Trash/Recycle Facts: tips for good service

Make sure to place the right items in the right cart:

Solid waste only in the 65-gallon BLACK TOP cart

and recycling only in the 65-gallon YELLOW TOP cart.

Once service begins on July 1st, your old trash barrels will no longer be accepted for waste or recycling materials, use new DPW supplied carts. Carts should be placed curbside by 7:00 am the day of your collection.

Make sure all materials fit inside your carts with the lids closed. Always keep the lid closed to keep rain, snow and animals out.

Do not place any unacceptable materials in the cart. Use the handle provided to move the cart. Tilt the cart on its wheels to roll it. Remember that it’s easier to pull the cart uphill and push it downhill. Remove your cart as soon as possible after collection to maintain the appearance of your neighborhood.

Clean your carts periodically by rinsing them with water and letting them dry in the sun with the lid open.
Trash collection is limited to one cart per residence per week.

Make sure you recycle all you can, and use the Bulky Items and White Goods collection service for those items.

There are currently no restrictions on street parking on collection days. Since automated waste collection requires clearance for the vehicle’s lifting mechanism, any cars parked at the curb should be at least 5 feet from the cart.

Leave 3 feet between your solid waste and recycling carts when placing them curbside to allow the truck to collect both easily.

This information comes from the Franklin Solid Waste website here (PDF):
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/FranklinAutomation2010FINAL.pdf

and here
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/index

The collection of Franklin Matters posts on the new process can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/franklin-ma-trash-collection.html

Franklin, MA

Bottle-Can Drive - July 10th

Franklin Boy Scout Troop 2 will be holding a Bottle and Can Drive on July 10th from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Scouts will be accepting your donations of redeemable bottles and cans at two locations: 

1) the William F. Ray Lodge of the Franklin Odd Fellows at 330 West Central Street (by the intersection of Beaver Street)

and

2) in the parking lot of the Franklin Federated Church, 171 Main Street (just across from the Common).

Please help support Franklin’s newest Scout troop, and come meet some of the members and leaders!

Franklin, MA

In the News - Pulaski detour, casinos

Pulaski bridge work causes detour in Bellingham

from The Milford Daily News News RSS by Joe O'Connell/Daily News staff

Mass. Senate approves bill licensing three casinos

from The Milford Daily News News RSS by Associated Press

Franklin, MA

Municipal Calendar

From the MA Dept of Revenue, Division of Local Services "City & Town" Newsletter for July 2010 comes the following. I don't pretend to know this in detail. It may very well go over your head too. The point of sharing it is as many folks head into vacation time, there is much still to be done in the Municipal Building. The fiscal year just closed June 30th, which means the books need to be closed, accounts balanced, etc. The following provides some detail into the behind the scenes stuff that just happens!

Municipal Calendar

July 1: Collector:Mail Annual Preliminary Tax Bills

For communities issuing annual preliminary tax bills, the preliminary quarterly or semi-annual bills should be mailed by this date.

July 15: Accountant: Certification Date for Free Cash: Anytime after Books are Closed

Two weeks after the close of a fiscal year, all accounts are closed out and the resulting balance sheet and supplemental documentation submitted to DOR. Free cash is certified any time after this date.

July 15: Accountant: Report Community Preservation Fund Balance: Anytime after Books are Closed After the close of a fiscal year, the fund balance is submitted to DOR (Form CP-2) and notice given to the Community Preservation Committee and other financial officers. The fund balance may be appropriated anytime after that report.

July 15:School Business Officials: Certification Date for Excess and Deficiency (E&D) Fund

Two weeks after the close of a fiscal year, all accounts are closed and the resulting balance sheet (a pre-closing trial balance or audited financial statements will not be accepted unless requested by the Director of Accounts) and supplemental documentation are submitted to DOR. E&D Fund is certified any time after this date.

July 15: Assessors: Deadline for Appealing Commissioner’s Pipeline Valuations to ATB

July 20: DOR/BLA: Notification of Changes in Proposed EQVs (even numbered years only)

July 20: DOR/BLA: Notification of Changes in Proposed SOL Valuations (every 4th year after 2005)

August 1: Taxpayer: Quarterly Tax Bills — Deadline for Paying 1st Quarterly Tax Bill Without Interest

According to M.G.L. Ch. 59, Sec. 57C, this is the deadline for receipt of the 1st Quarter preliminary tax payment without interest, unless the preliminary bills were mailed after July 1. If mailed by August 1, the 1st Quarterly payment is due August 1, or 30 days after the bills were mailed, whichever is later, and the 2nd Quarterly payment is due November 1. If mailed after August 1, the preliminary tax is due as a single installment on November 1, or 30 days after the bills were mailed, whichever is later.

