F. HEARINGS - none
G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS – New Officer & Director Change for Longhorn Steakhouse
all paperwork is in order, motion to approve, passed 8-0
Franklin, MA
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Live reporting - Town Council - Apr 7, 2010
Present: Kelly, Jones, Whalen, Mason, Pfeffer, McGann, Zollo, Powderly
Absent: Vallee,
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – March 10, Special Meeting & March 17, 2010, Regular & Executive Session
With one modification on S Whalen as member of but not chair of subcommittee on Charter
B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
next Council breakfast at Senior Ctr - June 10
C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS
D. CITIZEN COMMENTS
E. APPOINTMENTS
Franklin, MA
Absent: Vallee,
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – March 10, Special Meeting & March 17, 2010, Regular & Executive Session
With one modification on S Whalen as member of but not chair of subcommittee on Charter
B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
next Council breakfast at Senior Ctr - June 10
C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS
D. CITIZEN COMMENTS
E. APPOINTMENTS
Long Range Financial Planning Committee - Brendan Morrison motion to approve, passed 8-0
Cultural Council - Helen Reebenacker motion to approve, passed 8-0
Franklin, MA
HMEA Recycling Center - ribbon cutting
HMEA opened their Recycling Center in Plainville, MA today. The United Regional Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting ceremony to help celebrate the special event.
Enjoy!
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view the video link
Franklin, MA
Enjoy!
Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view the video link
Franklin, MA
Curbside Pickup Demonstration Scheduled April 17 - 9:00 AM - Noon
A new Automated Waste Management truck will be on site and doing demonstrations at the Beaver St. Field for Earth Day, April 17th from 9-12. DPW and Waste Management personnel can explain the program and show residents how to use the new carts. See what others are talking about.
Please attend the event to learn about the program and get your questions answered.
You can subscribe to receive the "Recycle News" directly to your email
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/subscriber-news
Prior information on the new curbside pickup system beginning July 1:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/franklin-ma-trash-collection.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/trash-pickup-in-action.html (video)
Franklin, MA
Please attend the event to learn about the program and get your questions answered.
You can subscribe to receive the "Recycle News" directly to your email
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/subscriber-news
Prior information on the new curbside pickup system beginning July 1:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/franklin-ma-trash-collection.html
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/trash-pickup-in-action.html (video)
Franklin, MA
Hold the date for the Charles River Watershed Cleanup!
Are you looking to make a real difference in your community? If so, join a group or form your own to clean up trash throughout the Charles River Upper Watershed. You will be helping us improve the appearance and health of the waterways in our region.
If you live in the Upper Watershed please consider volunteering a few hours of your time to help us protect this unique and valuable natural resource. The large majority of our the cleanup sites are land-based, but we have a few on-water sites for experienced paddlers who can supply their own canoe or kayak.
Did you know? The Charles River stretches for more than 80 miles from Hopkinton to Boston. It originates and flows for nearly 37 miles here in the Upper Watershed. In our region alone the Charles is fed by 45+ miles of waterways including seven major tributary rivers, brooks, and streams.
WHEN: Saturday, April 24, 2010
TIME: 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
WHERE: Charles River Upper Watershed - Ashland, Bellingham, Dover, Franklin, Holliston, Hopedale, Hopkinton, Medfield, Medway, Mendon, Milford, Millis, Norfolk, Sherborn, Wrentham.
The volunteer check-in site will be located in front of Whole Foods Market in Bellingham, MA. Stop by to get directions to your assigned site, collect your cleanup supplies and receive a free t-shirt. We encourage you to sign up in advance by using the contact information below.
CONTACT: David Dobrzynski
Upper Watershed Volunteer Coordinator
EMAIL: CRWAvolunteer@gmail.com
You can view the flyer for this event here:
School district regionalization - historical background
Unlike school districts in many other states, which are often separate government entities with independent taxing authority, school districts in Massachusetts are very much dependent on the cities and towns that they serve. In colonial times, districts were established by any group of families willing to support a school, and at one point there were 2,250 districts in the state. In 1882, the state passed a law that consolidated districts by giving authority only to municipalities to fund and manage school districts. With 351 towns and cities in the state, however, local control has meant that there remain a large number of districts relative to the state's student population, including many very small districts in relatively less populated areas.
Beginning with the post-war period, the 1949 Regional Schools Act authorized the regional district as an independent legal entity to encourage small towns to form consolidated school districts with a single school committee and specified rights and obligations for member towns. Though the state envisioned consolidation, the number of districts actually increased over the next 20 years, from 355 to over 390, as small towns preserved independent elementary districts while creating regional secondary schools. Special commission reports and Board of Education guidelines in the 1960’s promoted the formation of more K–12 districts on the grounds that they would improve educational programs and streamline governance, with little avail.
Real progress toward consolidation did not begin until Chapter 71, the state’s regional school law, was amended in 1974 to expand financial incentives for districts to regionalize. The aid formula was based on enrollment, which provided some incentive for districts to fully regionalize grades K–12. After these reforms the number of school districts declined to the current level of 329, not including charter schools. However, regional school aid was phased out in the early 1990s with the passage of the Massachusetts Education Reform Act, and the amount that existing districts had been receiving up that point was included in the district’s Chapter 70 aid. Since the 1990s only 13 new K–12 districts have been formed, mostly the result of consolidation of regional secondary districts and their members into one K–12 regional district.
from the Education Research Brief - School District Consolidation in Massachusetts: Opportunities and Obstacles
Franklin, MA
Beginning with the post-war period, the 1949 Regional Schools Act authorized the regional district as an independent legal entity to encourage small towns to form consolidated school districts with a single school committee and specified rights and obligations for member towns. Though the state envisioned consolidation, the number of districts actually increased over the next 20 years, from 355 to over 390, as small towns preserved independent elementary districts while creating regional secondary schools. Special commission reports and Board of Education guidelines in the 1960’s promoted the formation of more K–12 districts on the grounds that they would improve educational programs and streamline governance, with little avail.
Real progress toward consolidation did not begin until Chapter 71, the state’s regional school law, was amended in 1974 to expand financial incentives for districts to regionalize. The aid formula was based on enrollment, which provided some incentive for districts to fully regionalize grades K–12. After these reforms the number of school districts declined to the current level of 329, not including charter schools. However, regional school aid was phased out in the early 1990s with the passage of the Massachusetts Education Reform Act, and the amount that existing districts had been receiving up that point was included in the district’s Chapter 70 aid. Since the 1990s only 13 new K–12 districts have been formed, mostly the result of consolidation of regional secondary districts and their members into one K–12 regional district.
from the Education Research Brief - School District Consolidation in Massachusetts: Opportunities and Obstacles
Franklin, MA
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