Franklin TV: Grand Opening! Life! - Coming Soon to a TV Studio Near You.

 by Pete Fasciano, Executive Director 05/02/2021

March,2020 – we closed up shop. Our building, shuttered. Our routine, shattered. Things taken for granted were taken away. A sad and uncertain time.

As dark months crept by, the building lost its vibrance. Hibernating.

“ Is this really necessary?  Seems extreme.”  Or, so some part of me thought at the time. We all knew little then. It’s not over just yet, but we know more now, We know what to do; what not to do, and we have vaccines and protocols.

Armed with that knowledge, we are currently planning to reopen the studio in the weeks ahead. We will do so safely, with limited staff on premises. But, we will be open nonetheless.  I consider reopening (however cautiously) as an act of defiance. It’s a step toward some normality in a post-pandemic world.

May is a naturally optimistic month. Classically primavera, it brings us flowers and a warm hug. It encourages us to ‘do something – anything’. So, indeed we shall.

There won’t be any fanfare. No ribbon cutting, balloons, streamers or flag banners. Just unlocking the front door and turning the lights back on will be enough. We will have one or two of our staffers present during normal business hours, and our doors will be open to visitors on a limited basis. Step-by-step.

Life, albeit limited, will return to our studio. That’s the ‘grand’ part.

And – in this most enthusiastic month, we will remember. Memorial Day is an oddly appropriate way to wrap up May’s natural optimism. We take pause to remember that there were front-line heroes in all this.

For those among them who are no longer with us, we welcome May.
Thanks to them, we get to reopen. 

And – as always – 

Thank you for listening to wfpr●fm. 

And, thank you for watching.

 

Get this week's program guide for Franklin TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online

http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf  or for archive purposes

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1r6JLQmHNjssK2yYusQXCiIoPsjwIthkT/view?usp=sharing

 

Franklin TV: Grand Opening! Life! - Coming Soon to a TV Studio Near You.

 

Franklin, MA: Town Council - Agenda - May 5, 2021

FRANKLIN TOWN COUNCIL

Agenda & Meeting Packet

May 5, 2021

Meeting will be held at the Municipal Building
2nd floor, Council Chambers, 355 East Central Street
7:00 PM 

1. ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE CHAIR
a. This meeting is being recorded by Franklin TV and shown on Comcast channel 11 and Verizon Channel 29.  This meeting may be recorded by others. 
b. Chair to identify Council Members participating remotely

2. CITIZEN COMMENTS
Citizens are welcome to express their views for up to five minutes on a matter that is not on the agenda. The Council will not engage in a dialogue or comment on a matter raised during Citizen Comments. The Town Council will give remarks appropriate consideration and may ask the Town Administrator to review the matter.

3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
None Scheduled

4. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS
Brutus Cantoreggi, Public Works Director - American Public Works Association, Public Works Director of the Year Award

5. APPOINTMENTS
None Scheduled

6. HEARINGS - 7:10 PM
Bylaw Amendment 21-868: Chapter 185, Zoning Article V, Special Regulations

7. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS
La Cantina Winery/La Cantina Brewery, Change of Category on their Farmer Series Pouring Permit from Wines to Wine and Malt Beverages, 355 Union Street, Franklin, MA 02038

8. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
a. Melanson & Heath - FY20 Audit 
b. Franklin TV - Pete Fasciano 
c. Anne Marie Tracey - Town Communications and Civic Engagement Update

9. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS
a. Capital Budget Subcommittee
b. Budget Subcommittee
c. Economic Development Subcommittee

10. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
10a. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
Bylaw Amendment 21-868: Chapter 185, Zoning Article V, Special Regulations - Second Reading (Motion to adopt Bylaw Amendment 21-868 - Two Thirds Majority Roll Call Vote)

10b. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
Resolution 21-24: Gift Acceptance - DPW Highway & Grounds Division, Sand Sweeper (Motion to Approve Resolution 21-24 - Majority Vote)

