Black, Brown, and Beige: A Spirited Afternoon

Connecting good friends with great wine! Never Drink Ordinary! Pour Richard's Ultimate Cocktail Challenge Saturday, April 5th 2-5 PM Fabulous Music courtesy of the  Acme Trio,  otherwise known as Mark White, Mark Poniatowski, and Kenny Hadley. Fine, rare, and antique spirits presented by the experts. Scotch: Springbank 10, Kilkerran WIP #5, a selection of Cadenhead's bottlings, Glenlossie 19, Fettercairn 16, Cragganmore 16, Bunnahahain 10, Tobermory 18, and many, many more. Bourbon, Rye, Etc: Town Branch, OYO, Cyrus Noble, 1512 Spirits, Pearse Lyons Reserve, Cu Chulainn, Most Righteous, Gunpowder Rye, and more. Armagnac: 12, 20, and 40-yr-old Darroze, plus vintage selections. This is a great opportunity for early Father's Day shopping! (Or, expand your own collection.) The $10 admission is a 100% donation to the Franklin Performing Arts Company's  Electric Youth , and will contribute to their July 4th concert for US troops stationed at Aviano Air Force Base in Italy. 21+only. Please RSVP by replying to this email. (All are welcome, but we want to have a handle on numbers.) Never Drink Ordinary! -Ann and John Please share this email with friends who are enthusiastic about great wine, beer, and spirits. (Keeping all the good stuff for yourself is bad karma.)

Forward this email Pour Richard's Wine and Spirits | 14 Grove Street | Franklin | MA | 02038

Franklin High sports results

Baseball 

Franklin, 6 @ Stoughton, 5 - Final - Pat O'Reilly was 1-3 at the plate with 2 RBIs for the Panthers. Kyle Skidmore picked up the win in relief, pitching 2.2 innings and knocked in the game-winning run in the top of the seventh inning. Stoughton's Jovani Pires was 2-4 with 2 RBIs for the Black Knights. 

FHS Panthers

Softball 

Franklin, 13 @ Stoughton, 1 - Final - Franklin's Sabrina LoMonaco picked up with win with 13 strikeouts and helped herself at the plate, going 2-4 with 2 RBIs. Brie Flaherty was 3-5 with two doubles and 2 RBIs, Maddie Connelly was 3-4 at the plate and Erin Hanley was 3-5 with 2 RBIs.

Boys Tennis 

Franklin, 4 @ Stoughton, 1 - Final 

As reported by HockomockSports.com
http://www.hockomocksports.com/1/post/2014/04/hockomock-schedule-scoreboard-040314.html

MassBudget: New Reports from MassBudget and KIDS COUNT

MassBudget    Information.    Participation.  Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center    Democracy. Shelter and Housing for Homeless Families: Historical Funding and the Governor's FY 2015 Budget Proposal  It is important to every family to have the basic security of a place to live. When children become homeless, their opportunity to succeed in school and in life is significantly reduced. Our new Budget Brief examines the Governor's funding proposals for affordable housing and shelter for families, and it puts those proposals in historical context. In the 1990s Massachusetts dramatically reduced funding for affordable housing for low-income households. Before 1993 the state paid for almost 20,000 rental vouchers to help families pay for housing. By 2013, the state was funding only 5,600 such vouchers. As funding for housing vouchers has been cut, spending on family shelters has risen considerably. In our current difficult economic times, growing numbers of families have been unable to afford market rate housing and this has led to increased state costs to provide shelter. Shelter and Housing for Homeless Families: Historical Funding and the Governor's FY 2015 Budget Proposal explains the Governor's proposals to increase funding for family shelters to allow families now living in hotels and motels to move into shelter. The Governor's budget also proposes level funding long-term housing programs, such as MRVP and state support for public housing. Funding shelters is an important way the state can make sure that families are not living in unhealthy and unsafe conditions -- and shelters provide important supports to help families get back on their feet that hotels and motels do not. But without adequate funding for long-term affordable housing -- or much more aggressive policies to help people escape poverty -- it will be difficult to find a lasting solution to the problem of family homelessness.  Read the Budget Brief. Race for Results: Building a Pathway to Opportunity for All Children The Annie E. Casey KIDS COUNT project this week released Race for Results: Building a Pathway to Opportunity for All Children. The report explores the intersection of kids, race, and opportunity. The report features the new Race for Results index, which compares how children are progressing on key milestones across racial and ethnic groups at the national and state level. Read the full report. MassBudget is the KIDS COUNT group for Massachusetts. You can learn more about our KIDS COUNT project here. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center | 15 Court Square | Suite 700 | Boston | MA | 02108

Dylan Hayre for State Senate at Rick's, Apr 10

Meet the Candidate Coffee Chats! 

Dylan Hayre for State Senate at Rick's! 

Rick's, 28 W Central St, Franklin, MA 02038
4/10/2014, Thursday, 9am - 10am 

Come join us for coffee and chat in person with Dylan Hayre about the issues that matter most to you! 

Dylan is running to serve as State Senator for the Norfolk, Bristol & Middlesex district (Precincts 1-4,7). He is a former Chair of Natick's Council on Aging board & founder of "A Lawyer for Soldiers." 

Connect with Dylan anytime at www.DylanHayre.com

"This is just a discussion"

The Council Chamber was full Wednesday evening. Many folks attended the Economic Development Committee meeting at 5:30 and moved to the Chamber for the Council meeting at 7:00.
Councilor Matt Kelly add his comment just as the discussion was getting underway on Wednesday evening.

