Blackstone River Theatre - Veterans issues event 11-20/Chanterelle Saturday!

THANK YOU! This year's Solstice Fest was our biggest yet... stay tuned for more on the 2015 festival set for June 20!  COMING SOON TO BRT!                     Ongoing   Zumba with April Hilliker on Mondays, 6:30 PM     Thursday, November 20  7-9 PM, FREE  AJAX - Greek tragedy   by Sophocles presented by Providence College and Salve Regina University, followed by community discussion on veterans issues Saturday, November 22 CHANTERELLE featuring JOSEE VACHON Saturday, November 29  BRT HOMECOMING CONCERT & SILENT AUCTION FUNDRAISER Atwater-Donnelly, Eastern Medicine Singers, Phil Edmonds, Bertrand Laurence, Robbie O'Connell, Pendragon, Mary Ann Rossoni & Rick Bellaire Saturday, December 6 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. FREE!  7th annual BRT HOLIDAY CRAFT FAIR & FESTIVAL Sunday, December 7 2 PM and 5 PM shows! 3rd annual IRISH DANCE CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR featuring TIR NA NOG IRISH DANCE Saturday, Dec. 13, 8 PM AND  Sunday, Dec. 14, 7 PM $18 adv / $20.00 day of show BLACKSTONE RIVER THEATRE CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION!   Quick Links... BRT Website     BRT Classes       CHANTERELLE Directions to BRT Tickets often available at door but to ensure a seat CALL FOR RESERVATIONS 401-725-9272 Please understand that when a show is SOLD OUT, it truly is! We must adhere to fire codes and it truly is not possible to fit "just one more"... especially when we have had several people ask to do the same! If a show at BRT has an advance price & a day-of-show price it means: If you pre-pay OR call in your reservation any time before the show date, you get the advance price. If you show up at the door with no reservations OR call in your reservations on the same day as the show, you will pay the day-of show-price. NOTE for prepaid tickets or if reservations have been made but not pre-paid: If you reduce the number of tickets requested or paid for at the box office on the night of the performance, that ticket must still be paid for! BRT requires 24 hour notice for cancellations or you will be charged for all seats reserved. Dear Steve, VETERANS DAY IS OVER... But discussions about issues facing veterans and their families are important throughout the year... and one will take place in Cumberland at Blackstone River Theatre TOMORROW, Thursday, Nov. 20... please attend this FREE program which utilizes the short play by Sophocles, "Ajax," to lead into a community discussion... And on Saturday we bring CHANTERELLE back to BRT for a wonderful evening of French Canadian songs and fiddle music featuring Josee Vachon and Donna Hebert! Don't forget to LIKE us on Facebook to get late-breaking news and really expensive gifts. Well, not that last one but definitely the first part... Please share what we do with your friends! www.facebook.com/pages/Blackstone-River-Theatre/165592431396    Hope to see you soon... Russell Gusetti, Executive Director   "Ajax" followed by a community discussion on veterans issues: presented by The Pell Center Blackstone River Theatre will host a presentation of the short Greek tragedy "Ajax," presented by the Pell Center at Salve Regina University, followed by a community discussion on veterans' issues. Admission is free. Tickets will be available at the door or can be reserved at AjaxInRI.eventbrite.com More than 2,500 years ago, the Greek playwright Sophocles explored the emotional cost of war in a short play, "Ajax," set during the Trojan War. Presented by the Pell Center at Salve Regina University in partnership with Providence College, the play will be followed by a community forum on veterans' issues which seeks to bring audiences face-to-face with the emotional scars faced by soldiers who must relive their experiences on the battlefield. The goal is to bring together recent veterans, future soldiers (e.g., ROTC cadets), faculty, students, and the larger community in the state for conversations about how best to assist soldiers returning from multiple tours of duty. "Ajax" in Rhode Island is made possible, in part, by a grant from the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, an independent affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities as part of NEH's "Standing Together: The Humanities and the Experience of War" special initiative, which supports veterans-related programming within each state and encourages a national network of humanities programming for America's military, veterans, and their communities. This contemporary production of "Ajax," using a new translation by James Scully, is presented to honor the service of our soldiers, to raise awareness of the trials soldiers endure while deployed, and encourage communities to take action to help returning vets reintegrate into their communities. All performances feature a local touring company directed by Tom Gleadow, who's had recurring roles at Trinity Rep and other regional theaters in New England and New York. The goal is to assemble a diverse audience for each performance, reaching out to recent veterans, ROTC cadets and faculty, older veterans and their families, along with students and community members.   Event Info Thursday, November 20, 7-9 P.M., FREE! at Blackstone River Theatre 549 Broad Street, Cumberland, R.I.  Call 401-725-9272 for reservations www.riverfolk.org CHANTERELLE featuring JOSEE VACHON Josée Vachon and Donna Hébert have embodied traditional and original Franco-American fiddle and song all their lives. Twenty years ago they met and became musical partners, forming Chanterelle with former guitarist Liza Constable and bassist Alan Bradbury. Alan returns this evening with Josée, Donna, and her guitarist, Max Cohen, for another wonderful show celebrating French culture in America. Born in Lac Megantic and raised over the border in Brownville, Maine, singer-songwriter Josée Vachon is beloved of Franco audiences, who regularly sing along with her in French. Her unabashed 'joie de vivre' is infectious. Josée's long stint hosting "Bonjour" on cable in the Northeast brought her to many Franco-American homes. A recipient of awards from the keys to the city of Woonsocket, to a spot on NEA traditional touring rosters like "The Women's Singing Traditions," Josée is an icon within the Franco-American culture. Western Mass. fiddler Donna Hébert, named an Artist Fellow in Franco-American fiddling by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, was recognized by Governor Deval Patrick in 2009 for "outstanding artistic achievement." A fiddle instructor at Smith and Amherst Colleges, Donna performs in a fiddle/guitar duo with Max Cohen (who joins them on this tour), Celtic trio Mist Covered Mountains, and the new Panache Quartet. Alan Bradbury's Cajun group, Magnolia, are the mainstay of the region's Cajun music and dance scene. Alan's bass, accordion and vocals add to Chanterelle's distinctive sound while new member Max Cohen is one of the best kept secrets in the guitar world, the true musician's musician.   Event Info Saturday, November 22, 8 P.M., $15.00 at Blackstone River Theatre 549 Broad Street, Cumberland, R.I.  Call 401-725-9272 for reservations www.riverfolk.org