August 1: Taxpayer: Annual Boat Excise Return Due

August 1: Accountant: Notification of Total Receipts of Preceding Year

The total actual local receipts (e.g., motor vehicle excise, fines, fees, water/sewer charges) of the previous fiscal year must be included on Schedule A of the Tax Rate Recapitulation Sheet (Recap) which is submitted by the Assessors to DOR. On the Recap, the Accountant certifies the previous fiscal year’s actual revenues, and the Assessors use this information to project the next fiscal year’s revenues. Any estimates of local receipts on the Recap that differ significantly from the previous year’s actual receipts must be accompanied by documentation justifying the change in order to be approved by the Commissioner of Revenue.

August 1: Assessors: Deadline for Appealing EQVs to ATB (even numbered years only)

August 1: Assessors: Deadline for Appealing SOL Valuations to ATB (every 4th year after 2005)

August 15: Assessor: Deadline to Vote to Seek Approval for Authorization to Issue Optional Preliminary Tax Bills For semi-annual communities issuing optional preliminary property tax bills, the Assessors must vote to seek authorization to issue the bills from DOR by this date. After receiving approval, Assessors must submit a Pro-forma Tax Rate Recap Sheet to DOR for review and issue the tax bills by October 1.

August 31: Taxpayer: Last Filing Day for Classified Forest Land, M.G.L. Ch. 61

August 31: DOR/BOA: Issue Instructions for Determining Local and District Tax Rates A copy of the Tax Rate Recap Sheet and its instructions are forwarded to the town.

August 31: Assessors: Begin work on Tax Rate Recapitulation Sheet (to set tax rate for semi-annual bills) Until the Tax Rate Recap Sheet is completed and certified by the Commissioner of Revenue, the community may not set a tax rate nor send out its property tax bills (unless it issues preliminary quarterly tax bills or requests from DOR the authority to send out pre liminary tax notices if DOR requirements are met). Communities should begin gathering the information in enough time for the tax rate to be set and tax bills mailed by October 1. The Tax Rate Recap Sheet provides Mayors or Selectmen with a ready-made financial management tool because the town’s most important financial management information is summarized on this form. The Mayor or Selectmen should review the Recap Sheet in preliminary form in order to understand the following financial information: Page 1 (Tax Rate Summary) — The proposed tax levy should be compared to the levy limit. If a town does not levy to its limit, the remaining levy is referred to as excess levy capacity. Excess levy capacity is lost to the community for the current fiscal year although it will always remain in the levy limit calculation. Page 2 (Amount To Be Raised) — This section includes appropriations and other local expenditures not appropriated. These include overlay deficits, revenue deficits, state and county charges, Cherry Sheet offset items, and the allowance for abatements and exemptions. By comparing this information to the prior year(s), any significant changes can be determined. Page 2 (Estimated Receipts & Revenues From Other Sources) — In particular, Sec tion C shows the amount appropriated from free cash and other available funds. By comparing the amounts appropriated to the balances in these accounts (available from the Accountant/Auditor), the Mayor or Selectmen can get a sense of how their non-property tax revenues are being used. Page 3, Schedule A (Local Receipts Not Allocated) — By comparing these figures to prior year(s), the Mayor or Selectmen can determine any changes in these revenues. Page 4, Schedule B (Certification of Appropriations and Source of Funding) — This section includes financial votes of City/Town Council or Town Meeting not previously reported on last year’s recap.

Franklin, MA

Native Plants: What's your name? Summary

Opening guidelines and first photo
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/07/whats-your-name.html

Michelle's first post in the series on native plants
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/07/native-plants-of-franklin.html
answer = pinesap

http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/08/native-plants-of-franklin.html
answer = milkweed

http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/08/native-plants-of-franklin_07.html
answer = ???




Franklin, MA

Franklin, MA: Express Line #10

The current edition of the Franklin newsletter "Express Line" is now available:

Express Line 10

You can subscribe to receive your own copy via email here:
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/subscriber-news


Franklin, MA

4th of July - schedule of events

The schedule of events for the Franklin, MA 4th of July are as follows:


Franklin 4thJuly 2010 Schedule


Additional information can be found on the 4th of July Coalition website here:
http://july4thfranklinma.com/

Franklin Schools Advocacy Association

The idea would be to form an organization, the "Franklin Schools Advocacy Association", to advocate for appropriate levels of funding and support for the Franklin school system for the long term.


Goals of the group might include any the following:


1) Obtain a prop 2.5 overide just for the school system


2) Get out the vote


3) Ensure that new school money is spent appropriately on hiring teachers and buying educational materials


4) Watch and report on the town meetings to see where the money goes when it does not go to the school system


5) Visibly and obviously publish and distribute a record of the ongoing votes of town counsellors on funding of town projects (probably its published, but I'm darned if I can find it, and probably nobody looks at it)


6) Create a website for the exclusive use of this association


The activities of the group would be decided by the people attending the meetings. I am proposing to host an exploratory meeting in September. I would set the date after checking with all interested people. I have gathered six names within the first couple of days of posting this. I would like to get 15 names of people who would most likely attend.


