Downtown Partnership Prepares for Harvest Festival on October 5

The Franklin Downtown Partnership is making plans for its 17th annual Harvest Festival, a family-fun community event, scheduled for Saturday, October 5.

The Harvest Festival will be held in downtown Franklin from noon to 5 PM. on Main Street, Dean Avenue, West Central Street, and Depot Street, as well as the large parking area behind Rockland Bank. The event’s rain date is Sunday, October 6.

Plans for the festival are well underway and booth space is filling up fast. Visitors will be treated to exciting local entertainment, delicious fall flavors from local restaurants, fun kid crafts and activities, shop specials, artwork and crafts by area artisans and helpful information from community groups and vendors.

Organizers expect booth space for this event to sell out. Partnership members receive a booth for free; non-members pay $125. Downtown businesses must register to ensure store-front space. Booths are assigned on a first-come first-serve basis.

Downtown Partnership Prepares for Harvest Festival on October 5

Find the registration link at http://bit.ly/FranklinHF or on the Partnership website, www.franklindowntownpartnership.org. Register before September 17. Please add a $35 late fee if you register after September 17. Registration will close on September 20. Email Scott Martin, chair of the Harvest Festival, at fdpevent@gmail.com with questions about the event.

The Partnership also welcomes businesses to help support the Harvest Festival. Sponsor forms are posted on the website, or business owners can contact the office at downtown.franklin@yahoo.com.

Silver sponsors for the Harvest Festival are Dean Bank, Middlesex Savings Bank and Rockland Trust.

Bronze sponsors are Benchmark Senior Living at Forge Hill, the Bernon Family Branch YMCA, Chestnut Dental Associates, DCU, Glen Meadow Apartments, Keefe Insurance.

Friends sponsors are Camford Property Group, Charles River Bank, Encore Music Academy and Recording Studios, LeafFilter, MyFM.

The Franklin Downtown Partnership is a nonprofit, 501©3 organization made up of 270 business owners, community leaders and residents working to stimulate economic development downtown and create a positive impact throughout the area.

State Rep Josh Cutler on the "Mobtown Massacre" - Sep 15

Long before the era of "fake news'' or Twitter bombs, the freedom of the press often had to be defended with pens and pistols.

In his book Mobtown Massacre: Alexander Hanson and the Baltimore Newspaper War of 1812, author and State Representative Josh Cutler shares the story of how one Massachusetts town came to be named for a fiery Federalist newspaper editor from Maryland whose anti-war writings provoked a bloodthirsty mob, a midnight jailbreak and a brutal massacre that stunned the nation in 1812. This fateful but little-known episode in American history helped shape the course of a war and the nation's promise of a free press. And it all started with a headline.

On Sunday, September 15, 2019 Rep. Cutler will join Rep. Jeffrey Roy (D-Franklin) at the Franklin Historical Museum to talk about the book and this fascinating period in American history.

"I am honored to bring Rep. Cutler to Franklin to shine light on a little-known episode in American history that helped shape the course of war and the free press," noted Rep. Roy. "His book is a gripping story of the press under attack, a fiery young editor who put his principles above popularity, and a challenge to populist thought that brings history to life. The book also foreshadows the toxic political arena in America today, but stands as a shining example of political courage."

Rep. Josh Cutler and Rep. Jeffrey Roy

Rep. Cutler is an attorney and serves in the Massachusetts House with Rep. Roy. Cutler represents the Sixth Plymouth District of Massachusetts, which includes the town of Hanson. Cutler is a graduate of Skidmore College, Suffolk Law and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. He is also the author of "When the Press Really Was Under Attack: Alexander Hanson and the 1812 1Mobtown' Massacre," published by the New England Journal of History in the Spring 2018.

Book Talk
Mobtown Massacre: Alexander Hanson and the Baltimore Newspaper War of 1812 
Sunday, September 15, 2019 from 1:10 PM to 2:10 PM 
at the Franklin Historical Museum, 80 West Central Street, Franklin, MA.

School Committee - Recap - August 13, 2019

The School Committee meeting reviewed and approved updates to the student handbooks. The adjustment to the budget given the additional money approved in the State budget (versus what was forecasted to be approved) was requested to offset the high school parking fee. 

With the Town Council meeting scheduled for Aug 14 canceled during the afternoon, the Schools will need to wait until the rescheduled meeting Aug 21 for confirmation of the budget change.