Forward email to a friend! Blackstone River Theatre | 549 Broad Street | Cumberland | RI | 02864

Franklin Library: LEGO Club - today at 4:00 PM

Lego Club today at the Franklin Library at 4:00 PM. This activity is good for children with ages from 3 - 12 years old.

LEGO Club

This was re-shared from the Franklin Library page here
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2014/11/lego-club.html

In the News; commuter rail performance, change from grass to turf field

For those riding the Franklin commuter rail line:

Fifty new double decker coaches are in service, and 25 coaches are in the testing and inspection phase, according to the MBTA.

By early next year, all 75 new coaches, which were built by Hyundai Rotem, will be in service. State transportation officials have previously criticized Hyundai Rotem, accusing the company of falling behind schedule in delivering trains, which also required fixing once they reached Massachusetts.

Year-to-date, on-time performance on the commuter rail is at 89 percent, according to the presentation. July's on-time performance rate stood at 87 percent, August 90 percent, and September 92 percent, which dropped to 85 percent in October.

"There's a lot of room for improvement but at the same time . . . we are four months into this," MBTA general manager Beverly Scott told reporters.

Continue reading the full article in the Milford Daily News (subscription maybe required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20141119/NEWS/141116006/1994/NEWS


From the Town Council meeting Wednesday, part of the discussion was with the School Building Committee getting a 'sense of the Council" in regards to a slight change in the FHS plans for fields. I say 'slight' and that is an interpretation of what I heard.

The chairman of the committee, Tom Mercer, informed the town council of the decision on Wednesday and sought their approval to move ahead with the multi-use field in the form of an informal vote.

