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Sunday, May 10, 2015
News from Norfolk County Registry of Deeds
Saturday, May 9, 2015
@RattleCity tweeted: It's official, best fans in the state. Parade and banner ceremony date to be determined #MIAABOTF
From the Twitter feed we find another award for Franklin to celebrate this week. Rattle City, the student cheering section has been recognized as the best in MA by the MIAA
And the video that won for Rattle City:
View the MIAA twitter feed for additional submissions and tweets with the tag #MIAABOTF
You can folllow Franklin Matters on Twitter https://twitter.com/FranklinMatters
You can follow Rattle City at https://twitter.com/RattleCity
It's official, best fans in the state. Parade and banner ceremony date to be determined #MIAABOTF
— Rattle City ™ (@RattleCity) May 8, 2015
Congrats to @RattleCity and all Panther fans for winning 2015 MIAA "Battle of Fans" contest #neverquit #gopanthers
— FranklinAthletics (@FHSSports) May 8, 2015
Franklin selected by MIAA as the winner of their "Battle of the Fans" contest. #hockomock https://t.co/EUdZg52XdI
— Ryan Lanigan (@R_Lanigan) May 8, 2015
And the video that won for Rattle City:
View the MIAA twitter feed for additional submissions and tweets with the tag #MIAABOTF
You can folllow Franklin Matters on Twitter https://twitter.com/FranklinMatters
You can follow Rattle City at https://twitter.com/RattleCity
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| screen grab of Rattle City Twitter profile page |
Friendly reminder - Comment policy
The comment policy was established in Dec of 2007 and it's time for a friendly reminder.
I welcome your comments here at Franklin Matters. To maintain a respectful dialogue, I've posted the guidelines of the comment policy below.
I retain the discretion to determine which comments violate this comment policy.
I reserve the right to remove violations.
I expect all contributors to be respectful.
This comment policy is valid for all discussions hosted on this Franklin Matters website and/or the Facebook Franklin Matters page.
Thank you for taking the time to review our comment policy. I encourage your participation in a healthy and respectful discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.
The comment policy is also located here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2007/12/comment-policy.html
I welcome your comments here at Franklin Matters. To maintain a respectful dialogue, I've posted the guidelines of the comment policy below.
- Stay focused. All viewpoints are welcome, but comments should remain on the topic set by the original blog post, discussion question or other type of initial entry.
- Be respectful. Ad hominem or personal attacks, profanity, and aggressive behavior are prohibited. Instigating arguments in a disrespectful way is also prohibited.
- Tell the truth. Spreading misleading or false information is prohibited.
- No spam. Repeated posting of identical or very similar content in a counter-productive manner is prohibited – this includes posts aggressively promoting services or products.
I retain the discretion to determine which comments violate this comment policy.
I reserve the right to remove violations.
I expect all contributors to be respectful.
This comment policy is valid for all discussions hosted on this Franklin Matters website and/or the Facebook Franklin Matters page.
Thank you for taking the time to review our comment policy. I encourage your participation in a healthy and respectful discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.
The comment policy is also located here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2007/12/comment-policy.html
Dean College Commencement - May 9th
The schedule of events for the Dean College Commencement can be found here
http://www.dean.edu/commencement_may2015.aspx#
Best bet would be to avoid the Dean/Main St area between 10:00am and 1:00pm
To the Dean graduates, best wishes on the road you choose to follow!
http://www.dean.edu/commencement_may2015.aspx#
Best bet would be to avoid the Dean/Main St area between 10:00am and 1:00pm
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| Dean College gets ready for commencement 2015 |
To the Dean graduates, best wishes on the road you choose to follow!
Listen to your mother
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Friday, May 8, 2015
Upcoming Events in Franklin, MA Area: FRI 5/8/15 - THU 5/14/15
FRI 5/8 2:30-4:30pm Game Day at the Franklin Public Library (Wii, board games, crafts) - all ages
FRI 5/8 6:30pm Mother Daughter Fancy Tea Party at The Cake Bar, registration required
FRI 5/8 8-9:50pm Frozen Friday DJ Public Skate at Pirelli Arena
SAT 5/9 8am-1pm FHS Bottle and Can Drive to benefit All Night Party, FHS parking lot
SAT 5/9 9am-12pm SNETT Cleanup Day, meet at South School in Bellingham, bring gloves. Come learn about the rail trail and help out. Great way to earn community service hours too.
