"return the river to a more natural, free-flowing state"

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

"The town started removing the Pearl Street Mill dam this month - an effort that advocates claim will improve the health of the Charles River. 

State officials and river advocates believe that the project marks the first time an undamaged dam has been removed along the river's span. 

Alex Hackman, of the Division of Ecological Restoration, said the state office is supporting Bellingham in the project. Dams hurt a river's health by creating stagnant, warmer water, he said. 

"With most dams, you see consistent symptoms," he said. "They back up the water, creating an artificial pond, and tend to settle out sediment. Over time, the sediment causes the water to get shallower, warming the water."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20161230/setting-free-charles-river-in-bellingham

In the News: Bellingham Harvest Fest, camera club to share photoshop tips

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

"Two local churches will be looking to carry on an annual tradition this Saturday, when they host a harvest festival on the Town Common. 

The First Baptist Church of Bellingham and the Bellingham Bible Baptist Church will be holding their "Harvest Fest" starting at 11 a.m. and running to 3 p.m.
Pastor Baron Rodrigues of the First Baptist Church said the event dates back to around 2012. 

"At the time, businesses were struggling and people were struggling," he said. "Money was tight, which is why everything's free at the festival - there's no selling of anything."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20160928/bellingham-harvest-fest-set-for-saturday

"The Stony Brook Camera Club will present a program, “Photoshop Tips for Quick Fixes” by Rick Cloran, at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 6 at Anglican Church of the Redeemer, 31 Hayward St., Franklin. 

Cloran has been a member of the Greater Lynn Photographic Association since 1975, and a member of the Photographic Society of America since 1976. During that time, he participated in workshops with such noted photographers as George Lepp, John Shaw and John Gerlach as he developed his own photographic style. 

Since 1986, Cloran has lectured and judged photographic exhibitions throughout the United States and Canada. In recognition of his work in support of local, regional and national photographic organizations, Cloran has been awarded the honors of fellow of the Photographic Society of America, and is an honorary member of the New England Camera Club Council."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20160929/stony-brook-camera-club-to-host-program-by-rick-cloran

autumn colors appearing in Franklin

Giguere named "next principal of Bellingham High School"

Lucas Giguere, a former U.S. Marine sergeant and Franklin teacher, has been named the next principal of Bellingham High School. 

Superintendent Edward Fleury announced the posting Tuesday night after a month-long search. 

“He is a good fit for Bellingham,” Fleury said. 

Giguere, 35, was one of 30 candidates who applied for the job to succeed Principal Peter Marano, who next school year becomes superintendent of schools. The other finalist for the position was Eileen Belastock, the principal of Winthrop High School.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150414/NEWS/150417985

Whole Foods Market Bellingham's Annual Harvest Fest

We are excited to announce 

the date for our annual Harvest Fest!

Please join us on Saturday, 

October 11^th from 12noon – 6pm

We would love to invite you to participate in this epic event!

We are planning our activities now which include camel rides, a petting zoo, bounce house, Farmers' Market, concessions, pumpkin patch and decorating, carnival games and so much more! In the past years, we have welcomed 1500 – 2000 folks on the day of this event. All activities are FREE for families and this encourages a huge crowd! This is an amazing opportunity for you to introduce your product to new customers and solidify your presence as a community supporter to your loyal customers.

Here are some of our favorite pictures from prior years…

Please let me know if you will be able to attend this outdoor event as I am planning the layout as folks respond. I am hoping to have a finalized list of vendors by Monday, September 22^nd.

Many thanks,

Chelsey Barton-Karnes

Marketing Team Leader

Whole Foods Market

Bellingham, MA

p.508-966-3331

m. 401-808-1354

Rail Trail Committee meeting Dec 11, 2012 - 7:00 PM

The Franklin and Bellingham Rail Trail Committee (FBRTC) will hold its annual meeting tomorrow evening, Tuesday, December 11, 2012. The meeting will begin at 7:30 pm and will be held at the YMCA in Franklin. This meeting will serve as the FBRTC's annual meeting and we will be electing officers for 2013. If you are interested in serving in this capacity, please respond to this email or contact Marc Kaplan (mkap7@hotmail.com) or David Labonte (david.labonte@verizon.net)

Other items we will discuss at this meeting include: motorized vehicle usage on the trail, a map of the trail in Franklin and Bellingham, potential grant projects, and the developments with the Town of Franklin related to the Prospect St crossing. Attached is an agenda. We need your help with these projects, so please consider attending tomorrow.

