Franklin Newcomers and Friends to meet on Wednesday, Sep 11

The Franklin Newcomers and Friends meeting will be held Weds, Sep 11 at 3 Restaurant on RT 140. Details can be found in the flyer shown here:




For additional information about the club and its activities, visit their website
http://franklinnewcomers.com/

Apple Picking Season opens at Fairmount Fruit Farm

Fairmount Fruit Farm                 Apple Season Dear Stephen,  The cool nights have given beautiful color to our apples. In the store we currently have Paula Red apples that we have been picking for a couple of weeks and well as Macintosh apples the we have just started picking.    The stand is full of peaches, nectarines as well as a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. We have a variety of local products and baked goods ranging from local coffee to homemade breads and jams.       U-pick Apples   This Saturday marks the first day we will be open for U-pick which starts at 10 a.m. and will go till 4 p.m. You will be able to take a hayride into to the orchard and pick plenty of perfectly tree ripened apples.    Hayride is included with the purchase of a 1/2 bushel or peck bag.   For more information about picking or the farm stand please visit our website. www.fairmountfruit.com or Call us at 508-533-8737                 Do not forget about the homemade apple fritters!    Sincerely, Fairmount Fruit Farm

Forward this email Fairmount Fruit Farm | 887 Lincoln St. | Franklin | MA | 02038

Franklin Library: Teen Book Club - Sep 25

The next Teen Book Club meeting will be held on Wednesday Sep 25th at 6:30 PM. The book for discussion will be the CS Lewis "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"

Bottle Can Drive today

FHS boy’s hockey can, bottle drive is Saturday, Sept. 7

The Franklin High School boy’s hockey team will hold its annual can and bottle drive on Saturday, Sept. 7, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m., at Pirelli Veteran’s Arena, 910 Panther Way, Franklin.

Farmers Market - Town Common - noon to 6:00 PM

Yes, even with school back in session and summer over, the Farmers Market is still open every Friday through October.

farmers market sign downtown

Stop by to get fresh produce!

farmers market on a sunny day

Representative Roy's September Office Hours

Boston, MA -- State Representative Jeffrey Roy (D-Franklin) announced today that constituent office hours will be held in Medway & Franklin for the Month of September on the following days:

Medway – Saturday September 14^th, 10:00-11:00AM, Medway Public Library, Room: Cole A – 26 High Street, Medway, MA

Franklin – Saturday September 28^th, 10:00-11:00AM, Franklin Public Library – 118 Main Street Franklin, MA

Christopher Yancich, his legislative aide, will be accompanying him.

Representative Roy stated that all office hours are open to any residents of Franklin and Medway who may have questions or concerns that they wish to bring to his attention.  Walk-ins are welcome; no appointment necessary. He looks forward to hearing from you.

He also invites all constituents to call him at his State House office at (617) 722-2400, stop by Room 134 in the State House, or email him at Jeffrey.Roy@MAhouse.gov.

Pam's Run for Neighbor Brigade

Today marks "One Month Until Pam's Run for Neighbor Brigade"

To sign up to run:

www.Pamsrun.com

To donate:

http://www.crowdrise.com/franklinneighborbrig

Linda Gagnon
Neighbor Brigade Inc.
617-335-5452/ FranklinMA@neighborbrigade.org
www.neighborbrigade.orgLike Us On Facebook!
http://www.crowdrise.com/franklinneighborbrig

Six One Seven Studios September Newsletter

Forward this email Six One Seven Studios | 430 Franklin Viilage Drive | Box 120 | Franklin | MA | 02038

"1.3 megawatts of energy from a solar farm"

Another solar farm is coming to Franklin. Along with the current installation at Mount St Mary's Abbey, the Tri-County Regional Voc Tech is getting into solar.

Tri-County reached a deal with SunEdison Inc., a global company specializing in solar power, that will save it an estimated $1.8 million on energy costs over the next two decades. 

After the contract expires, it can renew the contract or ask SunEdison to remove the panels.
The installation will be built atop four acres of grounds behind the school, with construction beginning in the spring or summer of 2014. 

Power generated from the ground-mounted panels will account for roughly 85 percent of the school’s overall energy use, according to John Roy, Tri-County’s business administrator.

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x1655333463/Franklins-Tri-County-to-save-with-solar-farm#ixzz2e6bEfOKL


Photos of the solar farm at Mount St Mary's can be found here
June - http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/06/mount-st-marys-solar-farm.html
July - http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/07/mount-st-marys-solar-farm-update.html

MASSACHUSETTS RECOVERS MILLIONS IN REVENUE

Massachusetts Recovers Millions in Revenue by Reducing Employer Fraud and Worker Misclassification

BOSTON – Thursday, September 5, 2013 – Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Joanne F. Goldstein today announced Massachusetts has recovered more than $21 million over an 18-month period in owed revenue recaptured through the collaborative work of the state's Joint Enforcement Task Force on the Underground Economy and Employee Misclassification (the Joint Task Force). This recovered amount is greater than the sum of all previous years combined as detailed in the Joint Task Force's 2012 Annual Report.

