In the News: CD release, i495/RT 9, glass harmonica

Franklin native to release new CD on Friday

by Staff reports

Christie Leigh, an award-winning songwriter from Franklin, will release her new CD “Deep Down Damned” on Friday, Jan. 11 at The Estate in Boston.

State details recommendations for I-495/Rte. 9 interchange

by Brad Petrishen/Daily News staff

Three lanes of travel on a stretch of Rte. 9 in Southborough and new ramps elevated by bridges are among $130 million worth of state suggestions to improve the I-495/Rte. 9 interchange unveiled to the Planning Board Monday night.

Glass harmonica concert planned at Franklin Historical Museum

by GateHouse Media, Inc.

The Franklin Historical Museum, 80 West Central St., in Franklin, will host Vera Meyer on Sunday, Jan. 20 for a repeat performance playing the glass harmonica.

Another #1 for Franklin

From the Neighborhood Scout:

Our research reveals the 100 safest cities in America with 25,000 or more people, based on the total number of property and violent crimes per 1,000 residents. Crimes include burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, murder, forcible rape, armed robbery, and aggravated assault. Data used for this research are 1) the number of total crimes reported to the FBI to have occurred in each city, and 2) the population of each city. See our FAQ on how we rank the safest cities in America

You can view the full listing of 100 communities to find Franklin at #1
http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/neighborhoods/crime-rates/top100safest/

The Franklin report can be found here  http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ma/franklin/crime/

Make sure to read the Overview tab, interesting stuff!

Franklin, MA: Planning Board - Agenda - Jan 7, 2013

The published agenda for the Planning Board meeting Monday evening;

23 Hutchinson St, proposed location for Franklin TV

PlanningBoard_January07_ 2013



Among the items on the agenda are:

• Stop and Shop gas station
• Franklin TV
• Hoffman Farm
• Robin's Nest Childrens Center

Annual Report 2012: Charles River Pollution Control District

During Fiscal Year 2012, the Charles River Pollution Control District’s (District) regional advanced  wastewater treatment facility received and treated approximately 1,740 million gallons (4.8 million gallons per day) of raw wastewater, including 6.1 million gallons of septage from the District’s member and customer towns before discharge to the Charles River. The volume of waste treated was higher than the previous year due to an increase in heavy precipitation.

The District is anticipating the renewal process to begin this fall for its National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for discharge of its treated wastewater to the Charles River. Under the preliminary draft NPDES permit, the District and the Towns of Franklin, Medway, Millis, and Bellingham will have to maintain an ongoing preventive maintenance program to prevent overflows and bypasses caused by malfunctions or failures of the sewer system and an infiltration and inflow reduction program.

CDM Smith and staff from the District prepared a 20-year capital improvement plan (CIP) to improve the wastewater treatment facility to meet more stringent NPDES permitting requirements and provide a more reliable wastewater treatment facility at its current capacity.

In July 2010, the District was informed of its acceptance on the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (Mass DEP) Bureau of Resource Protection Calendar Year 2010 Intended Use List for State Revolving Funding (SRF). In order to expedite the designs and proceed with the project in a timely manner,
the CIP was divided into three phases (A, B and C).

Phase A, which is scheduled for completion this October, includes the replacement of both primary clarifier
mechanisms, addition of two screenings washer/compactors in the wet well, primary scum handling improvements, and plant lighting and security improvements.

Phase B, the capping of the on-site residuals landfill, is scheduled for completion August 2012.

Phase C, focuses on reducing phosphorus, improving the disinfection system, and extending the life of the facility for an additional 20 years. This phase is currently in the early stages of design and is expected to be
complete in late 2013 with construction starting in early 2014. A District-wide Global Information
System was developed as part of this phase to assist with infiltration and inflow reduction requirements.

The District is scheduled to fund Phases A and B with a 20-year SRF loan of approximately $3.3M for costs associated with bidding, construction, and resident engineering. Costs for planning and design which are not eligible for SRF loans will be funded by a General Obligation Bond of approximately $1.5M. The total project cost is still under review and will become more detailed as design progresses.

The District is one of seven municipal wastewater treatment plants selected by the Mass DEP to participate in a pilot program that involves energy auditing, assessments for renewable and clean energy possibilities, and
support of implementation for energy related projects. The purpose of this pilot program is to reduce the amount of energy used at municipal wastewater treatment plants by 20%, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and saving municipalities money. The District was granted $847,583 through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to install a 20 kW solar voltaic array and two turbo style blowers. The solar
panels will produce energy onsite whereas the turbo blowers will provide oxygen to the secondary treatment system using approximately 30% less power than the existing blowers. The District is anticipating a 20%
reduction in energy costs from these energy improvements. At this time, the solar voltaic array is producing energy which is used at the treatment plant and the turbo blowers are in place.

