"Holliston close to owning entire rail trail property"

For fans of rail trails, the news out of Holliston is good.

Officials expect the town will own all of roughly 7-mile section of the Upper Charles Rail Trail that passes through Holliston by the end of the year, as the town has received the money to purchase two remaining segments of the trail from CSX Transportation. 

The town is ready to close on a 1.9-mile section from Hopping Brook Road to Cross Street. According to Upper Charles Rail Trail Committee Chairman Robert Weidknecht, the land will be purchased using $660,000 of Community Preservation Act money that was approved by Special Town Meeting in October. A purchase and sale agreement between selectmen and CSX was signed earlier this year. Town counsel is in the process of closing on the property.

Continue reading the article here
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150616/NEWS/150617410/1994/NEWS

MassBike image

For more on the Upper Charles River Trail -> http://www.uppercharlestrail.org/ 

or here ->  http://www.milfordtrail.org/

or from the MassBike site here  http://massbike.org/resourcesnew/pathstrails/

Additional trail maps can be found here  http://www.arrtinc.org/index.asp

Solid Waste fee reduction approved

The Town Council meeting on Wednesday, June 10 was the first of two budget hearings as well as a 'regular' meeting agenda.

The budget hearing attempted to take a short cut by not having departmental presentations, to just read the budget voting doc, let the individual councilors put a hold on the item to come back to it for a question (or two) and possible discussion.

Several items resulted in a 'hold' and the discussion was focused on specific questions. This method worked better on Wednesday than it did on Thursday in the second of the two budget hearings. We'll cover the discussion Thursday in a separate posting.

In the legislation portion of the agenda, the Council approved the creation of several revolving accounts. This is an annual action. The accounts provide for proper record keeping for the funds coming in as fees and going out to pay for the services rendered.

The Council approved the rate reduction for solid waste (i.e. trash and recycling) from the current $216/year to $200/year. This is a result of improved collections and a renegotiation of the contract for the tipping fees. There will be additional communications coming on how to ensure that what is in recycling is really recyclable and that no trash gets mixed in.

The first reading of a sewer connection was held and the Council was upset that the beneficiaries (i.e property owners) did not come to the meeting. They have a chance at the second reading scheduled for June 24th.

The bylaw on door-to-door solicitation is up for a change to restrict the hours to basically daylight hours. This is the result of a private vendor making solicitations without having been properly permitted.

Franklin Municipal Building

My notes reported live from the meeting can be found here

• Live reporting: Closing
• Live reporting: Legislation
• Live reporting: Budget Hearing #1

"there’s a wide range to learning everything in the early years"

The Sunday edition of the Boston Globe has a good article summarizing the changes to kindergarten curriculum over the year. The title of the article asks: "Is the Common Core killing kindergarten?"

LAST SPRING, Susan Sluyter quit teaching kindergarten in the Cambridge Public Schools. She’d spent nearly two decades in the classroom, and her departure wasn’t a happy one. In a resignation letter, Sluyter railed against a “disturbing era of testing and data” that had trickled down from the upper grades and was now assaulting kindergartners with a barrage of new academic demands that “smack of 1st or 2nd grade.” The school district did not respond to a request for comment. 

But Sluyter’s complaints touched a national nerve. Her letter went viral, prompting scores of sympathetic comments by other frustrated teachers and parents. Sluyter’s letter was fresh evidence for groups of early-childhood educators who oppose the kindergarten expectations for math and English Language Arts, or ELA, set by the new Common Core, the academic benchmarks for K-12 that most states have adopted to replace the historic patchwork of standards.

Continue reading the article online here (subscription may be required)
http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2015/06/13/common-core-killing-kindergarten/lydG3pnscVEnTEoELUZWdP/story.html

Susan Sluyter's resignation letter can be found here
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/03/23/kindergarten-teacher-my-job-is-now-about-tests-and-data-not-children-i-quit/

"limit the hours to what are essentially daylight hours"

Recent complaints from residents concerning nighttime visits from solicitors have prompted the town to consider a change to its bylaw on door-to-door sales. 