Also, last Sunday a group of students from Dean College's Outdoor Recreation Club volunteered to staff an information table at the trail head on Grove St. For a few hours, students took a count of the number of users/visitors to the trail and the type (walker, biker, etc). This could become an ongoing project for the club starting in the spring. While it is unscientific study, it will help give us an idea of the utilization of the trail and help get the word out about the committee and trail efforts. Attached is a picture from last Sunday.

We look forward to your participation and input tomorrow and in 2013.

The agenda:



The trail map

Bellingham library may help Franklin patrons

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Bellingham library may help Franklin patrons

via The Milford Daily News News RSS by Alison McCall/Daily News staff on 2/9/12

Library trustees are offering a slight reprieve to some Franklin residents who have been locked out of the statewide library material-sharing network, potentially allowing them to borrow materials after last week's decertification.

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"defusing situations with mental health patients"

"It is important because more and more our departments are being relied on to help out in these mental health situations," Franklin Police Chief Stephen Williams said. "With shrinking budgets, we need all the help we can get." 

Williams said his department has always dealt with mental health situations by itself, but said they welcome assistance from a clinician for situations such as when a person did not take his medications and may be a threat to himself or others. 

"The criminal system is not the place where a person with these types of issues should be in the first place," Williams said. "They should get help from clinicians and in hospital settings, not from inside a jail cell. We're not going to do them any help by placing them under arrest." 

Williams and Upton Police Chief Michael Bradley said their departments do not have money available to hire clinicians without the grant.

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x916009106/Milford-police-receive-grant-to-extend-mental-health-services-to-Bellingham-Franklin-Upton#ixzz1d11KIB6A

Cooking Classes at Whole Foods in Bellingham

Monday, April 18th 

Cooking with Greens!  - 6:30-8:00 p.m. 

Cost: $5.00 donation to the Whole Planet Foundation

Are you tired of eating plain old steamed greens? Do wish you were eating more green leafy vegetables? Don't feel bad, GREENS tend to be the #1 missing ingredient in the standard American diet. Learn how to incorporate this missing element to achieve excellent health and vitality in the Cooking with Greens class. 

Join Karen, the Healthy Eating Specialist in this educational  cooking class and learn some great ideas on how to get more green into your diet!

Thursday, April 28th

Health Starts RAW Foods Cooking Class - 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Cost:  $5.00 and please sign up and pay in advance at the Customer Sevice booth

By popular demand, we are offering our Raw Foods "cooking" class again! 

Learn about the many health benefits that are associated with the Raw Foods way of life, while sampling many great dishes that are not cooked above 104 degrees. 

Attend this class for some motivation and added support in your journey to becoming the healthiest "YOU" you can be! Receive an assortment of ways to incorporate more RAW Foods following the 4 Healthy Eating Pillars; Plant Strong, Whole Food, Healthy Fats and Nutrient Dense  into your diet.

In the News - rabies clinic

Bellingham/Franklin Animal Control offers rabies clinic

by GateHouse Media, Inc.

Franklin, MA

In the News - Pulaski Blvd construction

Pulaski Blvd construction continues and there are updates in the MDN here:
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x1742646793/Bellinghams-Pulaski-Boulevard-construction-continues


Franklin, MA

GATRA expansion for Bellingham

Bellingham may start shuttle to T stop

from The Milford Daily News News RSS by Joe O'Connell/Daily News staff

Do you ride the Franklin Area Bus?

The schedule forthe bus as it moves around Franklin can be found here

http://www.gatra.org/New%20Fab%209208.pdf

Pulaski Blvd - Seek Alternate Route

For those traveling down King St, if you think you have successfully negotiated the construction around the i495 interchange, beginning March 29th, you'll need to consider an alternate route if you want to get to Bellingham, Woonsocket and other points south.

King St turns into Washington St at Cole's Tavern and becomes Pulaski Blvd as you cross the town line into Bellingham. Bellingham received a sizable amount of stimulus money to do the reconstruction of the road down into the intersection of RT 126.

I'll consider bailing out on either Forest St or Spring St to the back roads.

What will you do? Share your short cut here

Franklin, MA

In the News - Pulaski Blvd

The DPW announced today the Pulaski Boulevard reconstruction project continues to stay on course with the project bid being awarded to J.H. Lynch & Sons of Cumberland, R.I.