Superintendents Report
https://www.franklinps.net/sites/franklinmaps/files/uploads/superintendents_report_to_school_committee_august_13_2019.pdf

Student handbooks were updated for the new school year
https://www.franklinps.net/district/school-handbooks


Live reporting: to Executive Session not to return...
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/08/live-reporting-to-executive-session-not.html
 
Live reporting: Information matters - Consent agen...
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/08/live-reporting-information-matters.html

Live reporting: School Committee - Aug 13, 2019
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/08/live-reportin

Franklin, MA: School Committee - Agenda - Aug 13, ...
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/08/franklin-ma-school-committee-agenda-aug.html 

School Committee - Recap - August 13, 2019

Annual Craft Fair - Nov 9

Save the Date!!! The Franklin Newcomers and Friends Club is hosting their annual Craft Fair on Saturday, November 9, 2019. 

This long-running Franklin tradition will be held at Tri-County High School, 147 Pond Street, Franklin from 9 AM to 3 PM. We are excited to host over 70 artisans at this juried craft fair. All proceeds are donated to local charitable organizations. 

In addition, there will be a bake sale table and we welcome donations of non-perishable goods that will be brought to the Franklin Food Pantry. 

Vendor applications are still being accepted; they are available on our website at franklinnewcomers.com. We only accept applications for homemade items not commercially manufactured items.

 

Annual Craft Fair - Nov 9

5 candidates certified, 22 total candidates thus far for the Franklin Biennial Election

The listing of the 22 candidates who have taken out papers to run for the open positions on the Franklin Biennial Election is provided via Town Clerk, Teresa Burr. 5 of the candidates have had their papers certified to confirm their ballot entry. 

There are 28 seats open so there is plenty of room for additional candidates. The listing will be updated weekly to provide the 'scorecard' of who's taken papers, who's turned them in, etc.


Download your copy from here
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0wjbnXDBhczQVBHWlNrX2h1OXRFWFN5Q1N2T1dTRXZHdHdR/view?usp=sharing


 
Find more information on the Franklin Election Nov 5, 2019 in the "election collection"  
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/07/franklin-election-collection-2019.html

5 candidates certified, 22 total candidates thus far for the Franklin Biennial Election

Franklin 2050: The Climate Crisis - Oct 17

Climate change is real; you can see it happening all around us, not just in America but on a global scale. Improbable weather events are happening in the most unlikely places. Yet it’s hard to get one’s head around it and figure out what the solution is.

The 2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report is a call to action to avert the changes. The IPCC and 97% of climate scientists worldwide say the changes that are necessary to avert disaster are stark: 50% reduction in carbon emissions is needed by 2030, and net carbon effect by 2050.

But we have an Administration in denial, and mass media that’s more concerned with the latest tweet than explaining what’s going on in the climate, and what can be done about it by citizens in cities and towns in the Commonwealth.

How will the average citizen learn about what can be done to minimize the effects?

Several of us from Franklin got together along with the Franklin Democratic Town Committee, 350 Massachusetts for a Better Future, and Massachusetts Climate Action Network to plan a community-wide educational forum to examine the causes and effects policy implications, and actions to take at the town and state levels. 

It’s called “Franklin 2050: The Climate Crisis” and it’s happening Thursday, October 17 at 7:00 PM at Franklin Elks 1077 Pond Street in Franklin.

Hope to see you there in this free forum event!

Richard Halpern
Franklin, MA






Register for the event
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/franklin-2050-the-climate-crisis-tickets-65325208457

Visit the IPCC page to get more information  https://www.ipcc.ch/report/srccl/

You can also get a copy of the report directly 
https://www.ipcc.ch/srccl-report-download-page/

2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report

“We thought this was a safe community”

From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:

"Arriving back from a four-day vacation at 3 a.m. last month, a family living on Palomino Drive knew their house had been burglarized when they opened the front door.

“As soon as we came in, we already knew someone had broken in,” said homeowner Srinivas, who didn’t disclose his last name because he feared for his family’s safety. Inside, shelves were broken and a light streamed into the hallway from their master bedroom – left on by the thieves.

“It appears the person entered through the side of his house, prying open a window,” said Franklin police Detective Nicholas Palmieri. “Very little evidence left behind.”

More than $25,000 in cash and goods were stolen, including ornate jewelry and important documents, Palmieri said."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20190815/thieves-target-franklin-neighborhood-police-say-many-victims-are-of-indian-descent