The Town Council last week took up a measure that would restrict solicitation to daylight hours. Its current bylaw allows solicitation from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. for businesses and advocacy groups that have registered with the police department and obtained a permit. The bylaw does not apply to political or religious organizations. 

The proposal would allow solicitors to work up until a half-hour before sunset, Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting said, noting that depending on the time of year that could be as early as 4 p.m. or as late as 8 p.m.

Continue reading the article here
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150615/NEWS/150617789/1994/NEWS


My notes from the Town Council meeting on Wednesday can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/06/live-reporting-legislation.html

Franklin High School: Class of 2015 - Scholarships and Awards

Over 100 organizations or businesses provided 146 scholarships to the Franklin High School's Class of 2015. The total value of the scholarships calculates to about $100,000 (as you review the list not all the amounts are provided). The total excludes the Dean College Scholarship which alone ls worth $120,000 (4 years at $30,000/year). 

The listing of scholarships and other awards for the FHS Class of 2015 and the underclass awards presented on June 4, 2015 can be found in the document here:

FHS dressed up for graduation

Thanks to Superintendent Maureen Sabolinski for coordinating to provide this information.

Tri-County Scholarships And Awards 2015

The following scholarships and awards were presented at the graduation ceremony at Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School on Sunday, June 7, 2015.

Tri-County webpage rotating header

Austin Narewski Electrical Trade Scholarship
$750 – Jake Kelley – Carpentry – Franklin
$750 – Conor Flanagan – Plumbing - Norfolk

Chestnut Dental Associates Scholarship
$250 – Sasha Chalhoub – Dental – Attleboro

Craig DeGiso Memorial Scholarship
$2,500 – Anthony Muratori – Carpentry –Medway

David L. Gaboury Sr. Scholarship
$500 – Hank Ballard – Medical Careers – No. Attleboro
$500 – Jaycie Jordan – Graphic Communications – No. Attleboro

Dean Co-Operative Bank
$1,000 – Andre Ricci – Computer Info Systems – Wrentham

Dean College Scholarship
$35,000 – Alison Cifizzari – Graphic Communications – Medway

Don Coe Memorial Scholarship
$500 – Bryanna Haskell – Electrical – North Attleboro

Dorothea Martin Memorial Scholarship
$1,000 – Jessica Coates – Graphic Communications – Bellingham
$1,000 – Michael Ambrose – Engineering – Millis

EMC Scholarship
$1,000 – Rebecca Morandi – Computer Info Systems – Walpole
$1,000 – Christopher Ferreira – Computer Info Systems – North Attleboro
$1,000 – Matthew MacMaster – Computer Info Systems – Franklin
$1,000 – Hannah Varhol – Engineering – Rehoboth

Excellence in Carpentry Award
$250 – Jonathan Mingo – Carpentry – Seekonk

Franklin Community Cable Access - Franklin TV Award
$1,000 – Christopher Lenzi – Graphic Communications – Franklin

Franklin Youth Services Scholarship
$1,000 – Alyssa Gillespie – Early Childhood Careers – Franklin

Friends of Franklin Library in Honor of Wilma Winters
$1,000 – Caroline Read – Engineering – Franklin

George E. Young Memorial Tool Award
$250 – Brandon Hunsinger – Automotive Tech – Seekonk

Gerry Slaney Memorial Scholarship (TCTA)
$100 – Madison Ruff – Culinary Arts – Norfolk

James J. Donovan Scholarship
$1,000 – Savanah Cuevas – Cosmetology – Attleboro

James Paquette Scholarship
$750 – Karl Petersen – HVAC&R – Plainville

Kim Howie Memorial Scholarship
$500 – Megan Morse – Culinary Arts – Wrentham

Lexi & Sean Munroe Memorial Scholarship
$500 – Emily Spillane – Medical Careers – Franklin
$500 – Quinton White – Engineering – Franklin
$500 – John Gilmore – Culinary Arts – Franklin

