3rd budget hearing covers Public Works & Public Safety (audio)

FM #1727 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1727 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares the Finance Committee Budget Hearing on Public Works & Public Safety, the 3rd of 4 sessions to go over the FY 2027 budget. The meeting was held in Council Chambers with 8 of 9 members present.

Quick recap:

• Gus Brown, Building Commissioner, up first

• Brutus Cantoreggi, DPW up next, 

• Next up Police Chief Lynch, level service plus 2, looking to get the SROs back

• Next up, Chief Allen, Fire Dept.

• Dispatch Center or the MECC being covered

• Also skipped Tri-County and Norfolk Aggie last night with no explanation given for it. Tri-County and Norfolk Aggie, both assessments based upon enrollment, not much of a change year to year

• So Thursday night, the Finance Committee will use the 3rd Floor Training room for their discussion to be more “around a table” rather than spread out to help their discussion. Potential revisions coming to the budget, what they are we'll watch and see.

Let’s listen in

Audio link - https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1727-finance-cmte-budget-hearing-3-04-08-26/

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The Franklin TV video is available for replay -  

https://www.youtube.com/live/x8Hb_pCl64A?&t=164 

Agenda doc including links to the FY 2027 budget 

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04082026-2221 

My full set of notes in one PDF -  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D-RumOpcYkE7SZ_czpSZzW5TKdS9SE3B/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

• And if you have interest in reporting on meetings or events, please reach out. We’ll share and show you what and how we do what we do

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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Rain barrel program opens for spring

Rain barrel program opens for spring

via Franklin DPW

"Visit our website: https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/551/Rain-Barrels, to order your rain barrel today!"

#townoffranklin

Shared from - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1KPC8pde7h/

Spill Smarts Start Here

From leaky drums to mystery puddles, even small spills can pollute local waterways when rain carries them into storm drains.

Spill Smarts Start Here

Avoid the oops:

• Label materials clearly and keep SDS sheets handy

• Use secondary containment and spill kits

• Train your team to respond fast and smart

Staying spill-ready helps protect your crew, your site, and your local rivers and lakes. Clean water starts with cleaner habits.

Learn more at https://franklinma.gov/530/Stormwater-Division

Shared from - https://www.facebook.com/share/17cgwToEkK/

Consider a "water system operator" role for a promising working future (video)

Consider a "water system operator" role
for a promising working future (video)

With half of #MA water system operators over age 50, now is a great time to start a career in public drinking water. 

Water utilities have a strong tradition of mentoring, with experienced water system operators sharing their knowledge daily, on the job, with newer colleagues. 

To learn more about careers in the water

industry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KD_xbJOk0Bg

#DrinkingWater #Careers #MWWA #NationalMentoringMonth

Shared from Franklin DPW -> https://www.facebook.com/share/16n4QXNnX7/

Department of Public Works | Infrastructure & Costs

The Franklin Dept of Public Works (DPW) is scheduled to present on their operations which cover a bunch of our infrastructure.

The presentation PDF can be previewed here

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/View/8133/Town-Council-Presentation---January-21-2026

or viewed here

Department of Public Works | Infrastructure & Costs

Town Council Meeting

Wednesday, January 21 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_01212026-2101

Spring Rain Barrel Program Open

Visit: https://www.greatamericanrainbarrel.com/community/, to order your rain barrel today!

Spring Rain Barrel Program Open

Shared from -> https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DS4h7mo8r/

Snow Disposal Done Right via Franklin DPW

Snow Disposal Done Right

Not all snow piles are created equal. Where you move it matters for Franklin water quality.

Plowing snow into a drain or piling it near a stream means salt, oil, and debris can flow directly into our waterways. That runoff does not get treated.

Snow Disposal Done Right via Franklin DPW

Instead, store snow where it can melt into soil and be naturally filtered. Keep piles away from storm drains, wetlands, stormwater infiltration systems, and flood-prone areas.

Small decisions on your site can make a big difference for clean water.

Learn more at https://franklinma.gov/530/Stormwater-Division

Shared from -> https://www.facebook.com/share/16QC24Jk1A/

Do Your Doody. Keep Our Water Clean.

Do Your Doody. Keep Our Water Clean.

"Your dog's mess doesn’t just disappear. When pet waste is left on the ground, rain can wash it into storm drains and straight into our streams, rivers, and ponds all over Franklin.

That’s a big problem for water quality, fish, and your weekend plans.

Bag it every time. Toss it in the trash. Be the neighbor who sets the example.

Clean sidewalks, cleaner water."

