Economic Development Subcmte hears of grant for Nu-Style clean up, discusses GR 5 & cannabis overlap zoning modification (audio)

FM #1007 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1007 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares the audio recording of the Economic Development Subcommittee held on Wednesday, June 7, 2023 in the Council Chambers with all 4 members participating in the Council Chambers.

Quick recap:

• Nu-Style property now has $600K from two sources; $100K from ARPA funds, and a new grant received for $500K. Thanks to Brian Taberner who has continued to write for grants for this brownfield project and persisted in that effort

• General residential zoning changes initially proposed to increase the impervious coverage for the property and for the property plus parking would be increased as well as reducing the setbacks required for multi-family 

• Discussion around what percent the amounts should be, was currently, initially proposed to increase to 35, 45. 

• Amendment to change to 50, 60, second; after discussion amendment revised to be 45,55, seconded, passes 3-1 (Jones no)

• Recommendations as amended to move to the Council, passes unanimous 4-0

• Cannabis overlay district; this is literally only a house cleaning of the map itself, nothing else in the bylaw changes. As businesses changed, this allowed for other changes with restrictions removed

The recording of the meeting runs just under 1 hour.   audio file -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1007-economic-development-subcmte-mtg-06-07-23

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The agenda doc also includes remote participation info ->   

https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/agendas/edc_meeting_agenda_-_june_7_2023.pdf

Franklin TV YouTube video ->  https://www.youtube.com/live/UbMxtOXP6ms?feature=share 

My notes captured via Twitter during the meeting (in 1 PDF file)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZCa5NThqjXcxviE57inxIZMM7ycfnT9B/view?usp=drive_link 

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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!

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Economic Development Subcommittee - Agenda for June 7, 2023  Meeting at 5:45 PM

Jake Auchincloss: An Update from Your Congressman for last 2 weeks

LAST 2 WEEKS IN REVIEW I'm your representative in Congress and I write to keep you informed. On the Hill Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Hearing: Earlier this week, as a member of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, I heard testimony from survivors, experts, educators, gun owners, and law enforcement officials about the scourge of gun violence in this country. Their message was clear and compelling: we must politicize gun violence, because only voters can ultimately make the GOP see sense on this daily tragedy. I approach the issue as the parent of young children, as a Marine veteran who trained & patrolled with assault weapons, and as a representative from Massachusetts, which has the most effective gun laws in the nation. Every day, I am fighting to make the Massachusetts model the national standard. Final Debt Ceiling Update: Last week, I joined my colleagues in the House to vote to raise the debt ceiling. After unnecessary brinkmanship, the center held. Representatives from both parties came together to protect jobs & retirement accounts, trim spending, and preserve the full faith and credit of the United States. It is not the bill I would have drafted, but legislating in divided government requires compromise. You can watch my interview recapping the vote here. Investing in the Bioeconomy: This week, I led my colleagues in a letter outlining best practices for how the Biden administration can program science funding. The Industrial Revolution was made possible when chemistry and physics became engineerable disciplines. With the advent of gene editing, biology is becoming an engineerable discipline, too. The possibilities for healthcare, agriculture, climate, industrials, and more – a 'bioeconomy' – are immense. To capitalize on these opportunities in the life sciences, Congress must ensure public-private collaboration that helps industry to run fast within well-defined guardrails. One near-term counter-example is the bio-manufacturing of generic medicines for cancer and other diseases, where a breakdown in public-private cooperation has led to painful and unnecessary shortages. We must address this problem and prevent it from recurring. Make your voice heard → Do you support investing in the bioeconomy? Should investing in the bioeconomy be a priority for Congress? Around the Fourth Sharon Wear Orange: Last week, I spoke at a Wear Orange event in Sharon. As someone who fights in the trenches of congressional gun policy, it was motivating to see students, activists, and local elected officials come together for common sense gun safety. Gun violence is a policy choice. Every day that Republicans in Congress reject popular, proven gun safety legislation like an assault weapon ban, universal background checks, red flag laws, and safe storage requirements, is a day when they choose the NRA over the safety of children and families. I'm committed to staying on offense until the GOP puts kids ahead of the gun lobby. Habitat for Humanity Groundbreaking: After a couple weeks at home with our new daughter, there was no better way to get back on the road than to celebrate the groundbreaking of someone else's future home. Thanks to the terrific work of Old Colony Habitat for Humanity, volunteers and sponsors came together to build a new house for a family in Norton. In Massachusetts, our greatest challenge is the cost of housing. We need to be building more housing of all types – small single-family lots, big multi-family complexes, and accessory dwelling units – to reverse rising costs. CPS Technologies: I also toured precision manufacturer CPS Technologies to see how recent investments in infrastructure and semiconductor manufacturing are driving innovation and job creation here in Massachusetts. I always ask employers the same question, and get the same answer: "What's keeping you in the Bay State?"  – "Talent."  Massachusetts must continue to invest in its students and workers to stay competitive in the coming decade. Chamber of Commerce: I joined the Charles River Regional Chamber to honor Joe Prestejohn, the longtime owner of Cabot's Ice Cream in Newton. Cabot's has been a Newton staple for decades and Joe's lifetime of exemplary service and business leadership is a big reason why. Congratulations Joe! Onwards, Jake WASHINGTON 15 Independence Avenue SE 1524 Longworth HOB Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-5931 NEWTON 29 Crafts Street Suite 375 Newton, MA 02458 Phone: (617) 332-3333 ATTLEBORO 8 North Main Steet Suite 200 Attleboro, MA 02703 Phone: (508) 431-1110 Contact