10c. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
Resolution 21-25: Ambulance Refund Acceptance - Fire Department (Motion to Approve Resolution 21-25 - Majority Vote)

10d. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
Resolution 21-26: Gift Acceptance - Historical Commission, $100 (Motion to Approve Resolution 21-26 - Majority Vote)

10e. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
Resolution 21-27: Gift Acceptance - Police Department, $300 (Motion to Approve Resolution 21-27 - Majority Vote) 

11. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT
a. COVID-19
b. FY22 Budget Update - FY22 Town Administrator Budget Materials

12. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

13. COUNCIL COMMENTS

14. EXECUTIVE SESSION
None Scheduled

ADJOURN

Note:  Two-Thirds Vote: requires 6 votes
Majority Vote: requires majority of members present and voting

Meeting agenda (PDF version)   https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/5-5-21_town_council_agenda_packet.pdf

Town Council agenda web page with links to all docs

https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/may-5-town-council-agenda

Franklin, MA: Town Council - Agenda - May 5, 2021

FM #527 - Finance Cmte Budget Hearing #2 - 04/28/21 (audio)

The meeting was conducted in a hybrid format: members of the Finance Committee, selected guests, and Town Administration personnel were in the Council Chambers, the remainder were remote along with the public via the Zoom conference bridge, all to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic period.

The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda including documents released for this agenda. 

Let’s listen to this budget hearing on "Public Safety"

Audio file = https://player.captivate.fm/episode/bf3786c3-b901-4478-8bba-2808a097615f

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• April 28 Agenda = Public Safety (Police, Fire, Regional Dispatch)
 https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/_2021-04-28_finance_committee_agenda_.pdf

• Town budget page for FY 2022

https://www.franklinma.gov/town-budget/pages/fy-22-budget-materials

• My notes from the meeting

https://www.franklinmatters.org/2021/05/recap-fincomm-budget-hearing-2-042821.html

--------------

We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial. 

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors
• If you don't like something here, please let me know

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit www.Franklinmatters.org/   or www.franklin.news/

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

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!

------------------

You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

FM #527 - Finance Cmte Budget Hearing #2 - 04/28/21 (audio)

Franklin Senior Center: CONNECTION NEWSLETTER for May 2021

CONNECTION NEWSLETTER

Your Monthly Franklin Senior Center Newsletter

To Receive This Newsletter Monthly or Other Town Notifications, Please Click Here  

or here  -> https://www.franklinma.gov/subscribe

Franklin Senior Center: CONNECTION NEWSLETTER for May 2021

Tri-County RVTHS Carpentry Students Renovating Wrentham Common Gazebo

Students have been able to gain some real-world experience as they renovate the gazebo in the center of Wrentham. The junior and senior students and their instructor, Jeremy Barstow, have been working on replacing all of the trim and roofing and repairing structural framing. They hope to have the roof finished by the end of this year.  Barstow comments, “The roof is a traditional cedar shingle system which is a labor-intensive process. It is an excellent opportunity for the students to work with one of the classic roofing materials.” 

Chad Lovett, Director of Facilities for the Town of Wrentham, reached out to Tri-County for the renovation.  The students have been working on the renovation for a few months now. “This is a great project for our students with a lot of unique detailed work. It will certainly push our students to grow as carpenters while having a lot of fun. The students are learning skills they can apply after graduation and are proud to be part of a build project that will be enjoyed by the community for many years to come,” says Jeremy Barstow, Carpentry Instructor.

For more about Tri-County visit them online -> https://www.tri-county.us/

Tri-County RVTHS Carpentry Students Renovating Wrentham Common Gazebo

 

Recap - FinComm - Budget Hearing #3 - All DPW, and we find they they lose 2 positions in FY 2022

Quick Recap:

• Interesting twist instead of the formal line by line budget discussion of prior nights, DPW taking 2 people out of budget to bring in a balanced line as the stormwater fee apparently is NOT being considered for next year
• 3rd party peer review for Beaver St interceptor being funded to make sure costs and plans are good
• State target for per capita water usage 65 gals per person per day, we're at 42 and doing well
• Even with new pump station coming online, the DEP permit will still require water conservation measures. And that is not considering the drought status

----

As with most meetings in this pandemic period, I took my notes via Twitter during the meeting reporting in real-time via the virtual session.