Learn more at https://franklinma.gov/530/Stormwater-Division

Shared from -> https://www.facebook.com/share/1Ce72uCGy2/

Franklin gets additional ARPA funds via Norfolk County

The Norfolk County Commissioners voted at their regular weekly meeting today held in Dedham to approve two (2) ARPA awards to the Town of Franklin and to the city of Quincy as part of the second round of ARPA grants. 

The American Rescue Plan of Action (ARPA) was voted by Congress in 2021. Norfolk County received over $137,000,000 from the ARPA Act which was distributed to the twenty eight (28) cities and towns in Norfolk County by the County Commissioners over the past several years. 

Under the Second Round of ARPA, towns that had an excess leftover from any grant in the first round could re-apply to use said funds on projects for their town in round two.  To qualify for a second round grant, towns had to complete and file an application with the county no later than Dec. 31, 2024.

Franklin was awarded a grant in the amount of  $86,000.00 for additional stormwater management improvements. This excess money came from a previous award to Franklin for Mental Health. 

Quincy was awarded a grant in the amount of $12,900 for additional infrastructure improvements. The excess money came from a previous grant in the amount of  $2,300,000.00.

Several other towns are currently under review at this time.

Congratulations to the Franklin and Quincy for their diligence and efforts in obtaining additional funds for their community.

Shared from Richard Stati's Facebook post ->   https://www.facebook.com/richard.staiti.71/posts/pfbid0aj22K7CKtrGcktGeVQjR64ZJGwso6b4jGdTBseXtvYw5xVH2RLUzX26ev1nWb1xcl

DPW contractor starts catch basin cleaning this week

DPW contractor starts catch basin cleaning this week

Via the DPW posting: 

"Starting this week, Truax will be in Franklin conducting yearly catch basin cleaning operations. The work is expected to take 4 - 6 weeks and is a crucial component to keeping our stormwater clean and our infrastructure healthy!"

Shared from ->    https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19t7ByDSVs/

2nd budget hearing confirms what happens if override fails for Police, Fire, DPW (video)

The Franklin, MA Finance Committee met as scheduled for their 2nd in the series of Budget hearings for the FY 2026 budget cycle. The meeting took oplace in the 3rd floor conference room and as usual was broadcast to Comcast/Verizon subscribers, as well as to Zoom & YouTube. All 8 members participated.

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

The agenda doc for this session ->   https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04292025-1699

Quick recap:

• Police Chief TJ Lynch started his update. Basically the same as last year with some minor adjustments. If the override were to fail, he would loose 2 officers. He is hiring to backfill for retirees and transfers. When as ked to elaborate on that, he provided the details on the 5 recent departures, with one being sworn in at Council meeting and one still to be hired.
• Deputy Chiefs Klich & Barberi provided the update in lieu of Chief McLaughlin out this week on vacation. 
• Similar to the police update, very little change in totals. If the override fails, they would lose the staffing for the 3rd ambulance. The 3rd ambulance responded to over 100 calls last year and resulted in over 70 hospital transports during its 40 hours of weekly coverage. The community would notice the difference in slower response times as mutual aid would be providing more coverage than they do today
• Discussion on vehicle replacement both costs increasing and lead times lengthening. A new ambulance ordered in 2022 is scheduled for delivery in August. The Tower truck ordered in 2023 is scheduled for delivery this summer. The current Tower would stay in the fleet and move to back up status, as would the older of the ambulances when the new one arrives.
• Brutus Cantoreggi, DPW director and Kathy Mooradd, Administration and Budget manager presented initially. Doug Martin, Water/Sewer Superintendent stood up along the way to cover water and sewer updates.
• Similar to the police and fire updates, a level funded budget being presented. Note, not a level service budget. The dollar remains about the same but the materials cost across the DPW departments account for 65% of the total budget (35% of the personnel cost). The same amount of money is getting less to work with. A failed override will also be noticeable but not right away. Water will still run, sewers will still operate, other maintenance and road repairs, etc. will be delayed or take longer.
• There were other budget items discussed; Building & inspection, MECC dispatch. The meeting total only runs 90 minutes so it should be easy enough to catch up to. The audio and transcript will come out also (audio Thursday, transcript on the weekend).