SAT 5/9 10am-3pm Stamp Out Hunger Drive - leave non-perishable items by your mailbox or visit Franklin Food Pantry to drop off
SAT 5/9 10am Elks Care Elks Share 5K Road Race & Walk, Elks Lodge, Franklin
SAT 5/9 1-3pm Zentangle Workshop at Franklin Art Center
SAT 5/9 8pm Rebecca Loebe and Jesse Terry Concert at Circle of Friends Coffeehouse
TUE 5/12 7:30pm Franklin and Bellingham Rail Trail Committee Meeting at the Franklin YMCA. Public welcome.
WED 5/13 7:30pm Franklin Newcomers Club Monthly Meeting at ‘3’ Restaurant with a special guest Jeff Nutting. Prospective members welcome!
THU 5/14 6pm Kindergarten Info Night at Kennedy and Parmenter Schools
THU 5/14 7pm Small Shop Co-Op Meeting at The Cake Bar
For all the Town of Franklin Public Meetings click HERE.
For event details click HERE.
*If you have any suggestions or events for the calendar, please email Renata@BetterLivingRE.com
Sidewalks, beer/wine license, and RFPs draw large crowd to Town Council meeting
There was almost a full house at the Town Council Meeting on Wednesday evenings. The coincidence of the agenda drew many members of the community for their particular interest along with the major department heads for their capital budget needs.
Neighbors along Chestnut St who had signed a petition looking for sidewalks got a commitment to be included in the design process. Sidewalks were approved for Pleasant St (from St Mary's down to Miller). The design study would look at a sidewalk from Griffin all the way up Chestnut to 140. Another phase of work would look at sidewalks along Washington St. These sidewalks were all identified as desired in the Master Plan published in 2013
Neighbors along Pond St gathered to see the discussion and vote by the Town Council to approve two RFP's. One to offer the land for lease for a potential solar farm. The second would be offering the land for sale for a multi use development including some residential but not apartments. Both RFPs were approved. This is the first of about an 8 step process according to Town Administrator Jeff Nutting. Responses to the RFPs will be reviewed by the Economic Development Committee before being brought to the Council for discussion and decision.
The Lenzi family and supporters of small business also gathered to participate in the discussion around a beer/wine license for the Big Y. After hearing arguments for an against the proposal, the Council voted 8-1 to award the license to the Big Y. Councilor Dellorco was the only 'no' vote. The 'yes' votes were essentially won over by the financial benefits that the Big Y has brought to Franklin (new construction, road improvements, and substantial tax contribution) as well as the license is only for beer/wine. The other two small businesses (Franklin Liquors and Davitas) have full liquor licenses. The argument of providing a convenience to the Big Y customers won the day. The Big Y is a MA based family owned company.
For the other license transactions on the agenda, British Beer Company did not show up so their item was continued to the next meeting. Guru now doing business as Chinese Mirch received approval for their DBA change.
The Council spent less time approving $1.7 million dollars for a variety of capital improvements. This continues the financial practice of using 'free cash' to fund the capital needs of Franklin. From putting money aside for new fire truck, adding money to the fund to replace the turf fields, to funding the removal of the modular units at Davis Thayer, protective vests for the police, emergency air units for fire fighters to highlight a few. In Capital Subcommittee Chair Matt Kelly's words, it was like Christmas morning. Everybody got something on their wish list.
In the last minute juggling of the agenda to make progress while waiting for the 7:10 time for the public hearings to begin, Alan Mercer provided an update on the Franklin Cultural District and this summer's Franklin Cultural Festival.
Franklin TV was also scheduled for an update on the cable operations and ended up rescheduling for next time.
Tucked among the action items is a surprise rate reduction for the Trash/Recycling. The current rate is $216 and it will be reduced to $200. All the work with the single stream trash/recycling is continuing to pay off. Literally in our case with the savings coming to the rate payers. This is the lowest the rate has been in years. It may still go up some time in the future but not some much each time and maybe not for a couple of years. We all can enjoy the savings in the meantime!