During a straw poll, each councilor voiced support of a turf field.

Mercer, himself a councilor, noted that the building committee did not require the council’s OK to build the field, but agreed “that it’s an important enough decision” to bring before the governing body.

Installation of the turf is to begin in the spring.

Continue reading the full article in the Milford Daily News (subscription maybe required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20141120/NEWS/141129667/1994/NEWS


The field had be slated for use as a practice field and due to the angle of planned grading could not be used as a 'game' field. By changing the field from grass to artificial turf, the field can be used year round, and will be regulation sized for competition.

Live reporting: Closing

L. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
local aid proposed to be cut at State level

restoration company worked quickly, will be working off hours and weekend
to continue repairs
thanks to the Fire and Police for their response

happy thanksgiving

Bissanti - one particular name (Mike Ellsworth) was johnny on the spot, an unsung hero of the system; everybody works together in those situations and that is good to see

M. OLD BUSINESS
none

N. NEW BUSINESS
When Powderly was here, she was working on a booklet on the services available
might also be good to have on the website, where is it?

Bissanti - is there an update on the RFP's
one came in at 10:40 (after the deadline, 10:30) and is disqualified


O. COUNCIL COMMENTS
Padula - we working on a house over on Howard St, really appreciate the folks there, great people

Pfeffer - open house of affordable housing on Saturday, lottery in Dec, applications do soon


Q. ADJOURN
motion to adjourn, passed 8-0

Live reporting: Legislation for action

K. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
Resolution 14-77: Classification Tax Allocation – Residential Factor
set residential factor at 1
motion, seconded, approved 8-0

Resolution 14-78: Classification Tax Allocation – Open Space Exemption
set no open space exemption
motion, seconded, approved 8-0

Resolution 14-79: Classification Tax Allocation – Small Business Exemption
set no small business exemption
motion, seconded, approved 8-0

Resolution 14-80: Classification Tax Allocation – Residential Property Exemption
set no residential property exemption
motion, seconded, approved 8-0


Resolution 14-76: Acceptance of Private Road Covenant With Developer of Unnamed Street Off
Upper Union Street (Mount View Farms Subdivision)
motion to waive the reading, seconded, passed 8-0
standard agreement to keep way private
motion, seconded, approved 8-0


Resolution 14-81: Refunding Bond Order
as mentioned a review of the bonds found some to be refinanced and save some money
motion, seconded, approved 8-0


Resolution 14-82: Appropriation – Sewer Retained Earnings
Beaver St interceptor, carries 70% of our sewer to the old sewer beds
over 100 years old, built in 1914
identified a long time ago as a liability
$14M to be moved to 140, have been reducing the flow through it
there is a culvert underneath it, if it breaks, it would drop 2M gallons a day into Mine Brook

the trains will be re-routed on Dec 6th to work with us to bring equipment in to do so
approve emergency through the State
working with Conservation Commission

they basically laid pipe and put stone on it

pipe are cast iron and it has lasted this long
the flow of sewer keeps the iron clean because it is so acidic
starting to well from the inside out

motion, seconded, approved 8-0


Resolution 14-83: Acceptance of Gift – Council on Aging

motion, seconded, approved 8-0

Resolution 14-66: Authorization to Grant Utility (Sewer) Easement
Bissanti and Mercer recused themselves

motion to take Resolution 14-66 off the table
seconded, passed 6-0

motion to waive reading, seconded, passed 6-0

(copies were missing from the Council package, hence the skip over this and returning to it)

This allows the maintenance of the sewer
unanimous (required 6 votes) had only five previously, Padula available tonight (as opposed to last time)

Live reporting: Tax Classification Hearing

G. HEARINGS
Tax Classification Hearing – 7:10 PM
Neas, Feeley, Doyle, Norman

tax rate would increase $.39 with the single rate
values are beginning to trend upwards
if the bonding had not kicked in, the tax rate would actually have decreased

Nutting - the valuations are always a lag
we have traditionally had a single rate, I see no reason to change that