My notes captured during the meeting via Twitter

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ocIK4PjauaMMklMFVxkybmp4eTf5716K/view?usp=drive_link

Franklin, MA: Finance Committee Agenda for 2nd Budget hearing, Tue, Apr 29 (public works & public safety)

Finance Committee Meeting
Agenda & Meeting Packet
Tuesday, April 29, 2025 = 7 PM

Meeting will be held at the Municipal Building 3rd Floor, Training Room

Agenda

1.    Call to Order
 

2.    FY26 Town Administrator Operating Budget Hearing continued...
FY26 Town Administrator Budget Materials website   https://www.franklinma.gov/Archive.aspx?ADID=500

a.    Public Safety:

i.    210 Police Department
ii.    220 Fire Department
iii.    225 Regional Dispatch
iv.    240 Inspection Department
v.    292 Animal Control

b.    Department of Public Works (DPW):

i.    422 Public Works
ii.    Enterprise Funds: 434 Solid Waste, 440 Sewer, 450 Water, 460 Stormwater

3.    Adjourn

The full agenda doc (including remote participation info)  https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04292025-1699

 

Town Administrator Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Budget

The Spring 2025 Rain Barrel Program is now open for Franklin residents

Interested in Purchasing a Rain Barrel?

Our Spring 2025 program is now open! Visit the

The Spring 2025 Rain Barrel Program

Great American Rain Barrel website to purchase your rain barrel.

Deadline for ordering is April 27th and pickup will be at the DPW Admin Building (257 Fisher St) on May 7th from 4-6 pm. 

Questions regarding the rain barrel program can be emailed to Kate Hinckley at khinckley@franklinma.gov.

https://www.greatamericanrainbarrel.com/community/ (Select "Massachusetts" and then "Franklin" from the drop down menu)

Shared from -> https://www.franklinma.gov/stormwater-division/pages/rain-barrels

WEBINAR: Introducing the Property Owner Guide to Managing Stormwater on Commercial and Industrial Properties

WEBINAR: Introducing the Property Owner Guide to Managing Stormwater

Monday, September 30th 2024 1:00PM – 2:00 PM EDT

Join the Southeast New England Program (SNEP) for an informative presentation on the Property Owner Guide to Managing Stormwater on Commercial and Industrial Properties (aka, the Guide, scheduled for public release on September 30, 2024). 

The purpose of the Guide is to provide a high-level explanation of the problems associated with uncontrolled stormwater and what private property owners can do to reduce these impacts by improving site operations and making simple changes to the physical layout of their sites to reduce stormwater volume and pollutants.  The audience for the Guide is property owners and managers of commercial, industrial and institutional properties who are responsible for making decisions regarding site improvements to manage stormwater. 

 Entities (including consultants and state, regional and/or local agencies and organizations) who work with property owners in developing stormwater plans will also find the guide useful.  This guidance is timely in that it will help support compliance with stormwater permits issued under the Clean Water Act's Residual Designation Authority (RDA) affecting property owners having larger impervious surfaces including the anticipated permit in the Mashapaug Pond watershed in Rhode Island and permits in Massachusetts and New Hampshire coming in 2024, and one issued in Vermont in 2020. 

The impact of polluted stormwater from impervious surfaces on receiving water quality is well known, as are its contributions to localized flooding. Commercial, industrial and institutional properties have unique challenges, constraints and goals for their properties that must be considered for successfully incorporating pollutant reduction and stormwater treatment measures. 

The Guide builds upon the design guidance in the New England Stormwater Retrofit Manual but is customized to be more accessible to a non-technical audience by providing illustrative case examples of options for managing stormwater and presenting guidance that is easily understood by a non-technical reader. 

The Guide's focus is on operational best management practices and physical improvements known as Green Stormwater Infrastructure ("GSI") to manage and improve water quality at its source.  The guide was developed by VHB for the Southeast New England Program (SNEP) Network with support from an ad hoc committee comprised of members from the University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center, the Rhode Island Stormwater Innovation Center, the New England Environmental Finance Center, and RIDEM's Office of Water Resources. 

Presenters:
Theresa McGovern, VHB 
Anna Keimel, VHB 

Online Webinar: Register Here!

<Text copied from "The SNEP Network">

Read more -> https://www.franklinma.gov/conservation/news/webinar-introducing-property-owner-guide-managing-stormwater

Property Owner Guide to Managing Stormwater on Commercial and Industrial Properties

Town of Franklin: All about the water system, yes we have enough (audio)

Continuing to find and share golden nuggets from the archives, we have this 3-part audio series on the water system covering all aspects from the well head to your faucet.

You can also find the 3-part series on the Town of Franklin page -> https://www.franklinma.gov/water-sewer-division/news/franklin-matters-conversations-doug-martin-jake-standley

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FM #588 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 588 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares my conversation with Doug Martin, Franklin’s Water and Sewer Superintendent and Jake Standly, the Assistant Water/Sewer Superintendent. 