My set of notes recorded live during the meeting can be found here
Neighbors along Chestnut St who had signed a petition looking for sidewalks got a commitment to be included in the design process. Sidewalks were approved for Pleasant St (from St Mary's down to Miller). The design study would look at a sidewalk from Griffin all the way up Chestnut to 140. Another phase of work would look at sidewalks along Washington St. These sidewalks were all identified as desired in the Master Plan published in 2013
Neighbors along Pond St gathered to see the discussion and vote by the Town Council to approve two RFP's. One to offer the land for lease for a potential solar farm. The second would be offering the land for sale for a multi use development including some residential but not apartments. Both RFPs were approved. This is the first of about an 8 step process according to Town Administrator Jeff Nutting. Responses to the RFPs will be reviewed by the Economic Development Committee before being brought to the Council for discussion and decision.
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| National Small Business Week |
The Lenzi family and supporters of small business also gathered to participate in the discussion around a beer/wine license for the Big Y. After hearing arguments for an against the proposal, the Council voted 8-1 to award the license to the Big Y. Councilor Dellorco was the only 'no' vote. The 'yes' votes were essentially won over by the financial benefits that the Big Y has brought to Franklin (new construction, road improvements, and substantial tax contribution) as well as the license is only for beer/wine. The other two small businesses (Franklin Liquors and Davitas) have full liquor licenses. The argument of providing a convenience to the Big Y customers won the day. The Big Y is a MA based family owned company.
For the other license transactions on the agenda, British Beer Company did not show up so their item was continued to the next meeting. Guru now doing business as Chinese Mirch received approval for their DBA change.
The Council spent less time approving $1.7 million dollars for a variety of capital improvements. This continues the financial practice of using 'free cash' to fund the capital needs of Franklin. From putting money aside for new fire truck, adding money to the fund to replace the turf fields, to funding the removal of the modular units at Davis Thayer, protective vests for the police, emergency air units for fire fighters to highlight a few. In Capital Subcommittee Chair Matt Kelly's words, it was like Christmas morning. Everybody got something on their wish list.
In the last minute juggling of the agenda to make progress while waiting for the 7:10 time for the public hearings to begin, Alan Mercer provided an update on the Franklin Cultural District and this summer's Franklin Cultural Festival.
Franklin TV was also scheduled for an update on the cable operations and ended up rescheduling for next time.
Tucked among the action items is a surprise rate reduction for the Trash/Recycling. The current rate is $216 and it will be reduced to $200. All the work with the single stream trash/recycling is continuing to pay off. Literally in our case with the savings coming to the rate payers. This is the lowest the rate has been in years. It may still go up some time in the future but not some much each time and maybe not for a couple of years. We all can enjoy the savings in the meantime!
My set of notes recorded live during the meeting can be found here
- Live reporting - Closing
- Live reporting: Legislation for action
- Live reporting: License transactions
- Live reporting: Town Council - Agenda - May 6, 201...
Franklin Library: Adult coffee and craft - Game day
There are two events at the Library today. For the adults, the coffee and craft series will feature Zentangle. For the kids, the next iteration of Game Day.
Coffee and Craft starts at 1:30
Game Day starts at 2:30
These events were shared from the Library pages here
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2015/05/adult-coffee-craft.html
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2015/05/game-day.html
Coffee and Craft starts at 1:30
Game Day starts at 2:30
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| Zentangle for the coffee and craft today at 1:30 |
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| game day for the kids at 2:30 |
These events were shared from the Library pages here
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2015/05/adult-coffee-craft.html
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2015/05/game-day.html
Annual Franklin Post 75 and Medway Post 367 Scholarship Run - Jun 20
The Annual Franklin Post 75 and Medway Post 367 Scholarship Run will be held at Medway High School on Saturday, June 20, 2015.
We are currently seeking sponsors and donations. Please mark your calendar and stay tuned for more details including instructions on how to register.
If you have any questions or would like to be a sponsor or make a donation, please contact Kim Leone at Franklin Post 75 or Doug Wahl at Medway Post 367.
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| screen grab of American Legion Post 75 webpage |
To register for the 5 mile race, click on the link below.
FHS sports results for Thursday, May 7
The FHS baseball team dropped a close one in 8 innings to Attleboro. The girls lacrosse team lost their match to Westwood. Softball and both the boys and girls tennis teams won their matches on Thursday. All the results shared from Hockomock Sports.
