Franklin Library: Pumpernickel Puppets, Aug 7 - 1:00 PM

The Library program for Wednesday, August 7th is shown in this flyer

Pumpernickel Puppets

For more about Pumpernickel Puppets you can visit their webpage
http://www.pumpernickelpuppets.com/shows.html

"6.25 percent charge on various IT activities"

Technical help is going to get a little harder to provide in MA due to a new tax law that became effective on July 31.

Cara Mulcahy, who owns the Franklin web site design firm Avenir Services, said the tax does not affect the services she currently offers. She said, though, it would discourage her from providing new services. 

"My concern is that it's so vague that it could affect me down the road," she said. "It's prohibiting me from expanding my services." 

Mulcahy, of Wrentham, said she feared that if she were to send her customers a bill with a "tax" line item, they could take their business to New Hampshire firms, which do not have to charge a tax.

Read more: http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x853699007/Local-business-owners-speak-out-against-IT-tax#ixzz2bBP2NjeB

In the News: document shredding

DCU in Franklin offer free document shredding on Aug. 10

DCU, 500 West Central St., Franklin, will offer free document shredding for the public on Saturday, Aug. 10, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Akin Bak Farm stand - grand opening

I have looked forward to getting Howard Crawford's honey at the Franklin Farmer's Market. Now the Akin Bak Farm has a nice new stand with fresh produce as well as the honey for sale.

Akin Bak sign on RT 140

the new farm stand

fields you can't see from RT 140

bee hives along the edge of the field

pumpkin not quite ready to harvest

If you are worried about trying to make a left turn out of Akin Bak, there is another alternative. Once on the property, there is a driveway that can take you out to Beaver St and drop you right next to the Franklin Glass. You can come out to the corner of Beaver St and RT 140 and the traffic light will make the left turn easier.

Additional photos of the farm can be found on the Akin Bak Google map page here

You can find Akin Bak on Facebook here  https://www.facebook.com/AkinBakFarm

or their webpage here  http://www.akinbakfarmllc.com/

Poor handling

Given the occasional visits the family has made to Ichigo Ichie/s, it is a good restaurant. The water bubble wall is enchanting and more importantly the food is good. Their liquor license procedures stand some significant improvement however. For a restaurant open only two years, to have failed the license compliance check each year is not good. That kind of track record is going to jeopardize their operations.

The hearing on their second suspension was initially scheduled for this Wednesday's Town Council meeting and rescheduled for Sep 4. The lawyer representing Ichigo Ichie's is out of town so they asked for the reschedule.

Ichigo Ichie - Franklin, MA

Tune into the meeting Sep 4th to find out when the next suspension of their liquor license will occur. The first offense usually results in a one day suspension with the second a three day suspension. Ichigo Ichie's would stand to loose a weekend of operation following the precedence of prior suspensions.


Related links
Agenda for Weds Aug 7
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/08/franklin-ma-town-council-agenda-aug-7.html

Ichigo Ichie opens
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2011/12/updates-ichigo-ichie-and-italian.html

Ichigo Ichie's first suspension
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/07/in-news-town-council-meeting-coverage.html

Ichigo Ichie's webpage http://www.ichigoichieus.com/franklin/index.html

PanMass Challenge makes a water stop in Franklin

As noted the annual PanMass Challenge bike riders made their water stop in Franklin on Saturday morning. The riders left Sturbridge and began to arrive at the Remington-Jefferson School complex around 7:30 AM. I stopped by to take some photos, a couple of brief videos and managed to see a couple of the riders I had contributed to. I missed finding the other riders but as you can see in the photos, most are all wearing the same shirt. They all have their safety helmets on and when on a bike, they can be hard to pick out of the crowd.

It is heartwarming to see the welcome provided by so many of the volunteers, friends and family and equally heartwarming to see so many riders. When folks can come together like this for a good cause, it is a special time!

The entrance:


In the middle of the water stop:



The entrance on Washington St



coming in to the water stop



the helmet decorations helped to find riders



Team Kermit



coming around the bend



food, refreshments, medical assistance and a DJ playing up beat music



once the riders arrived, they had some fun to find who they were looking for!



Town Administrator Jeff Nutting



Marty Middelman and his family

Proposed Ballot Question: Treasurer/Collector appointed or elected?

Proposed ballot question text:

Shall the city known as the Town of Franklin approve the charter amendment proposed by the Franklin Town Council in Resolution 13-30 summarized below?

The proposed amendment eliminates the provision for election of the Town Treasurer-Collector and adds a provision for appointment of the Town Treasurer-Collector by the Town Administrator, with input from a selection committee and ratification by the Town Council; the amendment takes effect if and when approved by the voters, except that the incumbent Treasurer-Collector shall serve the remainder of his current term.

This seems like a good one to do a poll or survey question on. If you are reading this via email, please come to the Franklin Matters webpage:  http://www.franklinmatters.org/  You should find the survey question in the top right corner and submit your choice!

The survey will stay open for 2 weeks to allow sufficient time for folks to have their say given summer vacation time, etc.

If you have any comments on the topic, please feel free to leave them here or on the Franklin Matters Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/franklinmatters