Franklin Farmers Market accepts food stamps
Additional details on this program can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2011/07/franklin-farmers-market-doubles-food.html
Thursday, July 28, 2011
In the News - Farmers' Market, Dean Bank
Additional details on this program can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2011/07/franklin-farmers-market-doubles-food.html
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
MBTA: New Locomotives, New Look
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
via Commonwealth Conversations: Transportation by Klark Jessen on 7/26/11
The MBTA has unveiled the new look for the new generation of Commuter Rail locomotives. Nearly 14,000 people responded to three design choices in a two-week online survey. The design chosen above got 50% of the vote. The chosen design has the largest T logo on the side- three times the size of the current logo.
You'll begin seeing the new locomotives with the new look in the winter of 2012-2013, when the first of 20 new locomotives purchased are delivered from the manufacturer, Motive Power Inc. of Boise.
The $114 million investment represents the MBTA's first major locomotive procurement in more than 20 years.
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Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Christmas in July Patio Party - BBC Franklin
Ohhhhhh - the weather outside is delightful…so let's celebrate with a
Christmas themed outdoor patio party! On Thursday July 28th the
British Beer Company in Franklin will be decking out the patio to
celebrate Christmas in July. Twinkling lights, stockings hung with
care…dig out your fluffy Santa hat from the closet and join the
celebration. Fun for the kids for sure (face painting, cookie design,
crafts), but more importantly this party will benefit children in need
through the Franklin Police Department's Toy Drive which is associated
with the Santa Foundation. Everyone who brings an unwrapped gift to
put under the glorious fake Christmas tree will be entered into a
raffle with some great prizes. Adults will be able to enjoy a secret
stash of seasonal winter beers that the BBC has been cellaring for a
special occasion along with some Christmas themed (cold) cocktails.
Come join BBC staffers and members of the Franklin community as they
sing along to their favorite Christmas carols under a beautiful summer
sky.
British Beer Company
280 Franklin Village Drive
508.440.5190
http://www.britishbeer.com/local/franklin
Monday, July 25, 2011
Living in the cracks
Yes, they are healthy. An unintended consequence but a wonderful one. The Franklin Downtown Partnership (a non-profit organization of business folks and citizens) raised money to adorn the downtown area with flower pots.
If you are not familiar with Franklin, this is the triangle downtown. The railroad runs underneath the bridge. Main St is behind you to the left. West central changes to East Central on the right. Also referred to as "the Triangle" this is a centerpiece for downtown.
Just off to the left of these flowers making their life among the cracks in the cement, are several of the flower pots. The pots contain a full collection and colorful assortment of flowers. How these migrated (via seeds maybe?) as runoff when the pots got watered to the cracks is open to speculation.
I'll leave the speculation to any of the CSI-wannabes around. The thought I would leave you with today is simply, when something good happens (as in the Partnership coming together to create a welcoming downtown for Franklin), more good happens!
Note: I am a citizen member of the Franklin Downtown Partnership
If you are not familiar with Franklin, this is the triangle downtown. The railroad runs underneath the bridge. Main St is behind you to the left. West central changes to East Central on the right. Also referred to as "the Triangle" this is a centerpiece for downtown.
Just off to the left of these flowers making their life among the cracks in the cement, are several of the flower pots. The pots contain a full collection and colorful assortment of flowers. How these migrated (via seeds maybe?) as runoff when the pots got watered to the cracks is open to speculation.
I'll leave the speculation to any of the CSI-wannabes around. The thought I would leave you with today is simply, when something good happens (as in the Partnership coming together to create a welcoming downtown for Franklin), more good happens!
Note: I am a citizen member of the Franklin Downtown Partnership
Sunday, July 24, 2011
"the building cannot provide an adequate level of education"
And that's just the science department.
The high school has been on warning status from its accreditation organization, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, for years, especially because it does not comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA.
In response, several members of the School Building Committee recently took a tour of four high schools in the state that were built on different state-approved model school designs.
The committee voted Monday to request a place in the state's model school program, which allows towns to build new schools based on pre-designed plans and be reimbursed by the state 58 percent of the estimated $97.9 million total cost of a new school. The state is expected to make a decision about Franklin this Wednesday.
Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/archive/x371607962/Franklin-education-leaders-make-case-for-new-school#ixzz1T1FhMWDF
Franklin model school choices
"a perfect location for a station"
... many factors have changed in the past 14 years. Population in towns west of Milford has grown significantly and the owner of the Grafton & Upton Railroad has begun restoring track in Hopedale and Milford to use for freight service, reducing the capital costs to add passenger trains. The owner, Marlborough developer Jon Delli Priscoli, has said he would be willing to work with the MBTA if the project moves forward, Moore said.
The study will examine Hopedale's Draper mill complex as the last station on the line with the possibility of adding stops between Franklin and Hopedale including in Milford, Moore said.
The Draper complex is a privately owned 1.5 million-square-foot former mill in downtown Hopedale that has been mostly vacant for years.
"Freight alone servicing the old Draper facility makes that facility far more attractive to development," said Moore, a former Hopedale selectman. "If there's also commuter rail, it's a tremendous opportunity."
Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/archive/x920808681/Franklin-rail-line-could-expand-to-Milford-and-Hopedale#ixzz1T1HLeyZl
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Friday, July 22, 2011
Depot St construction
If you haven't been downtown to the train station, you might not have noticed that Depot St has been torn up. The municipal parking lot is also torn up. All as scheduled as part of the PWED project funded by a State grant.
Additional info on the two projects downtown can be found on the Franklin Downtown Partnership webpage here: http://franklindowntownpartnership.blogspot.com/p/downtown-project.html
Additional info on the two projects downtown can be found on the Franklin Downtown Partnership webpage here: http://franklindowntownpartnership.blogspot.com/p/downtown-project.html
In the Globe: local meals tax
In case you missed it, the Boston Globe West section on Thursday ran an article on the local meal tax option. Franklin obtained 347,000 revenue from this during the past fiscal year. With continued growth in restaurants, this can be a continuing source of revenue. Not enough to solve our systemic problems, but substantial none the less.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2011/07/21/some_communities_find_meals_tax_a_boon/?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Globe+West
Related post:
The State announced the totals for local meal tax revenues earlier in July
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2011/07/meals-tax-delivers-705-million-to-146.html
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2011/07/21/some_communities_find_meals_tax_a_boon/?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Globe+West
Related post:
The State announced the totals for local meal tax revenues earlier in July
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2011/07/meals-tax-delivers-705-million-to-146.html
Thursday, July 21, 2011
"cyberbullying feels like something they can't get away from"
While the foundation sponsors surveys every two years among the region's middle and high schools, it had never before asked its consultant to look at overlap between categories - in this case students who reported mental health problems and those who identified themselves as bullying victims.
The prompt, Donham said, is a lingering perception among some parents - and even a few teachers - that bullying is something students usually work their way through, more an obnoxious rite of childhood than a serious danger.
There have also been questions about why the foundation is treating bullying as a health issue deserving grant money, and questions about whether bullying is a classroom issue when much of the harassment takes place off school grounds.
But the data show a clear picture of mental health harm likely to impede learning, harm that includes stress, symptoms of depression, self-injury, serious consideration of suicide - and even attempted suicide, among roughly 578 students.
"I think that's alarming," Donham said of the suicide numbers. "I think that warrants some looking at."
Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/archive/x920803137/Report-shows-link-between-bullying-mental-health-problems#ixzz1SjRqsR00
Another report, another view, this time from the Boston Globe:
Sharply contrasting findings, from a Globe survey of the state’s 10 largest school systems, casts light on a lingering controversy over the Massachusetts law: What, if anything, should schools report about bullying among their students to authorities at the district or state level?
Read more at the Boston Globe.
"The state will cover 58 percent"
"It seems like an absolutely slam-dunk no-brainer," said Town Council Vice Chairman Stephen Whalen, of building a new high school instead of renovating the current structure.
The town will make use of the state's model-school program, in which the building committee would pick one of four state-approved options for a school that's already been designed. Building a new school under the model-school program will cost the town roughly $40 million, only about $3 million to $4 million more than gutting and renovating the existing building.
"The most telling endorsement we got was from the architect who's going to lose his job if we get accepted into the model-school program," said Chairman Scott Mason, who also serves on the building committee. "For him to stand up and say, basically, this is a no-brainer, says a lot."
Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/archive/x1510860843/Franklin-councilors-OK-with-plan-for-new-high-school#ixzz1SjQIZLhC
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