Spring 2023 News from The Franklin Food Pantry!

What's happening at the Pantry?

Spring 2023 Tina's Take This has been the most amazing spring so far! The Pantry has finally moved into our new home at 341 West Central St., formerly known as the iconic Edwin's Gift Shop. The building increases our client shopping area and warehouse threefold; we now have the capacity to receive, store, and distribute much more fresh food, household products, and personal care items - and much more safely and efficiently. As we love to say at The Pantry though, "It's not about the building, it's about what we will do in the building!" Our new facility has: increased client shopping space; a two-story warehouse for storing and prepping bags for distribution, mobile pantries, and home delivery; offices and meeting space for staff; and a dedicated work space for our volunteers. Intentionally and thoughtfully designed, it is energy-efficient and ADA-compliant. Most importantly, it is a dignified, warm and welcoming space where we hope our neighbors will feel very comfortable and safe shopping and seeking assistance. There are so many people to thank for making this dream a reality that I can't begin to list them all here. We would, however, like to send a special shout out to MASS Development for a $500,000 Underutilized Properties grant that allowed us to renovate the space and bring it into compliance with current environmental and ADA standards. And a special thanks to the MA Legislature for two years (and counting!) of support through special building grants. The silent phase of our major gift campaign has been very successful and we are more than 58% of the way to our $3.5 million goal. A heartfelt thanks to all those who have contributed so far! We are about to go public and hope that your generosity will continue through the coming year! If you would like to support the new building and the program improvements we are planning to offer, please reach out to Marsha Tait. If you know someone who may need our services, please do not hesitate to refer them to us by emailing or calling Laura Du. Knowing that all of us face inflation and increased expenses in our own lives, we are especially grateful for your continued support of our mission and vision. With much appreciation, Tina Powderly Executive Director  New Web Site Launched! In May, after working with Dionne Katinas and Rich Frongillo at Tinetrix for many months, and with great support from our Campaign Communications Committee, we launched our newly updated web site! There is a lot of easy-to-use information available. Check it out: www.franklinfoodpantry.org New Pantry Staff Please join us in welcoming new staff members! Laura Doherty joined The Pantry in April as Associate Director. Laura is a dynamic leader with more than 16 years of experience as the Executive Director of an international nonprofit. She is an innovative and strategic thinker! You can reach Laura here. Linda Rondeau joined The Pantry in April as Volunteer Coordinator. Linda is a 30-year Franklin resident who first became involved with The Pantry as a volunteer photographer. You can reach Linda here. The Pantry Partners with the Franklin Farmers Market Did you know... That 10% of Franklin residents face food insecurity? In 2021, 3,284 Franklin residents participated in MassHealth insurance programs while only 1,508 were enrolled in the Supplemental Nutritional Access Program (SNAP). That means that at least 1,776 additional individuals could benefit from SNAP and could shop at The Pantry. Last summer, The Pantry partnered with the Franklin Farmers Market to offer SNAP at the market. SNAP participants could swipe their benefit debit cards at the Franklin Honey booth and receive tokens that they then used to purchase fresh food from many of the farmers and vendors. Through donated funds, we were able to match the amounts that shoppers debited to make their dollars stretch further. The Pantry and the Franklin Farmers Market are partnering again this summer to raise awareness about SNAP and to encourage SNAP recipients to shop for fresh locally-produced food at the market. Tokens will once again be available at the Franklin Honey booth. If you would like to donate in support of this program, please reach out to Marsha Tait. Join us at the Strawberry Stroll! The Franklin Downtown Partnership is hosting its annual Strawberry Stroll on Friday June 9 Saturday June 10, from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm. The stroll is a wonderful tradition featuring strawberry shortcakes supplied by Dean Bank and Dean College, music, and more than 95 local vendor booths. Come see us at The Pantry's table! Save the Date: La Cantina Fundraiser! Join us at La Cantina on Wednesday, June 21 from 6:00 - 8:30 pm for live music, good food and libations! Tickets are $30 each and include one free drink. The Sons of Sam Pizza mobile truck will be on site! Proceeds will support our building campaign. Tickets are available here. 