For all the sports action on Thursday around the Hockomock League visit
http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/hockomock-schedule-scoreboard-050715
Baseball
Franklin, 7 @ Attleboro, 8 - Final (8 innings)- Attleboro's Tyler Stowe scored the game winning run in walk off win for the Bombardiers. Nate Tellier went 3-5 with two doubles and two RBI and Will Carter was 3-5 with two RBI. For Franklin, Nick Burgos went 3-5 with two runs scored and a double.
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| FHS Panthers |
Softball
Attleboro, 0 @ Franklin, 6 - Final- Sabrina LoMonaco struck out 11 for the win, allowing just one hit in the fifth inning. Maddie Connelly and Brie Flaherty each went 2-4 with a pair of RBIs, Olivia DiGiacomo went 2-3 and head coach Kate Fallon-Comeau said Erin Halney had great base running, scoring twice.
Girls Lacrosse
Franklin, 4 vs. Westwood, 13- Final - Emily Jeffries scored twice for the Panthers and Emily Spath and Julianne Pisani each scored once.
Boys Tennis
Franklin, 4 @ Attleboro, 1 - FinalGirls Tennis
Franklin, 5 @ Attleboro, 0 - FinalFor all the sports action on Thursday around the Hockomock League visit
http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/hockomock-schedule-scoreboard-050715
In the News: Bike week, RFPs issued
Massachusetts will be celebrating bicycling next week, as Bay State Bike Week will be held from May 9 to 17.
Bicycling organizations, neighborhood groups and local governments are encouraged to host a local event or participate in an existing activity. The events "encourage bicycling as a fun, healthy, safe, and sustainable travel choice," according to a press release from the state Department of Transportation.
“Our administration is pleased to support Bay State Bike Week and encourages our citizens to participate in local events as a fun and healthy activity for the whole family,” Governor Charlie Baker said in the release.
Bay State Bike Week is now in its seventh year.
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| screen grab of Bay State Bike Week webpage |
Continue reading the article here
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150507/NEWS/150507149/1994/NEWS
For additional information on Bike Week, http://baystatebikeweek.org/
The town has begun soliciting proposals to develop 33 acres off Pond Street after spending more than a month collecting feedback from nearby residents.
On Wednesday, the Town Council voted unanimously to issue two separate requests for proposals for the town-owned parcels, which are bordered to the west by Interstate 495, to the east by Pond Street, to the south by commercial properties, and to the north by wetlands owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and a residential subdivision.
Previous attempts to sell the land for economic development have proved unsuccessful.
The first request seeks developers interested in leasing the land for a solar farm. Already benefiting from a solar array near the Wrentham line, officials expect the developer to have an energy agreement in place with another community or business.
Continue reading the article here
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150507/NEWS/150506795/1994/NEWS
For the Franklin Matters summary of the Town Council meeting including the rate reduction for trash/recycling, check here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/05/sidewalks-beerwine-license-and-rfps.html
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Live reporting: Finance Committee - May 7, 2015 - Budget Hearing #4
Present: Dowd, Conley, Fleming, Smith, Dewsnap, Aparo, Bertone
Absent: Dufour, Huempher
Jeff Nutting
minutes from May 4 meeting,
motion to accept, seconded, passed 7-0
minutes from May 5 meeting,
motion to accept, seconded, passed 7-0
Budget Presentations:
trash business is down, and competition is increasing
got together with some 30+ communities to negotiate the tipping fees from 74 to 64
then an increase by 3/4 of the CPI
finished negotiating with our collection contractor so we are able to keep the budget under control and drop the rates from $216 - $200
rate now lowest it has been
recycling cost have no risen, there is no market for recycling
thanks to Chris White, Brutus and the whole team
there will be a program to enforce the cleanliness of the total
not mixing trash with recycling, not mixing recyling with trash
will pick a random week, and get rating based upon how clean we are
Franklin is a role model for water conservation
average daily 65 gal/per person day is target
currently at 49 gal/day per person
what wasn't discussed whar the storm water restrictions, finally
it could be another million next year, then 2-3 million and up to 60 million over the next several years
only numbers that should change will be fire dept due to the award, and debt budget due to financing 3.2 million in bonds, Norfolk County Ag could change
pending those changes, we should be good
motion to approve the following budgets
long listing of budget items (sheet to be added later)
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/budgets/FY%2016%20Budget/voting%2016.pdf
The Town Administrators letter to the Council on the budget can be found here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/budgets/FY%2016%20Budget/Budget%20Letter.pdf
the budget was approved by a 7-0 vote
the budget then goes to Town Council for Jun 10-11
Nutting - there will be upward pressure on the budget, there is some money set aside, but when that comes it will be a Council decision on level of service to be provided. An increase in commercial/industrial business doesn't really increase our services. Residential housing does by putting pressure on the schools and other programs. if we can take some emergancy runs off the table and keep the fire fighters healthier, that helps us.