Peter SantaCaterina retired in March of 2012. He started his career as a Maintenance Mechanic and was later promoted to Maintenance Supervisor. The District wishes Pete a great retirement and sincere thanks for
25 years of service.

The District’s Fiscal Year 2013 budget is 2.5% higher than the previous years’ budget. The District’s FY 2013 budget for operations and maintenance is $3,414,100, while the capital projects budget is $594,160. Franklin’s share of the operation and maintenance and capital projects budgets are estimated to be
$2,298,070 and $356,810, respectively.

Respectively submitted

Douglas M. Downing, Chairman (Medway)
William J. Goode, Jr., Vice-Chairman (Franklin)
Alfred H. Wahlers, Clerk, (Franklin)
Paul J. DeSimone (Medway)
Gene Guidi, (Franklin)

CRPCD Officers:
Cheri R. Cousens, P.E., Executive Director
Emma J. Catalano, Treasurer
Barbara Maffeo, Executive Secretary
Cornetta, Ficco, Simmler, & Vallee, Legal Counsel


Note: the report was prepared after the FY 2012 fiscal year completed and published in November 2012. One sentence reads "scheduled for completion this October" - refers to October 2012.

Published by the Town Clerk, this comes from the 2012 Annual Report
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Clerk/annual/

“The local media has been restrained and responsible"

Franklin Matters contributor, Rich Aucoin has succeeded in getting media attention to how the media is covering the MA lab scandal with this article in the Milford Daily News.

“It’s a strange case in terms of drawing analogies to because it’s not a violent crime,” Bayles said. “It’s not even so much a financial crime. And in some ways that may be why it was hard to get stuff out. I spent a lot of time thinking, ‘Who is this person?’ There was not a lot of detail about Dookhan.” 

He said that realizing the scope of the scandal presented a challenge to everyone mired in it and that showed in the coverage. 

“It was sort of a slow boil in terms of people, especially in the media, understanding the implications of the case,” he said.

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x848528961/Opinions-vary-on-media-s-handling-of-Franklin-chemist-scandal#ixzz2HHgRDwkR

Franklin, MA: Town Council - Agenda - Jan 9, 2013

A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
October 17, 2012

B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
This meeting is being recorded by Franklin TV and shown on Comcast channel 11 and Verizon channel 29.This meeting may be recorded by Franklin Matters.

C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS

D. CITIZEN COMMENTS

E. APPOINTMENTS
Library Board of Directors - Sandra Brandfonbrener

F. HEARINGS

G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS
Change of Manager – T.D. Beverage Inc.

H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
Medical Marijuana Zoning

I. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS

J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
1. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 12-695:Changes to § 185-31. Site Plan and Design Review- Remove from table - 1st Reading
2. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 12-696:Changes to § 185-20. H. Signs. Sign Approvals Remove from table - 1st Reading
3. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 12-697:Changes to § 185-45. N. Administration and Enforcement. Design Review Commission Remove from table - 1 st Reading

4. Bylaw Amendment 13-699:Amendment of Service Fee Rates: Administration- 1st Reading

K. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

L. OLD BUSINESS

M. NEW BUSINESS

N. COUNCIL COMMENTS

O. EXECUTIVE SESSION
Negotiations, Litigation, Real Property, as May Be Required

P. ADJOURN


The full agenda and associated documents can be found on the Franklin web site
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2013/010913.pdf

School Tour: Parmenter

The next school on the tour of the facilities in the district comes up this Thursday, Jan 10. At 6:00 PM, the Parmenter School on Wachusett St will be open to all for a tour. The tour is conducted by Central Office School Administration, the School Principal, and members of the School Committee.

Parmenter is the only school with solar panels helping to supply their energy needs. You can check their status via this website
 http://www.solrenview.com/cgi-bin/CGIhandler.cgi?&sort=pvi_IDs&cond=site_ID=803

A couple of rain gardens were added to Parmenter as part of the Wachusett St reconstruction project. The rain gardens assist in reducing phosphorus from getting into the ground water and streams that feed into the Charles River.

rain garden at Parmenter School

Come to the tour on Thursday, Jan 10th at 6:00 PM!