Lou Bentley Memorial Scholarship
$500 – Nathan Badger – HVAC – North Attleboro

Louis E. Hoegler Scholarship
$800 – Sarah Scholl – Graphic Communications – Walpole

Michael J. Drinkwater Memorial Scholarship
$2,500 – Dillan Hoyt – Culinary Arts – Walpole
$2,500 – Michael Hinton - Culinary Arts - Seekonk

Middlesex Savings Charitable Foundation Scholarship
$1,000 – Cassius Peter – Engineering – Franklin

Nadine M. (Nolin) Bryda Memorial Scholarship
$500 – Michael Hinton – Culinary Arts – Seekonk
$500 – Natalie Berganza – Cosmetology –Attleboro

Norfolk County Teachers Assoc. Book Award
$300 – Bethany MacPherson – Early Childhood Careers – North Attleboro

Norfolk Fire Fighters Association Award
$500 – Madison Ruff – Culinary Arts – Norfolk

North Attleboro Firefighter’s Kid’s Day Scholarship
$500 – Nathan Twyman – Engineering – North Attleboro
$500 – Nathan Badger – HVAC – North Attleboro
$500 – Christopher Ferreira – Computer Info Systems – North Attleboro

North Attleboro/Plainville Rotary Club Scholarship
$500 – Nathan Twyman – Engineering – North Attleboro

North TV Ed Andrew Scholarship
$500 – Christopher Ferreira – Computer Info Systems – North Attleboro

Patti Genoa Memorial Scholarship
$250 – Madison Kaplan – Dental – Attleboro
$250 – Brendan Black – Plumbing – Attleboro

Paul G. Foley Career & Education Award
$500 – Cameron Glennon – HVAC – North Attleboro
$500 – Shelby Setterlund – Cosmetology – Norfolk
$500 – Alexander Whearty – Carpentry – Norfolk

Plainville Lions Club Scholarship
$500 – Ariana Bergeron – Medical Careers – Plainville

Rebeckha Lynn Whitefield Memorial Scholarship
$500 – Evan Sheehan – Plumbing –Attleboro

Robert J. Rappa Scholarship
$800 – Christopher Lenzi – Graphic Communications – Franklin

Rockland Trust Charitable Foundation Scholarship
$2,500 – Leigha Tucker – Early Childhood Careers – Medway

Timothy Anderson Tool Award
$200 – Ryan O’Toole – HVAC&R – Medway

Todd E. Vogel Memorial Tool Award
$400 – Jacob Folsom – Electrical – Franklin

Tri-County Boosters Athlete Scholarship
$400 – Megan Morse – Culinary Arts – Wrentham
$400 – Evan Sheehan – Plumbing – Attleboro
$400 – Emily Spillane – Medical Careers – Franklin
$400 – Jake Ducharme – Carpentry – Norfolk
$400 – Samantha Gitschier – Medical Careers – Plainville
$400 – Amber Webb – Culinary Arts – Seekonk

Tri-County Teacher’s Association Award
$400 – Jonathan Mingo – Carpentry – Seekonk

Tri-County Teacher’s Association Scholarship
$400 – Ryan Trisoline – Computer Info Systems – North Attleboro

Walpole Co-Operative Bank Award
$1,000 – Laura Auerbach – Engineering – Franklin

Wrentham Lions Club Scholarship
$500 – Lauren Gregoire – Engineering – Franklin

Franklin Cultural Festival - Meeting - June 16 - 7:00 PM

We're wrapping up final planning for the Franklin Cultural Festival.  

Meeting: Tuesday, June 16, 7PM to 8 PM at THE BLACK BOX  

Your input and ideas are welcomed!

Franklin Cultural Festival - Arts Happen Here!

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Sign up to receive our updates here  http://www.franklinsculturalfestival.org/  There are links in the right column subscribe in order to receive updates via email (no more than once a day) or via RSS.

To contribute financially you can use the GoFundMe link here -> gofundme.com/tx62gs