Last month, J.H. Lynch & Sons made an approximate $8.5 million bid on the project, well below the engineers’ estimate of $11 million.

According to the DPW, the construction plan from J.H. Lynch will likely come in at the end of February and the town will have the ability to make suggestions and modifications if needed.

The estimated two year project plans to rebuild 2.3 miles of Pulaski Boulevard, spanning from the Franklin town line to Orchard Street, including work at the Crooks Corner, Lake Street and Center Street intersections.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Pulaski Boulevard construction project on track

by Melanie Graham/STAFF WRITER

Pulaski Blvd Construction in Spring 2010

Heads up for those who travel Washington St to Pulaski Blvd in Bellingham:

Bellingham- Pulaski Boulevard

The $13 million federal stimulus Bellingham project will reconstruct 2.2 miles of Pulaski Boulevard from Moody Street to the Franklin town line, including rehabilitation of the bridge over Peter's River.  The project will improve safety and enhance convenience for motorists along the Boulevard, an important commuter route to I-495 in Franklin.  Construction is expected to begin in the spring.

From the Commonwealth Conversations Transportation website
Follow the link to read more about the announcement yesterday and follow links from that story directly to the project details website.

in the News - Bellingham sting

Almost half of Bellingham's liquor stores fail sting

from The Milford Daily News Homepage RSS by Melanie Graham/Daily News staff

In the News - Bellingham split tax

 Note that the split tax rate in Bellingham was changed to increase the residential rate and help businesses. Franklin doesn't need to do this, everyone already pays the same tax rate.

Selectmen voted unanimously last night to give businesses a slight break on property taxes.

The board raised the tax burden on homeowners from 89 percent to 90 percent as it tries to find a balance between the homeowners and businesses.

With the shift, taxes for homeowners will be set at $11.92 per $1,000 assessed value, up from last year's $10.44. For the "average" Bellingham homeowner, with a home valued at $275,984, this will yield a $105 yearly tax increase, selectmen said.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Bellingham's Pulaski Boulevard construction receives funding

King St runs south into Washington St which in turn runs into Pulaski Blvd. Three different names, two towns, one road. For anyone taking this southern route to Woonsocket or RT 146 to Providence beware of construction to resume.

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Bellingham's Pulaski Boulevard construction receives funding

via The Milford Daily News Homepage RSS by Melanie Graham/Daily News staff on 10/12/09

The Pulaski Boulevard road improvement project has received $13 million in state and federal funding. The project was included in the 2010-2013 Traffic Improvement Plan (TIP).

Pulaski Boulevard was one of many plans in eastern Massachusetts considered for state roadway improvement funding, including hundreds of projects in Boston. If Pulaski Boulevard had not been placed on fiscal 2010 list, the town would have had to wait until 2014 for funding.

The $13 million will be in addition to the $4 million already invested by the town.

The estimated two year project plans to rebuild 2.3 miles of Pulaski Boulevard, spanning from the Franklin town line to Orchard Street, including work at the Crooks Corner, Lake Street and Center Street intersections.

Also in the construction plan is road widening, added sidewalks and storm drain improvements.

MassHighway is currently in the bid process for the Pulaski Boulevard projects.
For more details on the project, read tomorrow's Milford Daily News.

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Note: While the article references more information in tomorrows Milford Daily News, that particular tomorrow has not arrived yet. Stay tuned for an update sometime.

Public hearing notice

The details on the tagged and green ribbon trees indicate that there is a public hearing scheduled for 11/24/08 to review the plans for removing these trees as part of the construction/upgrade of Pulaski Blvd in Bellingham.

"The Bellingham Tree Warden will conduct a public hearing on November 24, 2008 at 7:00 PM in the Cafeteria of the Paul J. Primavera Education Center, 80 Hairpin St, to review proposed tree removal and plantings along the Pulaski Blvd right of way related to the Pulaski Blvd Improvement Project, Chapter 87, section 3 for cutting of public shade trees."

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Tie a green ribbon?

I recall the lyrics being something like "tie a yellow ribbon".
What does it mean when all these trees get green ribbons?

If you have had the opportunity to drive down Washington St into Bellingham, where the road changes name to Pulaski Blvd, there are dozens of trees tagged with green ribbons and these plastic cards.

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