Franklin Food Pantry | 341 West Central St., Franklin, MA 02038 508-528-3115 Sent by mtait@franklinfoodpantry.org powered by Try email marketing for free today!

Franklin, MA: Job Opportunities with Senior Center, DPW, & Facilities

To apply for a vacant position, please submit a resume and cover letter to apply@franklinma.gov.  Please put the job title in the subject line of your email. 

Supportive Programming Assistant - Senior Center

Heavy Motor Equipment Operators - Department of Public Works

Part Time and Substitute Custodians - Facilities Department

Summer Employment - Facilities Department 

Updated 06/09/2023

If you do not have a resume, you may send a completed Application for Employment instead.

To receive notifications of all job opportunities in the Town of Franklin, subscribe here .

Shared from -> https://www.franklinma.gov/human-resources/pages/job-opportunities

Franklin, MA: Job Opportunities with Senior Center, DPW, & Facilities

FHS girls lacrosse top Wellesley on Friday, head to Final Four

Girls Lacrosse = Division 1 = #7 Franklin, 12 @ #2 Wellesley, 5 – Final

12-5 Franklin over Wellesley final!! Franklin is heading to the FINAL FOUR!!!

https://twitter.com/FHSTrainingRoom/status/1667300335570780160

Congratulations FHS Girls Lacrosse players & coaches!!  Final Four Bound!! Special shout out to Kaitlyn, Payten, Emily, Ella M, Raena, Julia F… way to go!!  Best of luck…. Keep winning… all the way to the ‘ship

https://twitter.com/FHS_FH_02038/status/1667345975734677504

Strawberry Stroll - scheduled for June 10, 2023 -> 4 PM to 8 PM in Downtown Franklin

The Franklin Downtown Partnership will be hosting the Strawberry Stroll THIS SATURDAY, June 10, 2023 from 4 PM - 8 PM Downtown. Live music will be provided by Heath Nisbett from 4 PM - 6 PM and Dom DeBaggis from 6 PM - 8 PM. There will be over 95 booths full of fun, freebies and strawberry shortcake of course!

Be sure to swing by the Franklin Fire Department Headquarters to get a glimpse of the fire trucks, including the antique ladder truck up close! Sparky will be out and about greeting guests and handing out plastic red helmets to the children. 

At the Historical Museum, fresh popcorn will be served, and vintage wedding dresses will be displayed. 

Rain date has been activated for Saturday, June 10, 2023 4 PM - 8 PM. Learn more here: https://www.franklindowntownpartnership.org/2023/06/many-activities-and-booths-set-for-june.html

Shared from -> https://www.franklinma.gov/home/news/weekend-fun-franklin-strawberry-stroll-june-9-2023

Weekend Fun in Franklin - Strawberry Stroll - June 10, 2023 -> 4 PM to 8 PM

Franklin, MA: School Committee - Agenda for June 13, 2023 Meeting

Franklin School Committee 

June 13, 2023 - 7:00 PM

Municipal Building – Council Chambers

Call to Order Ms. Spencer

Pledge of Allegiance 

Moment of Silence

I. Routine Business

A. Review of Agenda

B. Payment of Bills Mr. McNeill

C. Payroll Ms. Spencer

D. FHS Student Representative Comments

E. Superintendent’s Report

 

II. Guests/Presentations

A. Civics Projects Presentation

B. Oak Street Elementary School Highlights

III. Discussion/Action Items

A.   Revised FY24 Budget Vote

I recommend approval of the revised FY24 Budget in the amount of   $71,989,431.00 as discussed.

