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| http://www.kemphoto.com/ |
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| http://www.shopfranklinma.com/ |
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| Franklin Federated - Giant Yard Sale - Saturday, Oct 15 |
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| LiveArts post card just received in mail |
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| FHS Panthers |
"The federal Environmental Protection Agency has begun seeking community input regarding a Superfund site in town - an early step in the cleanup process.
EPA representatives were in Franklin on Thursday and Friday last week, looking for ways to better inform residents about the Fisher Street site and future efforts there.
The agency placed the BJAT, LLC property at 300 Fisher St. on its National Priorities List (NPL) in September 2015. That land, according to officials, has been used for industrial purposes since the late 1800s, and was last used for rubber and plastic manufacture. The facility there has been inactive since 1985."Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
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| some of the FHS students making the plastic bag ban proposal to the Town Council Sep 21 |
"A group of Franklin High School students has asked the town to consider a ban on "single use" plastic shopping bags in an effort to make Franklin more environmentally friendly.
The group - comprised of mostly seniors and some juniors - spoke before the Town Council in September, and a bylaw will be on a future meeting's agenda.
Alycia Felli, one of the group's organizers, said this week that the impetus for the ban came from a class at the high school.
"All of us are enrolled in an AP environmental science course, and our teacher really opened our eyes about tiny solutions that could ameliorate environmental degradation," Felli said, noting that the course brought up a bag ban. "I saw that and went, 'Oh my gosh, this is something I could even do.'"
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| screen grab of Franklin Town Clerk webpage |
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| http://news.wgbh.org/ |
Meanwhile, I can’t figure out why the charter cap expansion has gotten so much big money from corporations both here and outside the state. WGBH News reporter Isaiah Thompson discovered that “no single ballot question has drawn as much in donations.” And I still wonder what was the incentive, last year, when three lawyers from three competing white-shoe law firms jointly filed a lawsuit claiming fewer charters denied minority students’ civil rights. Call me cynical but I don’t believe the high-priced lawyers' donated time, and the millions in contributions are about making sure all of Massachusetts’ students have a better education. I’m far from a mathematician, but something just doesn’t add up.
"The town may consider stricter zoning requirements for solar panels after a local resident brought his concerns to the Town Council.
Resident Michael Swetz raised the matter during the public comment segment of a recent council meeting, saying he was motivated by a possible 40-panel solar installation on Prospect Street.
According to Swetz, current laws regard the panels as benign, and do not impose much in the way of regulations on them.
"Under the zoning ordinance, they're an auxiliary building," he said. "Right now, ground-based solar panels can be put in your backyard like a garden shed, with no screening requirements or safety requirements."Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
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| http://www.franklinmatters.org/2016/10/present-permitting-for-residential.html |
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| Jason, Brittany & Braydyn's Fire Fund |
"Massachusetts leads the nation in a lot of things, but transparency isn’t one of them. When news start-up MuckRock published a ranking of government transparency in all 50 states based on how long each took to respond to public records requests in 2015, Massachusetts placed 49th. Only Hawaii lagged behind the commonwealth. MuckRock found Massachusetts hands down little punishment for public records violations and slaps on huge fees for information. The upside, though, is that recent pushback could spark some change in the law.
Because of social media and the internet, demand for public records has increased over the years. With that, demand for records to be online and easily available has grown. While recent laws aimed at making public records easier to obtain will affect everyone, they are mainly targeted at the state level. At the town level, though, transparency can also be a problem, cropping up at selectmen and other municipal meetings across the region. If you ask Hopkinton's Chris Bullock, though, just putting numbers online isn't enough. Though many municipalities in MetroWest and the Milford area have their records online, Bullock said they need more context."
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| screen grab of part of Franklin's 2014 data in ClearGov (note: 2014 is only year currently available) |
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| Register O'Donnell Reports Increased Lending in Norfolk County |
"Women’s Success Network will welcome S. Brent Harding from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 2 at the Franklin Country Club, 672 E. Central St.
Harding will explore the color of red and its symbolism and power to generate feelings, self-esteem and action. Her hands-on activity will give participants the opportunity to complete a personal mission statement that will help provide the roadmap to their vision both personally and professionally.
Harding is the founder of the Wealth Warrior broadcast, a weekly Internet show, dedicated to helping people achieve financial freedom and generational prosperity through financial literacy and focused action. She has also been featured in the Boston Business Journal, Women’s Business Journal and The Urban News magazine.
