H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
– Senior Outreach- Update
Tina Powderly provides an update on an analysis that was done to examine the exemption amounts for tax abatements and other benefits for seniors.
The recommendations have been reviewed by the Board of Assessors and have been approved by them.
1 - Raise the exemption under 41c from 500 to $750. This exemption has not been raised since it was adopted.
2 - Exemption amount for 37a, to raise it from 437 to $500 which is the current max allowed by the State.
3 - Raise the gross ceiling under 41a - which is a deferral of property tax, this puts a lien on the home, it is not utilized heavily, want to tie the income eligibility to the circuit breaker program which would ease the tax burden administratively.
4 - Proposed to raise the property tax work off benefit from 750 to $800. This would be equal to the $8 minimum wage at 100 hours.
The subcommittee would like to bring these proposals forward at a future meeting for formal approval.
Mason - kudos to Tina for quarterbacking this proposal
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Live reporting - Town Council
Present: Kelly, Jones, Vallee, Whalen, Mason, Pfeffer, Powderly, Zollo
Absent: McGann
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - none
B. ANNOUNCEMENTS - none
C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS - none
D. CITIZEN COMMENTS - none
E. APPOINTMENTS
- Design Review Commission - Mark V Fitzgerald
motion to approve - passed 8-0
F. HEARINGS - none
Absent: McGann
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - none
B. ANNOUNCEMENTS - none
C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS - none
D. CITIZEN COMMENTS - none
E. APPOINTMENTS
- Design Review Commission - Mark V Fitzgerald
motion to approve - passed 8-0
F. HEARINGS - none
What is online learning?
We are fortunate that online learning is being explored in Franklin. You may have heard of Moodle which is open sourced software used to deliver the content of a particular classroom subject. This video provides an overview of online learning:
Thanks to Dr Scott McLeod who writes at Dangerously Irrelevant for sharing this which he helped to create.
Thanks to Dr Scott McLeod who writes at Dangerously Irrelevant for sharing this which he helped to create.
What are Smartboards?
Some Smartboards have been installed in Franklin's classrooms and more are being requested in the capital budget. What is a Smartboard and how does it work in the classroom?
These two videos will provide an overview:
"Interactive white boards" is the better description for this tool. Smartboard is also a brand name which is becoming like Kleenex and used to refer to tissues.
These two videos will provide an overview:
"Interactive white boards" is the better description for this tool. Smartboard is also a brand name which is becoming like Kleenex and used to refer to tissues.
School Committee 02/09/10
The collection of posts from the short School Committee meeting held on Tuesday, Feb 9th can be found here:
Let's be honest! - seminar for Middle School Parents
The second of three seminars for parents of 5th through 8th grade students will be held Thursday evening, beginning at 7:00 PM Horace Mann Middle School Auditorium. The seminar should end about 8:30 PM.
Mindy Craven is the scheduled speaker for Thursday's Let's be honest seminar:
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view the attached document.
Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io
Mindy Craven is the scheduled speaker for Thursday's Let's be honest seminar:
Mindy Craver is a Senior Community Health and Sexuality Educator for Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts. She has been facilitating sexual health presentations for 14 years and is part of our Professional Training team. Mindy has held teaching positions at several area agencies including Health Awareness, Pro Health and ResourceFul, Inc. and has consulted with many other Central Massachusetts agencies, fostering a solid reputation for providing fact-based, fun and experiential sexual health programs. Mindy has successfully reached a variety of audiences with her participatory teaching style, including public middle school students, high risk youth, social service professionals, and parents. Mindy’s workshops are age-appropriate, thought provoking, and engaging. Currently, Mindy is focusing her efforts on the launch of Planned Parenthood’s parent education program Let’s Be Honest in Worcester. She is a graduate of Bridgewater State College with a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education.
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view the attached document.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Franklin mock trial team beats Bellingham, 83-77
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
via The Milford Daily News News RSS by Melanie Graham/Daily News staff on 2/9/10
In their final preliminary match of this year's mock trial competition, Franklin High School beat out Bellingham High School 83 to 77 this afternoon.