We had our conversation in the Franklin Public Radio studios on Hutchinson St. This is one of three in a series exploring the status and operations of the Franklin’s Water Dept. 

Part 1 - approx. 30 minutes

• A brief on Doug and Jake’s Franklin ‘story’

• New treatment plant, now operational, treating Wells 3 and 6; Well 6 is really a well field (of six separate wells)

• Difference between registration and permitted amount to draw

• Overall well status and supply (well summary on water report)

• Water conservation measures are a ‘forever’ thing right? (per the permit from DEP)

• Town wells draw from 40-50 feet where most private wells can draw from a 300-500 foot depth; if you have a private well, please put out a sign if you use it for irrigation

• Finances on water rate and sewer rate calculations, aside from private wells and septic systems, it is usage based billing

• Fire Dept working very closely with them on hydrant maintenance and water pressure opportunity areas to work towards an increase in the ISO certification for the Fire department; hydrant signage being added to help especially when out communities respond to help

• E-coli hit on well 2A, notification only discussed; test result was from the ‘raw’ side of the water, not the ‘treated side’ of the supply; “the ground is just a big old filter, and when you get 6-8 inches of rain the ground just can't handle it”

• The process worked, the testing and system ensures good water is being delivered all the time

• PFAS testing currently State funded; testing at parts per trillion, not million as with most other; PFAS is pervasive; Testers can’t use Teflon pans or Tupperware before taking test sample (to avoid contamination of the sample)

The show notes include links to the Franklin Water Dept. page and other references.

Let’s listen to this part of my conversation with Doug and Jake and learn all about Franklin’s water supply.

Audio File -> https://player.captivate.fm/episode/a7deabf6-08b9-41d8-820c-8bee1aa437db

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Part 2 - approx. 38 minutes

• Permit process 20 years, midway through this one

• Overall water usage per capita for Franklin is among the best in the state (~45-49gpp vs ~65gpp)

• Unaccounted for water and meter standards, Franklin is a model community for this

• Infiltration annual testing uses a “stethoscope for the road”

• Town owns from the water main to the curb stop (water service shut off from street); Town also owns the meter

• Meter read via radio today, may eventually get to an automatic send to a data collector; used to take 2 guys a month to read, now it takes one only a week to read the meters

• WaterSmart system data based upon readings monthly; billing readings are monthly

• Rebates available for high efficiency water use appliances

• Annual Water report - highlights by section

• Reference to working without the incredible asset of Dave Allard, now retired; 4 hours of a brain dump didn’t catch it all but he still answers the phone when they call

• Key items explained, testing process, negligible results are shown for 20 or so items, another 100+ are tested with no findings, PFAS testing added per state DEP regs

• Difference between water testing done by Town vs. Water bottles available in retail (FDA vs. DEP/EPA regulations)

• Thanks to the 61 residents for participating in the lead and copper special testing required (lead goose necks)

• WaterSmart website, Individual usage can be monitored, Leak detection service

The show notes include links to the Franklin Water Dept. page and other references.

Let’s listen to this part of my conversation with Doug and Jake and learn all about Franklin’s water supply.

Audio file -> https://player.captivate.fm/episode/a148dcea-1db5-49f2-b11c-e302009de27f

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Part 3 - approx. 28 minutes

• Water treatment process flow on last page of “Consumer Confidence Report”  CCR

• CCR only shows what was found when tested

• Programed with multiple fail safes, if deviation occurs outside of range, it shuts down

• Safe in that it is also closed, no internet access to system controls

• All of the water system is managed by four guys; Licenses required, continuing education required annually, training provided/supported by Town

• Water enterprise account, Usage based services, quarterly billing per usage

• Capital projects funded from ratepayers

• Work to prepare for water and sewer line replacements as part of rebuilding the roads

• Retained balance of $1M as a practice for “in case”

• Increase reliability of SCADA system by switching to fiber from radio wave

• Good to know; the water sewer world of infrastructure is a thing for consideration - job security and regular challenges; the industry is facing 60% of the workforce retiring in the next 10 years

The show notes include links to the Franklin Water Dept. page and other references.

Let’s listen to this part of my conversation with Doug and Jake and learn all about Franklin’s water supply.

Audio file -> https://player.captivate.fm/episode/3e921c80-30d7-4f9b-bd36-a8becc68be90

Town of Franklin: All about the water system, yes we have enough (audio)