Note: FY 2021 is last year (July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021). The report was prepared to cover the business for the FY 2021 period. This year’s report FY 2022 (July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022) is in preparation now and is normally available for distribution at the polls for the November election. Updated - 08/15/22
The Town Administration works with the Town Council together to improve the quality of life of our residents. We are diligent in balancing the budget, keeping an eye on the Town’s future needs and maintaining its assets.
Accomplishments in FY21 include:
We continue to update our Town Budget webpage with helpful resources such as how the budget process works, operating and capital budgets, and fiscal forecasts. More information can be found here: https://www.franklinma.gov/town-budget
A balanced operating budget was submitted to the Town Council and was approved. We have received five year Capital plans from all departments including the Water And Sewer Enterprise fund. Having long term Capital plans prevents more expensive costs down the road.
As part of our expansion of customer service we have expanded our Viewpoint Online Permitting System to the Health Department, Assessing Department and Senior Center. We will continue adding new applications throughout the year to make for a more convenient process.
We continue to update the Town’s website to make information easily accessible for the public. All Agendas and Minutes for boards and committees are web-based and continuously updated. You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Anchor (podcasts) and YouTube for up to date News and Announcements as well as visiting our website at www.franklinma.gov.
Personnel
The Town Administration staff has worked diligently with the Board of Health to ensure the Town, our employees and residents stay safe and healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic. We continue to serve the Town and its residents while staying safe and following the guidelines and requirements set forth by the Governor of Massachusetts, DPH and the CDC.
To continue our efforts in keeping the Town informed of updates and alerts related to COVID-19 our Marketing and Communications Specialist, Anne Marie Tracey has created a user friendly Coronavirus Portal on our website and sends out important information frequently through our subscriber lists and social media.
The Towns Executive Assistant, Alecia Alleyne has worked with our Finance team to make sure we receive FEMA and Cares Act assistance during this pandemic. Alecia has applied for and received over $2 million of assistance for the town.
COVID-19 Pandemic
Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic all Town Buildings closed in mid March 2020. However, due to our fantastic Technology staff we were able to quickly get most if not all of our staff up and running remotely. By fall 2020 the majority of Municipal staff were working in the municipal building or on a hybrid work from home and work from the office schedule. By June 2021 nearly all municipal building employees were working fulltime in the office.
The Town Administration staff, Technology staff and Franklin TV worked together to make sure Town Council Meetings could continue and comply with Open Meeting Laws. These meetings are currently being recorded, streamed live through the website, Zoom and Cable TV and as of June 2021 residents were allowed back into the chambers to attend meetings in person.
As of January 2021 the Town received its full allotment of CARES Act money, this money was spent on a variety of projects most notably the install of UV lighting in the HVAC systems of all municipal buildings and most schools to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Other
In time for the holiday season, Anne Marie Tracey launched the Franklin First Gift Card, this is a partnership with local businesses to help stimulate the local economy by keeping money in Franklin. Residents can purchase these gift cards which can be redeemed at a variety of participating businesses in Franklin. Over $40,000 in gift cards have been purchased and this number is only rising.
Executive Assistant, Alecia Alleyne, applied for and received two grants for energy conservation efforts in Town. The Town was awarded a Green Communities grant which aided in the purchase of two fully electric vehicles and the installation of two dual port Electric vehicle charging stations, one located at the municipal building and the other at the library. The Town also received over $13,000 for the installation of two additional dual port charging stations at the municipal building through EVIP grant funding.
Assistant to the Town Administrator, Chrissy Whelton and Human Resources Director, Karen Bratt worked with the towns Safety Committee, representatives from each department and MIIA representatives and earned over $50,000 in insurance premium savings and was recognized by the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA) as a leader in preventing risk in the workplace through employee training programs.
Franklin “Bends the Trend” by working with the Insurance Advisory Committee (IAC) to keep insurance rate increases for employees to a minimum, The Town continues to offer a Qualified High Deductible Health Care Plan.
The Town of Franklin also worked with Nexamp to ensure that a portion of their farm be reserved for Franklin residents. On a first-come, first-served basis residents were eligible to subscribe to receive credit on their Electric bill at a special rate of 15%. Due to a high interest from Franklin residents the farm is now filled however Nexamp is still offering their standard discount rate of 12.5%.
Long time Senior Center Director Karen Alves retired in September 2020 and Assistant Director Erin Rogers was promoted to Director and will continue with offering the highest quality of services to Franklin Seniors.
Our goal is to deliver high quality customer service while keeping costs under control. There will be difficult challenges to our budget in the coming year; but you can be assured that the Town Administration and Town Council will work together to solve budgetary issues.
It is my pleasure to submit an annual report of the Town Administrator for your review, and please feel free to write, email, or stop by with any questions, concerns, or comments.
Respectfully submitted,
Jamie Hellen,
Town Administrator
The full Annual Report for 2021 can be found
The collection of Annual Reports can be found online
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| Annual Report Of The Town Administrator - FY 2021 |