To register: wsninc.org. Registration must be completed by Oct. 25.Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
"Legalizing recreational marijuana will fall on to voters this November, but trying to parse the conflicting rhetoric of opponents and proponents for ballot Question 4 can be difficult for even close followers of the proposal.
Some say marijuana is a gateway drug, others say it can actually help opioid addicts get clean. Some say it causes brain damage, but others say the claims in those studies are unfounded. With the two sides directly contradicting each other it begs the question - how safe is marijuana? But even within the addiction community, opposing schools of thought date back much longer than Colorado's 2012 legalization of recreational pot.
Miriam Boeri is an associate professor of sociology at Bentley University. She focuses on drug addiction and has worked closely with heroin and methamphetamine addicts. She favors marijuana legalization and feels it has potential to limit the number of new addicts. In April 2015, she published a piece in Newsweek with the declarative headline "Marijuana is not, repeat not, a gateway drug."Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
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| new crosswalk being added on Pleasant St to enable access to the DelCarte property and foster walking on the newly installed sidewalk |
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| Papa Gino's |
"The Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Research Foundation’s Hope Bus will visit three of Dean Bank’s four branches in October and November.
Due to parking limitations in downtown Franklin, staff and resources from the bus will be moved inside the main office branch, 21 Main St., Franklin, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 20. The bus itself will be parked throughout the work day on Nov. 2 at the bank’s branch at 411 Pulaski Blvd., Bellingham, and at its branch in the Park n’ Shop Plaza, 8 Main St., Blackstone, on Nov. 16.
The Hope Bus is a mobile resource vehicle that offers free information and resources related to breast cancer. Staff will be present throughout the day to answer questions, provide confidential guidance to those affected by breast cancer and direct visitors to the proper avenues of support if interested."
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| Dean Bank, 21 Main St Franklin |
"The ability of Massachusetts residents to access certain federal buildings and airplane departure gates in future years could depend on the success of a $62.2 million contract with a Colorado company hired to revamp the state's three-decade-old driver's license software system.
After the Massachusetts Department of Transportation authorized the state to move forward with Fast Enterprises on Thursday, Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said the new software package could support the state's plans for licenses that comply with the federal REAL ID law.
Pollack said the computer system allows the registry to issue driver's licenses and provides information to law enforcement."
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| FHS Panthers |
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| Founding School Committee members Robert J. Rappa, of Franklin, and Louis E. (Ted) Hoegler, of Walpole, pose for photo |
"State officials joined students at Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School for a Mass Insight kickoff event on Sept. 30.
In attendance were state Reps. John Fernandes, D-Milford; Elizabeth Poirier, R-North Attleborough; and Jeffrey Roy, D-Franklin, and state Sens. Richard Ross, R-Wrentham; and Karen Spilka, D-Ashland. They joined nearly 200 advanced placement and pre-advanced placement students to kick off the program, which is aimed at increasing participation and performance in Tri-County’s AP courses.
Addressing the audience, Spilka praised the students for taking on a challenging course load.
“This is a big challenge, but it is really well worth it,” said Spilka. “Our 21st-century workforce depends on you; it is as simple as that.”
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| Tri-County Regional Voc Tech |
"Every year, come September and October, Franklinites Jamie Dellorco and Frank Dixon take on double lives.
Five days a week, Dixon is a purchasing agent at Boston Medical Center, and Dellorco is a professional actress based in New York. But on autumn weekends, they become their alter egos and exist somewhere in the medieval period.
The two are seasoned members of the cast at King Richard’s Faire, a popular fall tradition that plays out on several wooded acres in Carver.
“There, I’m Heyo, the court jester,” says Dixon, who has been living his medieval half-life for about 23 years – 21 of them as HRM King Richard’s chief fool."
"The first of two debates on key ballot questions is scheduled Thursday at Regis College, featuring lawmakers on both sides of Question 4, which asks voters to decide whether to legalize recreational marijuana.
The debate on Oct. 13 is free and open to the public, starting at 6:30 p.m. in the Upper Student Center Lounge at Regis.
State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, will speak in favor of passing Question 4, while state Sen. Jason Lewis, D-Winchester, will argue against passage of the question on the Nov. 8 ballot.
Questions will be posed by attorney Carmenelisa Perez-Kudzma, Regis College's Legal Studies Program director, and Rick Holmes, opinion editor of the MetroWest Daily News. Kelley Tuthill, vice president of public relations and communications at Regis, will moderate the debate."
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