This is the last week for St John’s Pumpkin Patch, so if you don’t already have your pumpkins and gourds - for eating and decorating, head on down to 237 Pleasant Street in Franklin.
We’re open Mon - Fri from 4:00 - 7:00 PM and Saturday (Halloween) from 12 - 7:00 PM.
We’ll have a Costume Contest at 3:00 PM on Halloween. Prizes for the Scariest, Funniest, and Most Original.
St John’s Pumpkin Patch in final week
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| Talk Franklin Matters - RESCHEDULED - Oct 29 - 2:00 PM |
Reason #4 to #ThinkFranklinFirst:
Local support! #localeconomy #smallbusiness #shoplocal #keepitlocal #itmatters
https://t.co/KO3ks83P96
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| Reason #4 to #ThinkFranklinFirst |
From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:
"Massachusetts health officials on Monday reported more than 1,000 new confirmed coronavirus cases for the third consecutive day.
The 1,216 new cases were out of about 20,000 tests, a positivity rate of about 6%, according to data released by the Department of Public Health.
The 7-day rolling average of daily new cases in Massachusetts has now surged over the past two weeks from more than 565 on Oct. 11 to more than 986 on Sunday, according to the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
The 7-day rolling average of the positivity rate in Massachusetts has risen over the past two weeks from 0.96% on Oct. 11 to almost 1.4% on Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins."
"A man was charged with setting a Boston ballot drop box on fire and damaging dozens of ballots, police said Monday.Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
Worldy Armand, a 39-year-old Boston resident, was taken into custody late Sunday, hours after he started a fire inside a drop box outside the Boston Public Library in the city’s Back Bay neighborhood, authorities said. The box contained more than 120 ballots.
Armand faces a charge of willful and malicious burning, police said. It was not immediately clear whether he has an attorney to speak for him.
The FBI had said Sunday that it’s investigating. Federal authorities urged members of the public to “remain vigilant and immediately report any suspicious, election-related activity.”
From CommonWealth Magazine we share two articles of interest for Franklin:
"Added unemployment benefits pass swiftly"
"AS MANY AS 17,000 unemployed Massachusetts residents could become eligible for thousands of dollars in additional unemployment benefits under legislation that swept through the House and Senate and was signed by Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday to provide relief to residents who didn’t initially qualify for the federal Lost Wages Assistance program.
The federal program ran in Massachusetts for six weeks from the end of July through the first week in September, but in order to qualify for the additional $300 in weekly unemployment benefits a claimant had to be receiving at least $100 in weekly state benefits.
The bill passed by the Legislature on Monday increased the minimum benefit for any unemployment insurance beneficiary to $100 for the week ending Aug. 1 through the week ending Sept. 5."
Massachusetts Majority PAC pays for Kelly mailing
"The Baker-affiliated PAC is supporting two other Republican senators facing Democratic challengers – Sen. Patrick O’Connor of Weymouth, who is running against Meg Wheeler of Cohasset, and Sen. Ryan Fattman of Sutton, who is running against Christine Crean of Milford. The PAC spent $35,209 on direct mail campaigns supporting each of the Republican senators. The fourth Republican senator, Minority Leader Bruce Tarr of Gloucester, is running unopposed.
The PAC also spent $30,538 on direct mail advertising supporting Republican Matthew Kelly of Franklin, who is running against incumbent Democratic Sen. Becca Rausch of Needham. The PAC did not support three other Republicans — John Cain of Southwick, James McMahon III of Bourne, and Steven Hall of Sturbridge – running against incumbent Senate Democrats."
What started as a question "could we close Davis Thayer?" has produced a report that potentially could close three elementary schools, consolidate the middle schools into one building, and provide a better educational experience at less cost for Franklin students.
Read the Executive Summary of the Comprehensive Facilities Assessment:
"The Franklin Public Schools occupy multiple facilities ranging from 6 to 96 years of age. Over this period we have seen monumental shifts in how we educate students, particularly with regards to technology and educational delivery methods used. These changes have an impact on the ability of a facility to function as it was intended and as it needs to in the future.
In December of 2019, the Franklin Public Schools engaged Kaestle Boos Associates (KBA) to develop a Comprehensive Facilities Assessment focusing on capacity and the educational adequacy of the current schools.
