In the News - subcommittee passes the buck

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 25, 2008 @ 12:50 AM

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FRANKLIN —

After debating several tax override scenarios, the Town Council Budget Subcommittee last night agreed to put the onus on the School Committee in choosing a figure to put before voters this summer.

"Ask the schools - they're the ones who asked (for an override). Ask them what they want," Town Administrator Jeffrey D. Nutting told Town Council Chairman Christopher Feeley, Vice Chairwoman Deborah A. Bartlett and Councilor Robert R. Vallee.

Every $1 million of a Proposition 2 1/2 tax override means an $87 tax hike for the average homeowner, said Nutting.

Bartlett, the subcommittee chairman, pressed for a two-year plan, and said she expects the School Committee to submit a proposal that covers their needs for fiscal 2009 and 2010.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

This is a town problem, the town should decide to include all the departments in the override total. If it comes out solely as a school override, I don't believe there will be enough support for it to pass.

What do you think?

In the News - late bus

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 24, 2008 @ 10:00 AM

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FRANKLIN —

As a single mother and teacher, Joni Magee relied on the late bus to take her daughter home throughout her middle school years, she said.

Without it, her daughter, Angelica, would not have been able to hone her debating skills in student government, mock trials, Model United Nations, or develop her creativity in the Art Club, Magee said.

They live four miles from the school, which is about an hour walk, she explained.

"The late bus really did allow her to have these extracurricular activities. I really couldn't have picked her up and she wouldn't have been able to participate," said Magee, who teaches at Stacy Middle School in Milford and is the Franklin High School Parent Communication Council vice president.

School Committee members said earlier this month that a Proposition 2 1/2 tax override could prevent teacher layoffs, increased pay-to-ride fees next year, and save the late bus. Without it, students like Angelica, who depend on the late bus every week, would have to forgo clubs and activities, and many students who get detention would have to trek home, whether that means carrying 40-pound backpacks several miles or dodging traffic across Rte. 140.

Read the remainder of the article in the Milford Daily News here.

Globe misses with article

The Boston Globe has some sloppy second hand reporting on their recap of the current override situation. Nothing new in the article that you can read here.

Why sloppy?

Shannon Zollo is referred to as "she"... come on! You should know better than that!

In the News - Milford tax break for seniors expanding?

By Danielle Ameden/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 24, 2008 @ 12:54 AM

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MILFORD —

Penny-pinching senior citizens may be able to breathe easier, if Town Meeting votes next month to offer elders a bigger tax break.

An "aye" for warrant Article 24 would increase the maximum amount the town can reduce a qualifying senior citizen's local property tax bills to $650 a year, up $150 from the current maximum abatement of $500.

It would also lower the age of eligibility for the special tax program from 70 to 68.

"We like to think it's an avenue to help some senior citizens and keep them in their homes," said Town Administrator Louis Celozzi. "Property taxes increase every year and these folks are on fixed income."

The town's senior citizens ad-hoc committee, led by selectmen Chairman Dino DeBartolomeis, sent the article to selectmen, who are sponsoring it.

Annual Town Meeting will take up the issue on May 19.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here.

How does this compare to what Franklin has?

How does this compare to what was just passed in the House?

Where in Franklin? #46

Where in Franklin? #46, originally uploaded by shersteve.

Hmm... now where would you see this in Franklin?

The guidelines for playing "Where in Franklin?" can be found here.

Where in Franklin? Answer #45

Where in Franklin? Answer #45, originally uploaded by shersteve.

Yes ltsjs, the correct answer to picture #45 is the Verizon building on Main St.

Thanks for playing "Where in Franklin?"

Stay tuned for the next opportunity!

In the News - Franklin pays Medway,

By Aaron Wasserman/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 22, 2008 @ 11:27 PM

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MEDWAY —

The town will receive more than $115,000 in sewer fees from Franklin for homes there that are tied into Medway's system.

In a 1995 agreement, homes on a handful of Franklin streets near the town line were allowed to connect to Medway's sewer system, but neither town followed through on collecting money for the service. There are now 213 homes connected on those streets.

Medway officials said yesterday they plan to use the money for their ongoing sewer upgrade at the town's main industrial park.

Top officials from both towns, who were not the ones who made the agreement, said they did not know it existed until Medway officials discovered it recently while researching the sewer upgrade for the industrial park.

"It was the responsibility of everybody and everybody failed to implement it," said Town Administrator Suzanne K. Kennedy.

Franklin will pay Medway about $99,000 from a rebate it was receiving from the Charles River Pollution Control District, the regional sewage treatment authority, on a design project. The pollution control district has reduced its annual assessment to Medway for fiscal 2008 by about $16,000 - and assigned it to Franklin - to cover the balance of the $115,000.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here.