With the win, Franklin remains undefeated this year with a 3-0 record in the state-wide mock trial competition, sponsored by the Massachusetts Bar Association.
Bellingham, who entered today's match undefeated, falls to a 2-1 record.
In the match, Bellingham acted as the defense and Franklin as the plaintiff. The trial took place at Bellingham Public Library.
This week marks the third and final week of preliminary competitions. Each team has three preliminary matches within one of 16 regions.
Following the results of this week's matches and any necessary tie-breakers, 16 teams will be chosen to move on to the next round. The final match will take place Friday, March 26 at Faneuil Hall in Boston.
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to The Milford Daily News News RSS using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
Vallee to hold office hours in Franklin, Medway
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
via The Milford Daily News News RSS by Staff reports on 2/9/10
Rep. James Vallee, D-Franklin, will hold walk-in office hours on Feb. 19 in Medway and Franklin.
Vallee or a member of his staff will take visitors at the Medway Town Administrator's office on 155 Village St. from 9 to 10 a.m.
From 10:30-11:30 a.m., he or a staff member will be at his Franklin office at 4 West St.
He and his staff may be reached at 617-722-2600 or Rep.JamesVallee@hou.state.ma.us.
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to The Milford Daily News News RSS using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
Live reporting - closing items
5. Information Matters
• Superintendent’s Report
a. Enrollment Comparisons
b. The Backpack Bulletin – February 2010
391 students thus far have registered for kindergarten
Old business
New business
No information about the status of school, the weather information is still sketchy.
FEF Trivia Bee - Apr 29th
The central office has a team called the Histerbees!
Summer catalog for LIfe LOng Learning is not out, check out the offerings.
Motion to enter executive session, to not return to open session.
• Superintendent’s Report
a. Enrollment Comparisons
b. The Backpack Bulletin – February 2010
391 students thus far have registered for kindergarten
Old business
New business
No information about the status of school, the weather information is still sketchy.
FEF Trivia Bee - Apr 29th
The central office has a team called the Histerbees!
Summer catalog for LIfe LOng Learning is not out, check out the offerings.
Motion to enter executive session, to not return to open session.
Live reporting - Action items
4. Action Items
a. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3,000.00 from the Davis Thayer PCC for field trips & in-house enrichment. motion to approve, passed 5-0
b. I recommend acceptance of a check for $50.00 from Lueders Environment for the district gift account for scholarships. motion to approve, passed 5-0
c. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3732.50 from the Oak St. PCC for In house enrichment as detailed. motion to approve, passed 5-0
d. I recommend acceptance of the donation of labor to fix the Davis Thayer scoreboard from Mr. Glenn Jones as detailed in the attached pictures. motion to approve, passed 5-0
Glenn spoke about his idea to remove the existing scoreboard that was approx. 50 years. Confirmed by a couple of folks that is was there when they attended. He was planning on painting and returning it, when he plugged it in, he found it still worked. He had to replace or repair some components. A new clock is included. Donations from a number of businesses helped along the way. It is now hanging in the Davis Thayer gymnasium.
He has a few surprises to reveal during a presentation scheduled for Wednesday assuming the weather holds.
One way to test the scoreboard would be have some test with the School Committee and the Town Council in some competition.
It was a lot of fun for Glenn to do. He hasn't come across many things that old that still works and is functional.
a. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3,000.00 from the Davis Thayer PCC for field trips & in-house enrichment. motion to approve, passed 5-0
b. I recommend acceptance of a check for $50.00 from Lueders Environment for the district gift account for scholarships. motion to approve, passed 5-0
c. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3732.50 from the Oak St. PCC for In house enrichment as detailed. motion to approve, passed 5-0
d. I recommend acceptance of the donation of labor to fix the Davis Thayer scoreboard from Mr. Glenn Jones as detailed in the attached pictures. motion to approve, passed 5-0
Glenn spoke about his idea to remove the existing scoreboard that was approx. 50 years. Confirmed by a couple of folks that is was there when they attended. He was planning on painting and returning it, when he plugged it in, he found it still worked. He had to replace or repair some components. A new clock is included. Donations from a number of businesses helped along the way. It is now hanging in the Davis Thayer gymnasium.
