDx talk called Behind stall doors. It’s a great public health and civics talk. I’m honored to have crossed paths with her and her passion and enthusiasm for policy change is illuminating."

Link to Tedx video ->  https://youtu.be/xPRPIpLo0Es

 

The SAFE Coalition is hiring

The SAFE Coalition is looking to hire a part-time wellness advocate. For more information send an email to info@safecoaltion.org

Visit SAFE Coalition web page => https://www.safecoalitionma.org/home  

Shared from Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/725586407571568/posts/2253853111411549/

Project BOE -Informational Meeting - Jan 24, 2021

Project BOE is a new initiative in the MetroWest area with the aim of supporting historically underrepresented progressive individuals interested in getting involved in local government or running for local office.

• INFORMATIONAL MEETING: SUNDAY, JANUARY 24 @ 3:00 PM

 

Follow the Facebook event for the connection info

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2587147061543240/permalink/2776472175944060/

 

 

Project BOE -Informational Meeting - Jan 24, 2021

 

FM #197 - Frank Falvey - Handicap access on the Town Common

FM #197

This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 197 in the series, that we are now developing in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm).

Frank Falvey, creator of two music programs for Franklin TV / Franklin Radio sat with me recently at the Franklin studio.

Frank initiated the creation of the two new handicap parking spots at the Town Common. We sat to discuss how this came to be. Our conversation then stayed within the handicap and access realm to cover parking passes and the accessibility issues at the downtown Franklin/Dean MBTA station.

Listen to our conversation, approximately 35 minutes


https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/HyVQ5HLX




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Links and answers to some of the questions or topics raised during our conversation:

- MA disability placard info can be found online at the MA.gov page https://www.mass.gov/how-to/renew-your-temporary-disability-placard
note: permanent cards are auto renewed, temporary are not

- American Disabilities Act (ADA) was first published in 1990 and updated recently https://www.ada.gov/2010_regs.htm

- The MBTA meeting was held in December 2019. The meeting was held Tuesday, Dec 17 - I was recording the FinComm meeting that night and missed it. Jeff Roy shared the presentation doc which I then posted to the FM web page later that week
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/12/franklin-line-meeting-powerpoint.html

- GATRA - Greater Attleboro Taunton Regional Authority http://www.gatra.org/ (you can get there from the "Explore Franklin" link on the Town of Franklin home page)


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

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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"

One of the new handicapped parking spots on the Town Common, this one at the corner of High St and Main St