B. Superintendent’s Evaluation

I recommend your approval of the Superintendent’s composite evaluation for the 2022-2023 school year as discussed.

C.   School Committee Norms & Protocols

The Chair recommends adoption of the amendments in the School Committee Norms & Protocols as discussed.

IV. Discussion Only Items

A. none

V. Information Matters

A. School Committee Sub-Committee Reports

B. School Committee Liaison Reports

VI. Consent Agenda

A. Approval of Minutes

I recommend approval of the minutes from your May 23, 2023 School Committee meeting as detailed.

B.   Music Gift

I recommend acceptance of a check for $489.00 from Music Parents for in-house enrichment for the Music Department as detailed.

C. ASMS Gift

I recommend acceptance of a check for $2,043.70 from the ASMS PCC for in-house enrichment as detailed.

D. Surplus Books

I recommend declaring the attached list of math, science & ELA books as surplus.

VII. Good of the Order

VIII. Citizen’s Comments

IX. New Business

To discuss any future agenda items

X. Executive Session

To approve the minutes from the May 23, 2023 Executive Session of the School Committee.

XI. Adjournment

Meeting packet folder ->  https://www.franklinps.net/district/meeting-packets/pages/june-13-2023-school-committee-meeting-packet

Meeting agenda doc (includes remote participation info) ->   https://www.franklinps.net/sites/g/files/vyhlif4431/f/uploads/scagenda_6-13-23.pdf

Franklin, MA: School Committee Meeting Agenda for June 13, 2023

Economic Development Subcommittee hears of grants for Nu-Style clean up, discusses GR 5 & cannabis overlap zoning modification (video)

The Economic Development Subcommittee met on Wednesday, June 7, 2023 (prior to the Town Council meeting) and covered three key items as follows:

Quick recap:

• Nu-Style property now has $600K to support its clean up from two sources; $100K from ARPA funds, and a new grant received for $500K. Thanks to Brian Taberner who has continued to write for grants for this brownfield project and persisted in that effort

• General residential 5 (GR 5) zoning changes initially proposed to increase the impervious coverage for the property and for the property plus parking would be increased as well as reducing the setbacks required for multi-family 

• Discussion around what percent the amounts should be, was currently, initially proposed to increase to 35, 45. 

• Amendment to change to 50, 60, second; after discussion amendment revised to be 45,55, seconded, passes 3-1 (Jones no)

• Recommendations as amended to move to the Council, passes unanimous 4-0

• Cannabis overlay district; this is literally only a house cleaning of the map itself, nothing else in the bylaw changes. As businesses changed, this allowed for other changes with restrictions removed

Franklin TV YouTube video ->  https://www.youtube.com/live/UbMxtOXP6ms?feature=share 

The agenda doc also includes remote participation info ->   

https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/agendas/edc_meeting_agenda_-_june_7_2023.pdf

My notes captured via Twitter during the meeting (in 1 PDF file)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZCa5NThqjXcxviE57inxIZMM7ycfnT9B/view?usp=drive_link 

Economic Development Subcommittee - Agenda for June 7, 2023  Meeting at 5:45 PM

Medicare Fraud Prevention Week

"Did you know that Medicare fraud costs Americans an estimated $60 billion per year? It also affects Medicare beneficiaries in terms of time, stress, and health.

Learn how to protect yourself and others against these scams. Join Social Security and the Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) for Medicare Fraud Prevention Week from June 5-11, 2023. You can remember the start date as “6-5,” as most people become eligible for Medicare when they turn 65 years old."

Continue reading about what you can do to help Medicare fraud ->

https://blog.ssa.gov/medicare-fraud-prevention-week/ 

Medicare Fraud Prevention Week