He has a few surprises to reveal during a presentation scheduled for Wednesday assuming the weather holds.
One way to test the scoreboard would be have some test with the School Committee and the Town Council in some competition.
It was a lot of fun for Glenn to do. He hasn't come across many things that old that still works and is functional.
Live reporting: School Committee
Present: Cafasso, Rohrbach, Mullen, Roy, Trahan
Absent: Douglas, Glynn (for the very short public meeting, he did arrive in time for the Executive Session)
1. Routine Business
• Citizen’s Comments none
• Review of Agenda
• Minutes: I recommend approval of the minutes from the Open and Executive Sessions of the January 26, 2010 School Committee Meeting. motion to approve (with minor adjustment for Executive Session to adjourn, not to return to open session) passed 5-0
• Payment of Bills Mr. Glynn
• Payroll Mrs. Douglas not present
• FHS Student Representatives
• Correspondence: Budget to Actual
2. Guests/Presentations
a. none
3. Discussion Only Items
• none
Absent: Douglas, Glynn (for the very short public meeting, he did arrive in time for the Executive Session)
1. Routine Business
• Citizen’s Comments none
• Review of Agenda
• Minutes: I recommend approval of the minutes from the Open and Executive Sessions of the January 26, 2010 School Committee Meeting. motion to approve (with minor adjustment for Executive Session to adjourn, not to return to open session) passed 5-0
• Payment of Bills Mr. Glynn
• Payroll Mrs. Douglas not present
• FHS Student Representatives
• Correspondence: Budget to Actual
2. Guests/Presentations
a. none
3. Discussion Only Items
• none
Abbey Wind Turbine
I got out to Mount St Mary's Abbey in Wrentham to record this brief video of the wind turbine in action:
One advantage of wind over solar, the wind sometimes doesn't stop when the sun goes down. It can continue to generate power during the night as long as there is sufficient wind.
Earlier posts/photos of the wind turbine can be found here
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2009/12/abbey-turbine-gets-wings.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2008/11/whoosh-whoosh.html
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view this video
One advantage of wind over solar, the wind sometimes doesn't stop when the sun goes down. It can continue to generate power during the night as long as there is sufficient wind.
Earlier posts/photos of the wind turbine can be found here
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2009/12/abbey-turbine-gets-wings.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2008/11/whoosh-whoosh.html
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view this video
Franklin mock trial team beats Holliston, 97-84
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
via The Milford Daily News News RSS by Melanie Graham/Daily News staff on 2/8/10
In their second preliminary match of this year's mock trial competition, Franklin High School beat out Holliston High School 97 to 84 on Friday.
The win brings Franklin's record to 2-0 for this year's state-wide mock trial competition, sponsored by the Massachusetts Bar Association.
The match, which took place at Waltham City Hall, had Franklin acting as the defense and Holliston as the plaintiff.
Franklin coach Michael Walsh said four members of the team received a perfect score of 10 for their performance. Each performance, whether it is an attorney or witness, is scored on a scale from 1 to 10. The highest possible score for a team is 110 points.
This week marks the third and final week of preliminary competitions. Each team has three preliminary matches within one of 16 regions.
Following the results of this week's matches and any necessary tie-breakers, 16 teams will be chosen to move on to the next round. The final match will take place Friday, March 26 at Faneuil Hall in Boston.
Franklin's next match will take place Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 2 p.m. against Bellingham High School at the Bellingham Public Library, 100 Blackstone St.
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to The Milford Daily News News RSS using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
Monday, February 8, 2010
FM #57 - Week ending 2/7/2010
This internet radio show or podcast is number 57 in the series for Franklin Matters.
Let's take about ten minutes to keep current with what matters in Franklin, MA as the week ends February 7, 2010
In this session I’ll cover the Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday, Feb 2, and the Town Council meeting on Weds, Feb 3.