request for fund for an OPEB actuary study
more likely to get FinCom to the Town Council and cover all at once
motion to approve $10K from free cash to find the actuary study
next meeting? we'll leave it open, maybe something in June, not sure
any renewal of appointments are up in June, let Diane know
library issue some time during the summer? or Sep/Oct
the Senior Center project might need some more money, not sure of the timing
motion to adjourn, seconded, passed 7-0
Note from the prior budget hearings can be found here
Tuesday - May 5
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/05/real-time-reporting-finance-committee.html
Monday - May 4
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/05/live-reporting-finance-committee-budget.html
Thursday - Apr 30
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/04/live-reporting-finance-committee-budget.html
Absent: Dufour, Huempher
Jeff Nutting
minutes from May 4 meeting,
motion to accept, seconded, passed 7-0
minutes from May 5 meeting,
motion to accept, seconded, passed 7-0
Budget Presentations:
- 177 Planning A-35
Bryan Taberner, Director of Planning and Community Development
one shift of a clerk to Planning from Town Admin as they support the Planning Board
couple of RFPs to be issued
did increase expenses to increase marketing
getting marketing assistance, attend conferences and distribute materials for us
working with local business and other government agencies is what we need to do
additional $10,000 for marketing
get the Town of Franklin's name out in conferences
what do other town's spend our size?
very little, very few communities do something like this, an investment like this is not common
looking to keep the buildings full and to maintain the assessed values
changed zoning laws, streamline permitting, added biotech
now is the time to market
worked with Franklin TV to do a video to market to businesses
get one business in here, it turns out to be a good investment
is the outreach NE or national?
they will market the materials to where ever they go
- 610 Library F-1
Felicia Oti, Library Director
the library budget has struggled a couple of years ago
did get a waiver and we have been able to add money to the budget
programs are up, Sunday hours added
meet minimum hours to get state aid, still don't meet the minimum funding requirements
but given the work we have done, the Library Commissioners have better confidence in what we are doing
about to renovate the Library
good support from the Friends of the Library and the Library Association
only a 2% increase, level service otherwise
books and publications account for 100% of the increase
a wide variety of electronic media
9 programs weekly and 4 monthly
book sales are held monthly, averaging $1600/month
design still being done, will come to the FinCom and Council for funding
not sure how much of a disruption in service it will be due to the eventual construction
formula is based on a 3 year average
66 percent of the circulation checkouts are through self scan
need to be open a minimum of 59 hours to maintain state aid and inter-library services
we are doing something right, the Director of the Minuteman network came to look at our process and had us present on how we do it
- 220 Fire B-13
Chief McCarragher, Deputy Sharpe
fire fighters haven't had an increase in 4 years, as the contract is still with the arbitrator
looking at response times, best guest estimate on the arbitrator award but nothing firm
the last 6 weeks we have been told our arbitration award would be here, and it still hasn't
48 firefighters and paramedics
emerging trend is that we are seeing multiple calls, over 400 times 2 calls, more and more we're getting the 3rd call; 140-160 times this year projected
8 minutes is the life time for us in response,
looking to increase the budget over a period of 3-4 years and fully staff a 3rd ambulence
addressing succession planning, attempted a grant to help with the planning
over the next 6 years, 2/3 of the officers are projected to retire
collective bargaining agreement has a credit for college education
we are a technical trade and there are hands on things that the fire fighters need to know
we need to start taking better care of our fire fighters
how do we keep them healthy to retire out well
bi-annual physical, a physical prescription to keep them healthy
60% of the recent retirees did so with an injury
physical fitness needs to be improved, injuries 5-10 times greater than the average job
exposed to hazardous materials, effects of those don't get caught in the annual physicals
developing a hearing conservation program, only 49% of the fire fighters have normal hearing
the siren is in excess of OSHA levels, all those exposures generate hearing loss
with good audio testing and precautionary hearing, you can turn the tide
will be coming back in the next capital budget for new radios that will have ear muffs and a microphone to help
community outreach program, under direction of Keith Darling
targeted on fall prevention this year, 200 calls last year were fall related, if we could reduce that in half, we would have created capacity in the system as well as save the people health and time
home inspection, trip hazards, looking for extra funds to expand the program
we don't know what our salaries will be
health issues and simulatneous calls are the big issues
one was out on long term injury, now going out as 'retired'
what is the loss of income on the mutual aid?