I would like people to send me their contact information at jonathan.kava@verizon.net



Franklin, MA

Trash/Recycle Facts: recycling

You will also receive a green 65-gallon wheeled cart with a YELLOW TOP for Single Stream recycling in which you may place all of your recyclable materials. Your recycling container shall be placed curbside every week on the same day as your regular trash collection. With the new Single Stream Recycling program you will be able to place ALL of your recyclables neatly into to one container.

SORTING RECYCLABLES IS NO LONGER NECESSARY!

After July 1st, you will no longer be able to use your current recycling bin and any materials outside of the recycling cart will not be accepted.

We are providing you with this comprehensive recycling guide in order to help you properly prepare your recyclables and maximize the amount you recycle. This chart also outlines items, which cannot be placed in your recycling cart. Please refer to the calendar and street listing to determine your collection day and week. We will continue to follow the same collection schedule that is in place currently.

This information comes from the Franklin Solid Waste website here (PDF):
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/FranklinAutomation2010FINAL.pdf

and here
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/index


The collection of Franklin Matters posts on the new process can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/franklin-ma-trash-collection.html

Franklin, MA

In the News - new trash/recycle service begins

Solid Waste Coordinator Chris White said he's heard similar complaints regarding the size of the bins.

"If someone puts out a lot of trash, they're going to pay more. The people who can live within 65 gallons will pay less," White said. "If you recycle more and put out less trash, the rate goes down. If you don't, it goes up."

Read the full article here:
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x2071996709/Franklin-residents-anxious-as-new-trash-system-starts

View the video the Chris white refers to here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/06/video-on-franklins-new-automated-trash.html


Franklin, MA

Video on Franklin's New Automated Trash and Recycling Process

The DPW has posted their own video of the trash/recycling system in action



Enjoy!

Franklin, MA

Chamber Holds Small Manufacturers' Summit

Local Manufacturers Attend Summit Featuring U.S Manufacturing Czar and Congressman                   Jack Lank and the Senior Counselor to the U.S.              President for Manufacturing Policy Ron Bloom  The United Regional Chamber of Commerce proudly sponsored the June 28 Small Manufacturers' Summit at Living Waters Conference Center in North Attleborough. The event featured keynote speakers U.S. Congressman James McGovern and the Senior Counselor to the U.S. President for Manufacturing Policy Ron Bloom. In addition to a private meeting and tour held at Cookson Precious Metals and Bell's Powder Coating, they addressed issues facing small business manufacturers in the Northeast during the Summit. Other event sponsors include for the event included Bell's Powder Coating, Inc., Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America, Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership, Cookson Precious Metals, Stern-Leach and Living Waters Conference Center.                                                                                      Jack Lank with U.S. Congressman James McGovern                                   Eric Nakajima                                                                                                                                     Senior Innovation Policy Advisor                                                                                                                              for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Trash/Recycle Facts: cart placement

Proper Cart Placement

The placement of your cart is important since the collection vehicle’s lifting arm requires clearance: 3 feet on both sides, and 12 feet overhead. The cart should be no more than 3 feet away from the curb or road edge, and the arrows on the lid must be pointing toward the street. Please leave 3 feet between your recycling and trash container when placing them curbside.

Thanks to Jim Robinson, a fan of the Facebook Franklin Matters page for prompting the search of YouTube for a video of the trash truck in action.

Thanks to Parker, for getting his parents to make this video because he likes the trash truck to come and take the trash.

This process would be similar to that beginning July 1. We have two containers, one for trash and one for recycling.



Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view this video of the trash truck making a pickup.

Additional information can be found on the Franklin Solid Waste website here
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/index

The collection of Franklin Matters posts on the new process can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/03/franklin-ma-trash-collection.html

Franklin, MA

In the News - 4th July, trash/recycle

Franklin Fourth fete has fresh features

from The Milford Daily News News RSS by Ashley Studley/Daily News staff

and looking to get an early jump on the success of the program

Do you like Franklin's new trash program?

from The Milford Daily News News RSS by Ashley Studley/Daily News staff

Franklin, MA

Trash/Recycle Facts: what goes, what doesn't

All regular household trash should be bagged and placed in the 65-gallon trash cart for collection. Items outside of the cart will NOT be collected except 33G DPW overflow bags.

Do not place the following items in the trash cart:
• Recyclables
• Yard Waste
• Dirt, sod, concrete or rock
• Construction/demolition debris
• Household hazardous waste
• Hot ashes or flammable materials such as oil, gas or paint

NOTE: Latex paint cans must be dried out and contents bagged and disposed of in municipal trash. Put completely dried latex paint cans (no oil based paints) in the trash. Oil based paints should be safely stored and can be disposed of at the annual Household Hazardous Waste Day, October 2, 2010.

Preparing your solid waste:
• Bag your trash before placing it in the cart.
• Bagging your trash will help to keep the cart clean and sanitary, and prevent litter on windy days.
• All trash must fit in the cart so that the lid is closed. No material may be sticking out of the cart.



This information comes from the Franklin Solid Waste website here (PDF):
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/FranklinAutomation2010FINAL.pdf

and here
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Recycling/index


Franklin, MA