Time: 8 minutes, 52 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes:
This internet radio show or podcast is number 57 in the series for Franklin Matters.
Let's take about ten minutes to keep current with what matters in Franklin, MA as the week ends February 7, 2010
In this session I’ll cover the Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday, Feb 2, and the Town Council meeting on Weds, Feb 3.
1 - The Finance Committee heard the initial presentation from the major Town departments, Facilities, Schools, Technology, Fire, Police and DPW on the capital requests. Much more is on everyone's list that was actually presented. There is a prioritization being done by the departments, guided by Town Administrator Jeff Nutting.
No vote was taken on the capital requests. As Franklin uses 'free cash' to fund both the snow/ice budget and capital, we need to wait until winter passes to see what we have left for capital.
Some have asked why don't we fully budget snow/ice? Franklin has been gradually increasing the amount over the past several years. One of the risk you run is you also don't want to fully fund it for a bad winter, then the next year you can't reduce it due to state finance controls. Bringing it up higher to be closer to reality is good, getting it exact is not a good thing to do.
The free cash is a good use of coverage for snow/ice. Someday, there should be a capital budget line item but it won't be not anytime soon given the budget constraints that already exist.
The vote on the capital budget would more likely come in late March or April depending upon the winter season and how close it seems to be ending.
For additional details on each departments needs, there are posts on Franklin matters. You can also view the video archive to see the meeting and discussion for yourself.
2 - For a short Town Council meeting, there was a bit of interesting discussion.
The discussion started right away with Citizen's Comments
Michael Galvin, Vice-President of American Waste Services, LLC (the current waste contractor and a bidder on the new contract), also a Franklin resident spoke.
He referenced an 11 page document that apparently the Town Council received (at least some of them) and tried to condense his remarks to keep within the guidelines for citizen's comments (5 minute limit)
He didn't make it; he got cut off at five, but then was allocated another five minutes from another resident.
This is what I walked away with:
- The contract is still under negotiation, three bidders are involved, why is this discussion in public, shouldn't the other two have equal access?
- There is some dispute about the numbers. If the current contractor has actual numbers, why wouldn't they be considered along with the research from other communities? Why weren't the actual numbers from Franklin's experience included earlier in the discussion. (If they were, it wasn't apparent from the discussion Weds.)
- Mr Galvin's comment should have stood alone. However, when the second piece of legislation scheduled for the meeting agenda came up for discussion, the conversation deviated from the matter at hand to get into this.
- The second piece of legislation was the authorization of the purchase of the totters/bins to implement the single stream contract. The totters would be used no matter which of the three bidders won.
The argument by Councilor Vallee that this is the wrong time to spend any money is interesting. This is actually the best time to buy the totters (assuming we go with this single stream process).
* The interest rate (for financing the purchase) is as low as it can be
* The cost for the bins will be low
* The waste rate will actually be a cost savings for Franklin residents (from $244 to $220, a $24 savings)
* It will be a sort of 'stimulus purchase' for the vendor who actually sells us the bins/totters, hence a really good deal, especially at this time
Given that the waste fee second reading will come before the Council for the 2/10/10 meeting, this discussion will possibly be continued and revisited with more time wasted (yes, that pun is intended) by some folks trying to.micro-manage the situation.
Assuming the second reading does come forward, all it is supposed to do is set the rates for the Town to charge the residents. The contract will still be negotiated sometime before the current one expires on June 30th.
Stay tuned to see what happens!
Looking ahead
The School Committee meets on Tuesday
The Town Council meets on Wednesday
As I close this session this week, let me remind you that
If you like what I am doing, please tell your neighbors
If you don’t like something, please tell me
Thank you for listening!
For additional information, please visit FranklinMAtters.blogspot.com/
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!
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to the website to listen to the audio version.
Let's take about ten minutes to keep current with what matters in Franklin, MA as the week ends February 7, 2010
In this session I’ll cover the Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday, Feb 2, and the Town Council meeting on Weds, Feb 3.
Time: 8 minutes, 52 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes:
This internet radio show or podcast is number 57 in the series for Franklin Matters.