it pales in comparison to staffing the ambulence
Calls to 656 King St are frequent
we have new cliental with new staff
Deputy Sharpe has spoken with them and we have already seen a reduction in activity
our minuimum staff right now is 9, we would have liked to keep it at 10
over time, we want to get to 12
our folks dug themsleves into the residence and then dug themsleves out to get our residents help
9.74 persons/day
full shift should be 12, long term injuries are keeping us from that
The Lincoln St proposal was denied
12 minutes for mutual aid coming from other towns, Bellingham, Norfolk, and Wrentham
we need to find out we need one, then call, and then they need to respond
- 225 Regional Dispatch B-24
we are at the forefront of regional dispatch
14 Sharon Ave in Norfolk
conceptual design
meeting in a couple of weeks to get to the next steps
Executive Director, IT person, train folks
ultimately you'll see elimination of dispatchers from the police and fire budgets
as this goes forward
expenses early on would be personnel expenses
Commonwealth will pay for the building and the equipment
vast majority of the cost will be personnel
it is an assessment, not necessarily as the same level of detail as a department budget
we are trying to recruit an Executive Director
we want them to be aware of whar is goign on so when it opens, they are ready
phased opening approx 18 months from July
construction shouldn't take long, get the technology installed
47% of the assesssent, based upon call volume and population
at least initally, once open for a few years we can re-look at it
no money spent nor will be spent by June 30th
it is delayed and frustrating, we could have been open two years ago
once we are up and running, we would love to have other join
the issue is really antennas, repeaters, and phone lines
it doesn't cost that much more
I think that is three or four years away
the Town meeting in Norfolk is next week
we'll have some advantage of using the vendors to do some training
we can hire some of our folks as part time and train them
there is also some transitional money available from the state grant
the state should be full funding this but how well we compete and the timing will be key
merging four procedures into one set of procedures
we are the only ones with both police and fire dispatchers
- 422 DPW D-1
Robert (Brutus) Cantoreggi, Director DPW
no personnel changes, other than contractually obligated
would like to do more but it is not practical
rely on Chapter 90 for paving
Laurie Ruszala, Water/Sewer Supervisor
Kathy Mooradd, Office Manager
more fields, to maintain, did up the funding for supplies
snow/ice did remain the same
experimented with GPS tracking for the contractors
really about customer service, we can go online and see who is where
sometimes the folks are right, the road was missed, sometimes, he had just been by and is on his way back, so it has worked out pretty well
only $13,000 on a million dollar budget but it is worth it
gasoline dropping down, usage down and anticipating the gas pricing with new contract going down as well
recycling center did go up slightly, now open on Sundays
for customer service, if any has used it recently
we have put in walls and trees, we take styrofoam and other things
working out well, it is becoming more of a reward
budgeting a five year rolling average without the high and low
should be up about 50,000 but it wasn't worth the hassle to juggle
could get some FEMA money, about 75% of the 330,000 storm but not likely to come in before the end of the year
- 424 Streetlights D-17
we used to budget and then a couple of years ago we bought all of them from NationalGrid
contractor hired to maintain the lights
there is a lot of underground wiring and when that fails, it is expensive but we are saving big overall
we pay the electricity, we have about 1600 street lights
LEDs currently have a 9 year payback, but it doesn't seem to be affordable right now
when prices come down, it might be worth it
we replace 20% of the street lights each year, shouldn't mix them on a street for the safety of the drivers
- 440 Sewer Enterprise H-2
biggest number is the assessment from the Charles River Sewer
we are about 65% of the business
increase coming due to work being done, but we have prepared for that so that there should not be a rate increase
we have very low debt for our sewer, and no plans for it
we have taken 600,000 gallons of sewer by fixing pipes and leaks
we have saved it but are still 65% of the costs
the Beaver St intersepetor, runs long 140 between the railroad track and Mine Brook
trying to reduce the flows before replacing the pipe
would proably need $10M to replace it and may not even be able to put it where it is
please don't through Swifters in the toilets
recycle or garbage, the Swifters can clog up the sewer pumps