"This is just a discussion, just so everyone understands that. It is not on our agenda to be voted on."

An hour later, after more than a dozen speakers raised points primarily to slow down and take some time to discuss the project pros and cons for what to do with 150 Emmons St, Councilor Kelly did make a motion to add a resolution to the next Town Council meeting agenda. The resolution was voted on and passed unanimously (via roll call as Councilor Mercer was participating remotely).

The resolution would be authorize the administration to issue an "Expression of Interest" where for 90 days it would be open to received proposals. At the end of the 90 day period, the Economic Development Committee would review the proposals and make a final report to the Town Council scheduled for the first meeting in Sep 2014.

The intent of this request for proposals is to gather interest and ideas in order to better focus and craft the proposal to sell the building (more likely). How it would be used remains open at this time. The consensus of the Council seems to be revenue generation (which Franklin needs), something to recognize Horace Mann, and some portion of the lot for 'greenspace'.

All those looking to do something special whether for non-profits or cultural purposes will have 90 days to put the proposal together and submit it.

Some of the folks walking away from the meeting last night would be upset that after being heard, the Council went ahead and did what they apparently had planned to do. The vote on this by the way was unanimous, 9-0 via roll call.

There is time to further the discussion, combine or re-do ideas, make the ideas more real than a few words. It will also take time for the next steps to happen. In Sep, the Council (and all of Franklin) will find out what the Economic Development Committee recommendation will be. The RFP would still require another Council vote. Once that is decided, the bid process would result in a decision to be made by the Council.

The bid winner then would work through the normal planning process with hearings before the Planning Board and other bodies as needed. Whatever happens will certainly not happen overnight.

What should happen as this goes forward is for the Town Council to be transparent in their words and deeds. They have been less than transparent thus far, hence the concern on the citizens part is justly placed.

150 Emmons St - the building under discussion

The full set of notes reported live during the meeting Wednesday evening can be found here

• live reporting - closing
• Live reporting - Legislation for action
• Live reporting - 150 Emmons St
• Live reporting: Spilka, Ross, Roy
• Live reporting: Town Council - Apr 2, 2014
• 
  

Franklin Library: author Ted Reinstein speaks at 7:00 PM

Ted Reinstein, author of the New England Notebook will speak Thursday evening Apr 3, at 7:00 PM at the Franklin Public Library.

Ted Reinstein, author of New England Notebook

For additional information on Ted you can visit his website http://tedreinstein.com/ or view this brief video as he tells one of the stories from the New England Notebook

"Citizens Committee" statement

As read by Judith Pfeffer, Town Councilor and one of three councilors on the Citizens Committee (half the total committee membership).

As an appointed member of the Citizens Committee, I have a statement on behalf of the Citizens Committee as regards the 150 Emmons Street property. The Citizens committee was formed basically to "encourage quality, visually pleasing, financially enhancing economic development for the benefit of our community. Projects that the Citizens Committee, to date, have impacted include:

• Dump (recycling center) improvements

• Acquisition efforts in land purchase from state, property next to dump

• Dean College train station building improvements

• Cooks Farm building project

• Cleaning/maintenance of down town central business district 

The Citizen's Committee's position relative to the disposition of the old town hall are as follows: 

1. The site, bordered by two main arterial roadways, is better suited for commercial development, as part of an enhanced central business district and a revenue producing property than another town-owned, marginally/poorly maintained, economic drain on town resources 

2. The curb cuts should be done for the property while the road project is being done, so the openings will not have to be redone after the new road has been completed. 

3. Revenue from the sale of the site, could be used to construct a first class facility for the Recreation Department, and would allow for expansion of its' many programs, particularly those which have been downsized by the schools (arts, music, etc.) For years the Recreation Department has been moved from one site to another and is deserving of a facility that will serve Franklin, and its children, for years to come ... Rec dept. served 5700 kids in 2013, over 4000 in sports programs. 

4. The estimated cost alluded to in a prior meeting of one million dollars for retaining, re-constructing, and developing the old town hall site into a Cultural Center, not to mention the annual cost of maintaining said cultural center, in view of the anticipated costs of the new school, road improvement program and questionable economy makes no economic
sense. 

5. Suggestions that the site is appropriate for a park, although well intentioned, is not practical for the following reasons: (1) the town owns, and maintains an underutilized site less than a mile away (Town Common); (2) the loss of revenue from both the sale and future taxes is economically unsound; (3) the town's history of property maintenance is abysmal, at best, and unlikely to improve under this proposal; (4) it is likely that the use of any park at that site would serve, primarily, the students of the college that surround it.  

Economic Development at this site: (1) will provide revenue for a building for Recreation Dept.; (2) The town, through the permitting process, will have input into any proposed development at the site, assuring the development is aesthetically appropriate and contributes to the "gateway"
initiatives under discussion; (3) As alluded to above, the town's recent history of owning and maintaining property, does not lead one to think adding to the current burden is either logical or prudent; this is one of sites referred to as "seedy" in the Globe's description of Franklin! 

6. There needs to be an ongoing blending of public-private development. The reconstruction of the central business district roadways will be a huge contribution to any revitalizing effort; the private sector needs to be encouraged to participate.

7. The Citizens Committee strongly recommends that a "REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST" be initiated. Responses to this Request will be reviewed, discussed with and between the Council and brought before the Public. This will insure that this site will continue to
be on the forefront. The Request for Expression process will take months, and the follow-up RFP will take additional months. Waiting for the next few years to make a decision is not in the Town's best economic interest.

http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_BComm/Citizen%20Committee