Prior to engaging KBA, the District was provided with a Demographics Report that indicated enrollment was going to decline by approximately 12% over the next 10 years.
Utilizing this data, educational assessments of existing facilities and an inventory of existing spaces was collected through site visits and conversations with District leadership.
The results of the analysis indicate that Franklin Public Schools facilities are currently 26% under capacity and are anticipated to continue to decline to 31% in the next 10 years.
If no changes were to occur the school facilities would:
- all continue to operate under capacity
- continue to create a financial burden in the maintenance of these underutilized facilities
- suffer reduced educational adequacy in schools built prior to 1996 "
View the presentation copy as scheduled for review and discussion at the School Committee meeting Tuesday, October 27, 2020.
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| School Committee: Comprehensive Facilities Assessment |
FM #373 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 373 in the series.
This session shares the Franklin, MA Town Council meeting held on
Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge
to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic
period.
I’ve split the full three hour plus meeting into three segments:
- First - covers the opening through the appointments and pinning
ceremonies, including the presentation/discussion on nationalGRID and
their response to power outages during storms (1 hour and 20 minutes)
- Second - covers the presentation/discussion on the Beaver St
interceptor, which could become the largest public works project the
Town has taken on other than building a school (50 mins)
** Third - covers Subcommittee reports through Legislation for Action and ultimately to the close of the meeting (64 minutes)
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and to the presentation document.
Let’s listen to this segment of the Town Council meeting of Oct 21, 2020 (64 mins) (part 3 of 3) Audio file = https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/H6x5mVcK
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Town Council agenda
https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/october-21-town-council-agenda
Beaver St Interceptor presentation
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
My notes from the meeting
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/town-counil-meeting-recap-oct-21-2020.html
--------------
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
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
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!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or
your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
hydraulic flow diagram of the Beaver St interceptor covered in detail in Part 2 of the meeting audio
FM #372 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 372 in the series.
This session shares the Franklin, MA Town Council meeting held on
Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge
to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic
period.
I’ve split the full three hour plus meeting into three segments:
- First - covers the opening through the appointments and pinning
ceremonies, including the presentation/discussion on nationalGRID and
their response to power outages during storms (1 hour and 20 minutes)
** Second - covers the presentation/discussion on the Beaver St
interceptor, which could become the largest public works project the
Town has taken on other than building a school (50 mins)
- Third - covers Subcommittee reports through legislation for Action and ultimately to the close of the meeting (64 minutes)
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and to the presentation document.
Let’s listen to this segment of the Town Council meeting of Oct 21, 2020 (50 mins) (part 2 of 3) Audio file = https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-372-town-council-mtg-10-21-20
--------------
Town Council agenda
https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/october-21-town-council-agenda
Beaver St Interceptor presentation
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
My notes from the meeting
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/town-counil-meeting-recap-oct-21-2020.html
--------------
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
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
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!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or
your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
 |
| screengrab from the Beaver St Interceptor portion of the meeting |
FM #371-372-373 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 371-372-373 in the series.
This session shares the Franklin, MA Town Council meeting held on Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic period.
I’ve split the full three hour plus meeting into three segments:
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and to the presentation document.
Let’s listen to this segment of the Town Council meeting of Oct 21, 2020.
(1 hour and 20 minutes) Audio file = https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/HDK6Bm5K
Town Council agenda
https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/october-21-town-council-agenda
Beaver St Interceptor presentation
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
My notes from the meeting
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/town-counil-meeting-recap-oct-21-2020.html
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?
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
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!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
Police Dept Retiree - Doug Nix and family
FM #370 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 370 in the series.
This session shares the Board of Health meeting held on Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic period.
The discussion centered around one net new business attempting to open for business without being properly prepared to file the documentation required to open and operate during this pandemic period.
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and the Board of Health page.
The meeting runs about 60 minutes, so let’s listen to the Board of Health meeting for Oct 21, 2020 Audio file = https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/HB2v0fYK
Meeting agenda:
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/franklin-ma-board-of-health-agenda-oct.html
Board of Health page https://www.franklinma.gov/health-department
--------------
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?