Mine Brook, Shepards Brook are the other two interceptors that are owned and maintained by the Charles River Sewer District
we only have the one at Beaver St
- 450 Water Enterprise H-9
did a couple of additions here, water distrbution equipment
our staff is actually doing installation of water lines
we need to buy the pipe to do the work but the labor is done in house
doing a building needs assessment, an asset management plan
structural and life expectancy evaluation beng done by an outside
- 434 Solid Waste Enterp H-16
trash business is down, and competition is increasing
got together with some 30+ communities to negotiate the tipping fees from 74 to 64
then an increase by 3/4 of the CPI
finished negotiating with our collection contractor so we are able to keep the budget under control and drop the rates from $216 - $200
rate now lowest it has been
recycling cost have no risen, there is no market for recycling
thanks to Chris White, Brutus and the whole team
there will be a program to enforce the cleanliness of the total
not mixing trash with recycling, not mixing recyling with trash
will pick a random week, and get rating based upon how clean we are
Franklin is a role model for water conservation
average daily 65 gal/per person day is target
currently at 49 gal/day per person
what wasn't discussed whar the storm water restrictions, finally
it could be another million next year, then 2-3 million and up to 60 million over the next several years
only numbers that should change will be fire dept due to the award, and debt budget due to financing 3.2 million in bonds, Norfolk County Ag could change
pending those changes, we should be good
motion to approve the following budgets
long listing of budget items (sheet to be added later)
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/budgets/FY%2016%20Budget/voting%2016.pdf
The Town Administrators letter to the Council on the budget can be found here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/budgets/FY%2016%20Budget/Budget%20Letter.pdf
the budget was approved by a 7-0 vote
the budget then goes to Town Council for Jun 10-11
Nutting - there will be upward pressure on the budget, there is some money set aside, but when that comes it will be a Council decision on level of service to be provided. An increase in commercial/industrial business doesn't really increase our services. Residential housing does by putting pressure on the schools and other programs. if we can take some emergancy runs off the table and keep the fire fighters healthier, that helps us.
request for fund for an OPEB actuary study
more likely to get FinCom to the Town Council and cover all at once
motion to approve $10K from free cash to find the actuary study
next meeting? we'll leave it open, maybe something in June, not sure
any renewal of appointments are up in June, let Diane know
library issue some time during the summer? or Sep/Oct
the Senior Center project might need some more money, not sure of the timing
motion to adjourn, seconded, passed 7-0
Note from the prior budget hearings can be found here
Tuesday - May 5
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/05/real-time-reporting-finance-committee.html
Monday - May 4
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/05/live-reporting-finance-committee-budget.html
Thursday - Apr 30
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/04/live-reporting-finance-committee-budget.html
MIAA names 3 FHS Coaches as "Coach of the Year"
The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association announced its Coach of the Year award winners for the 2014-2015 school year and five coaches from Hockomock schools were honored. These five, along with all of the other winners, will the be honored at the MIAA Coach of the Year banquet at the end of May.
The five Hockomock coaches that received the honor were Franklin's Fran Bositis for boys soccer, Franklin's Tom Geysen for girls soccer, Franklin's Chris Spillane for boys ice hockey, Milford's Dave Chaplin for boys swimming and Milford's Linda Zacchilli for boys volleyball.
Spillane and the Franklin boys hockey team had arguably the best season of all Hockomock teams so far this year. The Panthers were selected to play in a Super 8 play-in game for the first time in program history and were the first Hockomock team to do so. Franklin then beat Xaverian in overtime in the play-in game to make it to the Super 8 tournament. Spillane led the Panthers to a 17-4-3 overall record with three of their losses coming to the three time defending Super 8 champions, Malden Catholic.
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| Franklin's Tom Geysen was named the MIAA Coach of the Year for Girls Soccer. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com) |
Continue reading the full article here
http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/five-hockomock-coaches-recognized-by-miaa
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