Bissanti - we have a delicate balancing act between assessments and values

motion to close the hearing, seconded, passed 8-0



The full set of documents as released for this meeting agenda can be found here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2014/111914.pdf

(Note - be patient when opening this file, some of the pages at the end at both larger and landscape mode rather than portrait so you may need to scroll to the middle when opening the file to see the beginning pages. The tax classification hearing pages are pages 9-32)

Live reporting; Town Council - Nov 19, 2014

Present: Feldman, Padula, Mercer, Kelly, Valle, Pfeffer, Bissanti, Williams
Absent: none (one open seat)


A. ELECTION OF OFFICERS
nomination by Pfeffer of Vallee for Chair 
nomination by Padula of Pfeffer for Clerk, put aside not time for this
voted to close nominations, seconded, voted unanimously

nomination by Bissanti of Kelly for Vice-Chair 
voted to close nominations, seconded, passed unanimously
voted on nomination, seconded, passed unanimously

nomination by Padula of Pfeffer for Clerk 
voted to close nominations, seconded, passed unanimously
voted on nomination, seconded, passed unanimously

NOTE - there was no actual vote on the nomination of Vallee for Council Chair


B. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
July 30, 2014
motion to approve the minutes, seconded, passed 8-0

C. ANNOUNCEMENTS
This meeting is being recorded by Franklin TV and shown on Comcast channel 11 and Verizon channel 29. This meeting is also being recorded by Franklin Matters.

D. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS

E. CITIZEN COMMENTS
Frank Tedesco, King St
issue with public safety
tree was taken down privately, will be submitting the bill
I did get it down, everything is safe now
thank you


F. APPOINTMENTS
none

H. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS
Let’s Eat (Franklin), LLC d/b/a Three: Change of Manager

manager of the liquor license, ensure regulation
onsite approx 70 hours a week

motion to approve transfer, seconded, passed 8-0


I. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
Chairman of HS Building Committee

Tom Mercer
1 - FHS project status
2 - expectation of what will be seen over next period

building complete, punch list items still being worked around the school schedule
working well during the off hours
most of the hours will be complete by the Thanksgiving holiday

other items may still come up

Contractor has turned over the second parking lot six months early
the old high school had 620, the new has 617

(handout to be added later)

New FHS layout, green section in front left position along Oak St is where the practice fields would be that are now going to be a turf field that will be regulation sized and available for games

a layout of the grounds around the high school

the Panther Way cut through may be opened next week
hoping to get the sidewalks in before opening
pouring the concrete in the recent weather hasn't been good
will close off the current way around the fields

site and fields will be worked to a sub-grade condition before the deep frost hits
to be easier to work once spring comes and the fields get planted

That is basically the update on where the project started

Nutting - we also had 200 fewer students with the old school

2 -  Franklin High School building committee proposal to make the fields turf at cost not to exceed the budget, it is with in the budget and building committee rights
want to bring it to the Council before going out for bid

better utilization for year round use rather than seasonal use
The Building Committee has worked hard to keep the budget on or near budget and they have

look to the Council and to the community for their thoughts and input

it is a change from the original scope, about $7 per household

the original plans called for a practice field it was going to be grass, we are proposing to make it turf and a regulation field, hence coming forward for advice

Mike  - one of the reasons we are here is taking some of the contingency and put it to the turf field, it doesn't require a formal vote

Cerel - it was a very clean project, as long as they are within the budget, it would be a discussion on the substitution

Nutting - the committee's objective is to get a sense of what the citizens and community feel on this

Pfeffer - what was budgeted for the original grass field? It would be less total as we already have some for the grass field

Williams - if the bid comes in over, what happens?
Mercer - we'll go back to the table

The turf fields have made our programs so much better, having them on site makes it easier to have them on campus, it is a no brainer to have them on campus

Ryan - recreation in full support of this, if the grass field does go forward, we could not use it for games as it has a pitch

Feldman - thanks for being under budget, not looking to spend the full amount of the under budget amount

unanimous favor for the turf field