Podcasts in plain English

In our continuing series exploring the technology of Web 2.0 and social media, the folks at Common Craft have a new presentation on podcasts.

What is a podcast?

Watch this and find out the basics. Enjoy!






By the way, I will be at PodCamp New York on Saturday. What I learn there, at SOBCon08 and PodCamp Boston 3, you will eventually see the results of.

Over 50? - Take this survey, please!

Ronni Bennett and others in the elder blog world have put together a survey.

The goal is to find out what elderbloggers are like, how we may be similar and how we are different, how we relate to technology, how we came to be bloggers or blog readers, how we feel about it and what our demographics are.

There are 57 questions, many of which are required so that there is the largest possible population from which to draw conclusions. They are straightforward questions, mostly multiple-choice, and it shouldn’t take longer than about 15 minutes to complete.

If you are over 50, please consider taking the survey.

Franklin has an important elder community, we should be fully represented in this survey.

I just took the survey myself, it is quick and easy to do.

By the way, there is no registration, no identification to provide as part of the survey and it knows that once you complete it won't let you come back for a second round.


Updated 4/23/08 5:00 PM - If you tried the survey link and it failed, you can try again now. From this time forward it should be working properly.

Franklin (MA) School Department budget reductions through the years 2003 - 2009

School vacation week, subcommittees scheduled to meet in preparation for the Town Council meeting April 30th to determine what the amount of the override should be, time to bring back this post for new visitors in case you missed it earlier this month.

Note: there is a School Committee meeting scheduled for April 29th to determine their final budget plan and to discuss the proposed maintenance consolidation.

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Times are tough. Budget reductions again for the school department. Level service is hard to maintain. The "good to great" budget as shocking as it was last year in light of this analysis should really be seen as a restoration of cuts that have occurred since 2003 and not a "wishful dream/pie in the sky" reach. Of course, the reality is such that it still may very well be wishful thinking.

| View | Upload your own

Note: version 2 was replaced by this more updated version 3 (minor updates)

One other item of note caught my attention as this came together. The recent Forensic Audit Report highlighted problems with accounting transactions that "all of a sudden" appeared in 2006 with an employee who had been in good standing for several years. Did you know/recall that the Assistant Director of Finances was one of the positions cut from the FY 06 budget?



I have been very careful in this presentation, if there are inaccuracies, let me know what is incorrect and I'll make the update.

Where in Franklin? #45

Where in Franklin? #45, originally uploaded by shersteve.

Where in Franklin would you find this building?

The guidelines for playing "Where in Franklin?" can be found here.

Where in Franklin? Answer #44

Where in Franklin? Answer #44, originally uploaded by shersteve.

The well pictured in #44 can be found on Jordan Road.

One of my favorite running routes, Jordan Road rolls up and down a bit and appropriately placed about 200 yards from the top of the last roll (heading from Chestnut towards RT 140) is the well. A subtle reminder to dig deeper if you need to, there should always be something in the well.

Thanks for playing. Stay tuned for the next picture for "Where in Franklin?"

In the News - overide deju vu

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

Milford Daily News

Posted Apr 19, 2008 @ 10:07 PM

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FRANKLIN —

Echoing the sentiments of many older residents in town, Franklin High School sophomore Antonia Scannapieco wondered aloud why last year's override wasn't enough to cover the town's needs.
Eating ice cream with her sister, Catherine Scannapieco, and friend, Melissa Saunders, outside the Brigham's Ice Cream on Rte. 140, she said, ``I don't know where all the money went from the past override.
``They shouldn't need the money. They should have asked for more last time,'' Scannapieco said, referring to the $2.7 million tax increase voters overwhelmingly passed last year to prevent massive cuts in schools.
At the time, override advocates and leaders like Town Councilor Stephen Whalen, Town Administrator Jeffrey D. Nutting, and the Finance Committee cautioned $2.7 was insufficient, and the schools still had to make reductions.
Last year, ``Nostradamus Nutting,'' as one town official referred to the administrator at a recent meeting, accurately forecast the town would have an approximate $3 million shortfall this year.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here.

Franklin Blogger: Martinator's Bicycling Blog

The Hitchhiker Team found Martinator's blog in January. Martin lives here in Franklin and writes of himself:

I am a Web Designer. Actually, I am more on the interface coding side of web design. I like to bike and ski, though I haven't skied in quite a while. I am also a gadget freak and I try to incorporate technology into everything I do.

If you are interested in bike riding, this is one site to check out regularly.