In March 2008, Governor Deval Patrick established the Joint Task Force to restore fairness to the Massachusetts economy by addressing employer fraud and misclassification. Working towards this goal, the Joint Task Force is composed of various state agencies including representatives from the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD), as well as other executive branch agencies, the Office of the Attorney General's Fair Labor Division, the Office of the Treasurer's Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission and the Insurance Fraud Bureau.

"Thanks to Governor Patrick's leadership, the Joint Task Force continues to successfully work together to confront fraud and abuse among employers, to provide an equal playing field for all businesses to compete in Massachusetts and to protect workers," said Secretary Goldstein. "While each participating agency has the ability to recoup revenue on its own, our collective efforts provide greater enforcement and compliance, yields significantly more in revenue for the Commonwealth and delivers better outcomes for both employees and employers in the state."

Joint Task Force agencies work together to reduce fraud and abuse within the "underground economy," a term often referred to those individuals and businesses that choose to conceal or misrepresent their employee population to avoid one or more of their responsibilities related to wages, payroll taxes, insurance, licensing, safety or other regulatory requirements. Often the employees are mischaracterized as independent contractors or paid in cash to avoid these obligations. The underground economy also encompasses other activities such as tax evasion, payroll fraud, under-the-table work and wage theft.

"The collaborative efforts of the Joint Task Force have worked successfully to bring businesses and individuals into compliance with our state laws," said Attorney General Martha Coakley. "The money recovered this year demonstrates both the scope of the problem and our aggressive response to combat fraud and abuse.  As the state's sole wage enforcement authority, our office will continue to take action to protect workers, stop unlawful business practices and level the playing field for all companies."

The Joint Task Force's 2012 Annual Report describes a breakdown of recovered funds and details noteworthy accomplishments and results achieved between July 2011 and December 2012, the most recent period of available collected data. During this 18-month period, Massachusetts recouped $21.39 million in owed revenue and ensured greater compliance with the state's labor, licensing and tax laws.

Among notable accomplishments was the collection and disbursement of $1.17 million in unreported wages by subcontractors on the Marriott Copley Place, Boston (Host Hotels) renovation project, following a multi-month Joint Task Force investigation that began in the fall of 2011. Joint Task Force agencies also identified sub-minimum wage payments to workers; employers without workers' compensation insurance policies; misclassification of workers; and unpaid Unemployment Insurance taxes by contractors and subcontractors working on this renovation project.

"The Joint Task Force is an excellent example of good government at its best and is validated by proven results," said Heather Rowe, Director of the Department of Labor Standards and Interim Director of the Joint Task Force. "Along with our success stories, we are increasing awareness and forging a successful partnership among responsible business owners, labor, advocates, and government to bring fair employment conditions to Massachusetts and stem unfair competitive advantages some individuals seek."

Member agencies of the Task Force also regularly conduct cross agency compliance checks. An example of this cooperative partnership included a joint effort between DUA's Revenue Audit Department, the Alcohol Beverages Control Commission, Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance, Department of Career Services, Department of Industrial Accidents and Department of Labor Standards to track down unpaid taxes, fees and assessments. Over this 18-month period, the state recovered more than $17 million from employers in unpaid unemployment taxes. Of this $17 million, close to $13 million was generated in 2012 alone, nearly double the amount collected in 2011. 

"The work of the Task Force is invaluable in reducing the growth of the underground economy in the state's construction industry," said Mark Erlich, Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the New England Regional Council of Carpenters. "Taking on the illegal practices of wage theft, misclassification and tax and insurance fraud creates a more level playing field, which ultimately benefits legitimate employers, tradesmen and women and taxpayers."

"When businesses cheat in the underground economy, it is very tough for good businesses to compete," said Greg Beeman, President of the Massachusetts Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors. "This, in turn, means fewer legitimate 'above ground' jobs for Massachusetts' workers. In hard hit industries like construction, what Secretary Goldstein and the Task Force are doing to keep a level playing field is an important part of the recovery."

Now in its fifth year, the Joint Task Force is focused on an expanded set of goals and objectives including: 1) Advancing technological capabilities for capturing and tracking referrals; 2) Building upon existing channels of multi-state and federal cooperation and maximizing future potential cooperation; 3) Completing the Task Force research study on employee misclassification and the underground economy in Massachusetts; creating education and outreach material for businesses and workers; 4) Continuing to provide and expand cross-agency training opportunities; expanding Task Force partnerships outside the Executive Branch Agencies; and 5) Working towards implementing objectives to achieve the strategic goals set by EOLWD to increase transparency in government as part of Governor Patrick's MassResults Plan.

To learn more about the Joint Enforcement Task Force on the Underground Economy and Employee Misclassification or to read the Massachusetts Underground Economy and Employee Misclassification 2012 Annual Report, visit www.mass.gov/lwd/jtf.