 

The Twitter hashtag can be found online  #fincom0429

https://twitter.com/search?q=%23fincom0429&src=typed_query 

Photos captured during the meeting and shared via Twitter can be found in one album https://photos.app.goo.gl/b2kW9RphygWgWoxZ6

The agenda for this meeting can be found

https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/_2021-04-29_finance_committee_agenda_.pdf 

• Finance Committee meeting coming up at 6:30 - Part 3 of 4 - Time for all things  Dept of Public Works; Highway, Grounds, Central Motors, Solid Waste and Stormwater!  https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/_2021-04-29_finance_committee_agenda_.pdf   #fincom0429
• To follow along, page 75 of Appendix A1 for DPW and all it does! #fincom0429 
• Finding out that the DPW is cutting personnel in their budget - that wasn't clear in anything heard previously!
• Interesting twist instead of the formal line by line budget discussion of prior nights, a few eye openers #fincom0429 DPW taking 2 people out of budget to bring in a balance line as the stormwater fee apparently is NOT being considered for next year
• #fincom0429 instead of making it about big bad phosphorus, or the Charles (isn't that in Boston). Street sweeping, catch basin cleaning, lots of really glamorous work is required to handle the stormwater and better ground water as we are a ground water aquifer user
• This is infrastructure, we need it, don't we really have bigger 'fish to fry?' #fincom0429 current nonprofit entities (Dean College) don't pay anything, government (Post office) don't pay, both would pay their "fair" share under the utility fee (sometime)
• Long discussion, can't reasonably do justice via this format. #fincom0429  George calculated $14/q and Franklin Village would be roughly $4,000/q... Will go back to the Jan 2020 meeting recording to help remind folks of what they said then.
• Stormwater conversation ends (finally) #fincom0429 now going to the DPW line by line street lights, p 86; solid waste p 87 (actually the recycling center) the remainder of solid waste is an enterprise fund
• Recycling needs to be looked at, it may be cheaper to burn as opposed to years a go recycling would earn us money #fincom0429 3rd party peer review for Beaver St interceptor being funded to make sure costs and plans are good. Per capita 65 gals per person per day, we're at 42
• Request for additional percentage amounts Motion to adjourn, second, passes 7-0   That's all for tonight, catch you next Tue, May 4 for the schools budget #fincom0429
• Oops forgot to add #fincom0429

 

FinCom member Susan Dewsnap

Franklin Veterans - May 2021 - Coffee Social (in person at Senior Center)

May 2021 Coffee Social

In-Person Social at the Senior Center - All Vets Are Welcome!

Hello Veterans!
May has sneaked up on us! This means it's time for us to meet next week for another in-person Coffee Social. Our Zoom socials were fine over the last year, but seeing everyone in-person last month was so much better!

PLEASE JOIN US!

• When: Wednesday, May 5, 10:00 hours
• Where: Franklin Senior Center Multi-Purpose Room
• Details: Face masks that cover the nose and mouth will be required and we will observe social distancing at the gathering.

Once again, we ask that you pre-register for the Social by emailing me to say you plan to attend. This will help us calculate how much space we'll need and how many tables to set up.

As always, we'll mention upcoming veterans' events and refreshments will be provided by our wonderful friends at Starbucks!

Feel free to pass the word along or bring other veterans with you whose contact info we don't have.

Hope to see you next week!

Shared from Town of Franklin page ->  https://www.franklinma.gov/veterans-services/news/may-2021-coffee-social

Franklin Veterans - May 2021 - Coffee Social (in person at Senior Center)