In the News - let voters decide, luxury tax

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 17, 2008 @ 12:51 AM

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FRANKLIN —

Taxpayers will have an opportunity to vote for a tax override early this summer, the majority of the Town Council decided last night.

Every seat in the Town Council chambers was filled, and about 20 more people stood at the back of the room at last night's meeting, all in favor of an override.

No one but Councilor Judith Pond Pfeffer spoke against the permanent tax hike, which would be used to prevent about 45 layoffs in schools, program cuts, and possibly boost other town departments' budgets.

School Committee Chairman Jeffrey Roy, as well as a handful of residents, including Finance Committee members, Town Council Chairman Christopher Feeley, Vice Chairwoman Deborah A. Bartlett, and members Stephen Whalen, Shannon Zollo, Joseph McGann and Thomas S. Doak all spoke in favor of putting an override question on the ballot.

Councilor Robert Vallee, who had gone on record as being opposed to an override, passed at the chance to voice his opinion last night.

Finance Committee Chairman Jim Roche, who spoke as a taxpayer and father, urged the council to let the town vote.

"This is more than just a school problem - it's a townwide problem," said Roche.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here.

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By Julia Spitz/Daily News staff

The MetroWest Daily News

Posted Apr 17, 2008 @ 12:50 AM

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My first thought was to drop a dime to Susan Wornick.

I know my rights. I know the law. Clearly, the sporting goods store was no authority on clothing tax.

But after a teenaged manager took the $1 off my bill, I calmed down enough to see involving Channel 5's consumer guru wasn't the way to go.

Instead, we need to make the state tax code even more confusing.

Conventional wisdom on Beacon Hill has been to balance the budget on the backs of the monkeys on Massachusetts residents' backs.

Got a vice? We'll tax it. Then we'll tax it some more. And when that isn't enough, we'll just push Lottery tickets a little harder.

Look, we don't want you to gamble if you're an addict. No, seriously. See, we put all sorts of disclaimers on Keno broadcasts and around convenience stores that sell scratch tickets. Here's the number for Gamblers Anonymous. Call if you think you have a problem. Just wait until after you buy another Megabucks ticket before you call, OK?

Casinos may be off the table for the moment, at least casinos of the state-run variety, but an extra tax on smokers is all but a done deal.

Dirty, rotten smokers. Make them pay for miscalculations in what it takes to run a state.

There was some talk about upping taxes on wine, but so far that hasn't gotten much traction. It'll likely be revisited when the number of people who buy cigarettes in Massachusetts dwindles to financially unacceptable levels.

Meanwhile, there's a sensible solution no one's talking about.

Read the remainder of the article to see the sensible solution in the Milford Daily News

Attention Franklin: Override ballot question coming

Per Chris Feeley this evening, there will be a new Town Council meeting added on April 30th to vote on the override ballot. Between now and then various subcommittees and committees will be working on what number should be put forward to address this town problem.

The vote should occur in June, I heard him say June 15th, that is a Sunday so it is likely he meant either June 14th to go with a Saturday vote, or June 17th to stay with a traditional Tuesday vote.

Either way, the voters of Franklin will have an override to decide to maintain their Top 10 rankings or not.

Our choice. Listen. Learn. Be prepared to cast an informed vote!

Councilor Comments: Shannon Zollo (audio)

From the Franklin Town Council meeting 4/16/08, Shannon Zollo lays out the argument for the override vote so the town can decide and recommends how each can prepare for the vote.

Time: 11 minutes, 42 seconds



MP3 File


Editorial Comment: Remember this one, come back here to listen to this often. I have not heard as complete and compelling an argument put forth as convincingly as this was. Thank you Shannon!

Town Council Mtg Summary 4/16/08

Attention Franklin: Override ballot question comin...

Councilor Comments: Shannon Zollo (audio)

--- 2 minutes break ---

6 - Citizen's Comment: Andy Donaldson (audio)

5 - Citizen's Comment: Kaitlyn Cronin (audio)

4 - Citizen's Comment: Jim Roche (audio)

3 - Citizens Comment: William Hawes (audio)

2 - Citizen's Comment: John Niece (audio)

1 - Citizen's Comment: Jeff Roy (audio)

Town Council Agenda 4/16/08


additional segments of the meeting will be posted as I have time to process them.

Citizen Comments: Andy Donaldson (audio)

From the Franklin Town Council meeting on 4/16/08, citizens comment. Andy was the last of the citizen comments, the council took a two minute break after this.

Time: 1 minute, 5 seconds



MP3 File

Citizen Comments: Kaitlyn Cronin (audio)

From the Franklin Town Council meeting 4/16/08, citizens comment.

Time: 35 seconds



MP3 File