Workers who believe that their rights have been violated and businesses who believe they are at an economic disadvantage because of unscrupulous competitors are strongly urged to call the Attorney General's Fair Labor Hotline at (617) 727-3465 or the Joint Task Force Referral Line at (877) 965-2267, email tips to jtftips@state.ma.us, or visit the Joint Task Force website at www.mass.gov/lwd/eolwd/jtf/ to submit complaints. More information about the wage and hour laws is also available in multiple languages at the Attorney General's Workplace Rights website at www.massworkrights.com.

Sculpture Park update

In my prior visit to the Sculpture Park, I took a video and speculated on what would happen to cover the gap in the bank. Now I know and you can see that they have covered this water way very nicely.

water way covered

water way covered

back side of over grown pool

at the end of the trail

front side of pool

For more info about the Sculpture Park, visit the Franklin Art Center webpage
http://franklinartcenter.com/park.html

Contributions to help fund the construction of the park are still welcomed!


Related posts:
If you missed the video, you can view it here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/08/future-sculpture-park-video.html

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/08/on-hunt-for-venues-to-display-their-work.html

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/04/franklin-sculpture-park-imagine-future.html

Road Construction: Crescent St

On my weekend walk around Franklin, the sidewalks and base coat for the reconstructed road are almost done. Given the standard practice that Franklin has used, the road will remain like this until spring when the final asphalt coat will be applied.

Crescent St -sidewalk closed

Crescent St - road work

Fallen Hero - PFC Marshall Rollins

Coincidentally, Crescent St is the location of one of the Fallen Heroes signs that was covered here recently. PFC Rollins was in the 4th Marines Division and died from wounds received on Iwo Jima. My father was also in the 4th Marines and was one of the lucky ones to have walked off Iwo Jima.

If you missed the Fallen Heroes series you can find the collection here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/08/franklin-fallen-heroes-series.html

Fall into Fitness with Team Fitness & CrossFit Franklin

Team Fitness & CrossFit Franklin Greetings! New Fall hours beginning Monday September 9th. Monday- Thursday 5:00 am- 9:00 pm Friday 5:00 am- 7:00 pm Saturday and Sunday 7:00am - 3:00 pm CROSSFIT CLASS LOCATION CHANGE: This Saturday, September 7, 2013,  ALL CFF classes will be held  in the garage room  (the old box in the back of the  Team Fitness side). 8 am w/ Rana 10 am w/ MC NO access to the CFF box on that day.  You can use the Team Fitness side for your workouts. The gym will close at 12 noon on this Saturday 9/7. Thank you for your cooperation! SAVE THE DATES: 9/13-15 FALL INTO FITNESS A WEEKEND OF WELLNESS AT TEAM FITNESS AND CROSSFIT FRANKLIN! FRIDAY 9/13: GROUP EX SPECIAL 6-8 PM SATURDAY 9/14: BLOOD DRIVE CROSSFIT WITH MARY AT 8 AM 9 AM SKILL AND FITNESS ASSESSMENT WITH MC 10 AM MET CON CLASS WITH MC SUNDAY 9/15: FREE FOR KIDS OF ALL AGES- STRENGTH TRAINING AS YOUNG AS 6, BODY BALANCE, POWER, SPEED, EATING AND MUCH MORE. As always, if there are any questions, feel free to ask at the front desk or call us at: 508-541-8330. We will be sending out more detailed information on the Fall into Fitness weekend wellness event next week! Yours in Health and Fitness, The Team at Team Fitness Franklin

Forward this email Team Fitness Franklin | 100 Franklin Village Drive | Franklin | MA | 02038

Tickets available for Sep 12th Wine Tasting

Hello Everyone, Our wine tasting fundraiser is just about a week away, only $10 per ticket!! This will be a fun night with 100% of all ticket sales and 20% of wine/beer sales going to the pantry. Some great wines will be available to taste and Whole Foods will be providing appetizers!

In order to make this event a success PLEASE buy your tickets and encourage friends, family, co-workers to do the same. Tickets can be bought online through our website www.franklinfoodpantry.org.  I have attached a flyer for those of you who have break rooms, bulletin boards, etc. where you can post.  The event is also listed on our Facebook page so "like" and "share" away!  https://www.facebook.com/FranklinFoodPantry

(p.s. Next up will be the Paintball fundraiser on Sept. 21^st)

Thank you for your support and I hope to see you there!!

-Erin

Erin Lynch

Director of Development

Franklin Food Pantry

43 West Central Street

Po Box 116, Franklin MA 02038

508-528-3115

www.franklinfoodpantry.org

In the News: positive review, businesses caught

Franklin town administrator gets positive review

Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting, whose contract expired on June 30, received high praise in a recent performance review.

Police: Two Franklin businesses caught selling booze to minors

Ichigo Ichie was one of two businesses caught selling alcohol to a minor during recent police liquor stings, the Japanese restaurant’s second such violation in as many years.