Let's take about ten minutes to keep current with what matters in Franklin, MA as the week ends February 7, 2010
In this session I’ll cover the Finance Committee meeting on Tuesday, Feb 2, and the Town Council meeting on Weds, Feb 3.
1 - The Finance Committee heard the initial presentation from the major Town departments, Facilities, Schools, Technology, Fire, Police and DPW on the capital requests. Much more is on everyone's list that was actually presented. There is a prioritization being done by the departments, guided by Town Administrator Jeff Nutting.
No vote was taken on the capital requests. As Franklin uses 'free cash' to fund both the snow/ice budget and capital, we need to wait until winter passes to see what we have left for capital.
Some have asked why don't we fully budget snow/ice? Franklin has been gradually increasing the amount over the past several years. One of the risk you run is you also don't want to fully fund it for a bad winter, then the next year you can't reduce it due to state finance controls. Bringing it up higher to be closer to reality is good, getting it exact is not a good thing to do.
The free cash is a good use of coverage for snow/ice. Someday, there should be a capital budget line item but it won't be not anytime soon given the budget constraints that already exist.
The vote on the capital budget would more likely come in late March or April depending upon the winter season and how close it seems to be ending.
For additional details on each departments needs, there are posts on Franklin matters. You can also view the video archive to see the meeting and discussion for yourself.
2 - For a short Town Council meeting, there was a bit of interesting discussion.
The discussion started right away with Citizen's Comments
Michael Galvin, Vice-President of American Waste Services, LLC (the current waste contractor and a bidder on the new contract), also a Franklin resident spoke.
He referenced an 11 page document that apparently the Town Council received (at least some of them) and tried to condense his remarks to keep within the guidelines for citizen's comments (5 minute limit)
He didn't make it; he got cut off at five, but then was allocated another five minutes from another resident.
This is what I walked away with:
- The contract is still under negotiation, three bidders are involved, why is this discussion in public, shouldn't the other two have equal access?
- There is some dispute about the numbers. If the current contractor has actual numbers, why wouldn't they be considered along with the research from other communities? Why weren't the actual numbers from Franklin's experience included earlier in the discussion. (If they were, it wasn't apparent from the discussion Weds.)
- Mr Galvin's comment should have stood alone. However, when the second piece of legislation scheduled for the meeting agenda came up for discussion, the conversation deviated from the matter at hand to get into this.
- The second piece of legislation was the authorization of the purchase of the totters/bins to implement the single stream contract. The totters would be used no matter which of the three bidders won.
The argument by Councilor Vallee that this is the wrong time to spend any money is interesting. This is actually the best time to buy the totters (assuming we go with this single stream process).
* The interest rate (for financing the purchase) is as low as it can be
* The cost for the bins will be low
* The waste rate will actually be a cost savings for Franklin residents (from $244 to $220, a $24 savings)
* It will be a sort of 'stimulus purchase' for the vendor who actually sells us the bins/totters, hence a really good deal, especially at this time
Given that the waste fee second reading will come before the Council for the 2/10/10 meeting, this discussion will possibly be continued and revisited with more time wasted (yes, that pun is intended) by some folks trying to.micro-manage the situation.
Assuming the second reading does come forward, all it is supposed to do is set the rates for the Town to charge the residents. The contract will still be negotiated sometime before the current one expires on June 30th.
Stay tuned to see what happens!
Looking ahead
The School Committee meets on Tuesday
The Town Council meets on Wednesday
As I close this session this week, let me remind you that
If you like what I am doing, please tell your neighbors
If you don’t like something, please tell me
Thank you for listening!
For additional information, please visit FranklinMAtters.blogspot.com/
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!
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to the website to listen to the audio version.
Finance Committee 02/02/10 - Collection
The collection of posts covering the Finance Committee meeting of Feb 2 can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/partial-live-reporting-at-fincom.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/finance-committee-020210.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/finance-committee-20310-part-2.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/partial-live-reporting-at-fincom.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/finance-committee-020210.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/finance-committee-20310-part-2.html
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