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
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!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
screen grab of Board of Health Mtg 10/21/20
From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:
"In 2018, Sen. Becca Rausch, D-Needham, defeated incumbent Republican Richard Ross by less than 1,700 votes. Franklin Town Councilor Matt Kelly, R-Franklin, is vying for her spot this year.
On Nov. 3, voters will choose to either re-elect Raush, 41, to her seat on the state Senate to serve thousands across Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex counties, or incomer Kelly, 42, who has served on the Franklin Town Council since 2010.
Kelly, 42, calls himself “the common sense candidate” because of his experience on the Town Council, as a small business owner, marriage to a public school teacher and being the father of two girls, he said."
"The Massachusetts Department of Public Health reported an additional 1,097 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, bringing the statewide total to 147,210.
This marks the second straight day that state health officials reported 1,000-plus newly confirmed coronavirus cases. The last time that happened was May 20-21.
The daily positivity rate -- the rate of new cases diagnosed among those newly tested -- is 6.45%, which is the highest mark Massachusetts has seen since May 30 (7.32%)."
From the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA)
"Twelve towns in Franklin County and one in Hampshire County have come together to form a municipal electricity aggregation program with the goal of combating climate change and providing residents with more renewable energy options.
The 13 towns – Buckland, Charlemont, Colrain, Conway, Deerfield, Gill, Huntington, New Salem, Northfield, Shelburne, Sunderland, Warwick and Whately – recently entered into a 41-month contract with municipal energy consultant Colonial Power Group to develop and manage the Community Choice Power Supply Program, with Dynegy Energy Services to supply electricity.
The aggregation program allows the towns to purchase electricity as a group, giving them greater bargaining power when selecting their supplier. The towns were able to select a range of different renewable energy products to offer their residents, with each town deciding its own default option from the portfolio assembled through the bidding process.
“It’s something that would be very difficult for a tiny town to do, but because we could get multiple towns together, we could make it work,” said Conway Selectboard Member Bob Armstrong, who leads the project. “We were able to get a bid that was lower cost than Eversource, and which offered more green options – something that we had promised the towns.”
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| municipal aggregation program |
Given the economy currently in turmoil due to the pandemic and the Franklin School Dept soon to release their "Portrait of a Graduate", this report is timely and insightful.
"The Future of Jobs Report provides the timely insights needed to orient labour markets and workers towards opportunity today and in the future of work. Now in its third edition, the report maps the jobs and skills of the future, tracking the pace of change and direction of travel. This year we find that while technology-driven job creation is still expected to outpace job destruction over the next five years, the economic contraction is reducing the rate of growth in the jobs of tomorrow. There is a renewed urgency to take proactive measures to ease the transition of workers into more sustainable job opportunities. There is room for measured optimism in the data, but supporting workers will require global, regional and national public-private collaboration at an unprecedented scale and speed."
Download your copy of the PDF report https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020
or read my shared copy here:
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| World Economic Forum: The Future of Jobs Report 2020" |
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| Town Council Candidate - Alan Earls |
FM #368 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 368 in the series.
This session of the radio show shares my "Talk Franklin" conversation with Town Administrator Jamie Hellen and Marketing and Communications Specialist Anne Marie Tracey. We had our conversation via conference bridge to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic period.
We talk about:
Links to the key topics covered here are included in the show notes. The recording runs about 43 minutes, so let’s listen to my conversation with Jamie and Anne Marie. Audio file = https://player.captivate.fm/episode/10f0010f-7ad3-45a1-b122-71ab605177b6
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COVID-19 status https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/uploads/covid-19_case_counts_13.pdf
Town Clerk page https://www.franklinma.gov/town-clerk
Business listening sessions https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/uploads/business_listening_flyer_-_final_2_1_1.pdf
Business grants (newest one, up to 50 employees) https://www.empoweringsmallbusiness.org/covid-19-response/covid-19-grants-massachusetts-small-businesses
Microgrants (small business, 5 employees or less) https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/uploads/micro_enterprise_grants_3.pdf
Beaver Street interceptor https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
--------------
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?
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
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!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
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| FM #368 Talk Franklin - 10/23/20 (audio) |
