Reason #4 to #ThinkFranklinFirst:
Local support! #localeconomy #smallbusiness #shoplocal #keepitlocal #itmatters
https://t.co/KO3ks83P96
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| Reason #4 to #ThinkFranklinFirst |
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Reason #4 to #ThinkFranklinFirst
In the News: 3rd day of more than 1,000 cases in MA; man arrested in Boston ballot box burning incident
From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:
"Massachusetts health officials on Monday reported more than 1,000 new confirmed coronavirus cases for the third consecutive day.
The 1,216 new cases were out of about 20,000 tests, a positivity rate of about 6%, according to data released by the Department of Public Health.
The 7-day rolling average of daily new cases in Massachusetts has now surged over the past two weeks from more than 565 on Oct. 11 to more than 986 on Sunday, according to the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
The 7-day rolling average of the positivity rate in Massachusetts has risen over the past two weeks from 0.96% on Oct. 11 to almost 1.4% on Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins."
Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
"A man was charged with setting a Boston ballot drop box on fire and damaging dozens of ballots, police said Monday.Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
Worldy Armand, a 39-year-old Boston resident, was taken into custody late Sunday, hours after he started a fire inside a drop box outside the Boston Public Library in the city’s Back Bay neighborhood, authorities said. The box contained more than 120 ballots.
Armand faces a charge of willful and malicious burning, police said. It was not immediately clear whether he has an attorney to speak for him.
The FBI had said Sunday that it’s investigating. Federal authorities urged members of the public to “remain vigilant and immediately report any suspicious, election-related activity.”
Commonwealth Magazine: "Added unemployment benefits pass swiftly"; Massachusetts Majority PAC pays for Kelly mailing
From CommonWealth Magazine we share two articles of interest for Franklin:
"Added unemployment benefits pass swiftly"
"AS MANY AS 17,000 unemployed Massachusetts residents could become eligible for thousands of dollars in additional unemployment benefits under legislation that swept through the House and Senate and was signed by Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday to provide relief to residents who didn’t initially qualify for the federal Lost Wages Assistance program.
The federal program ran in Massachusetts for six weeks from the end of July through the first week in September, but in order to qualify for the additional $300 in weekly unemployment benefits a claimant had to be receiving at least $100 in weekly state benefits.
The bill passed by the Legislature on Monday increased the minimum benefit for any unemployment insurance beneficiary to $100 for the week ending Aug. 1 through the week ending Sept. 5."
Continue reading article online
Massachusetts Majority PAC pays for Kelly mailing
"The Baker-affiliated PAC is supporting two other Republican senators facing Democratic challengers – Sen. Patrick O’Connor of Weymouth, who is running against Meg Wheeler of Cohasset, and Sen. Ryan Fattman of Sutton, who is running against Christine Crean of Milford. The PAC spent $35,209 on direct mail campaigns supporting each of the Republican senators. The fourth Republican senator, Minority Leader Bruce Tarr of Gloucester, is running unopposed.
The PAC also spent $30,538 on direct mail advertising supporting Republican Matthew Kelly of Franklin, who is running against incumbent Democratic Sen. Becca Rausch of Needham. The PAC did not support three other Republicans — John Cain of Southwick, James McMahon III of Bourne, and Steven Hall of Sturbridge – running against incumbent Senate Democrats."
Continue reading article online
Monday, October 26, 2020
School Committee: Comprehensive Facilities Assessment
What started as a question "could we close Davis Thayer?" has produced a report that potentially could close three elementary schools, consolidate the middle schools into one building, and provide a better educational experience at less cost for Franklin students.
Read the Executive Summary of the Comprehensive Facilities Assessment:
"The Franklin Public Schools occupy multiple facilities ranging from 6 to 96 years of age. Over this period we have seen monumental shifts in how we educate students, particularly with regards to technology and educational delivery methods used. These changes have an impact on the ability of a facility to function as it was intended and as it needs to in the future.
In December of 2019, the Franklin Public Schools engaged Kaestle Boos Associates (KBA) to develop a Comprehensive Facilities Assessment focusing on capacity and the educational adequacy of the current schools.
Prior to engaging KBA, the District was provided with a Demographics Report that indicated enrollment was going to decline by approximately 12% over the next 10 years.
Utilizing this data, educational assessments of existing facilities and an inventory of existing spaces was collected through site visits and conversations with District leadership.
The results of the analysis indicate that Franklin Public Schools facilities are currently 26% under capacity and are anticipated to continue to decline to 31% in the next 10 years.
If no changes were to occur the school facilities would:
- all continue to operate under capacity
- continue to create a financial burden in the maintenance of these underutilized facilities
- suffer reduced educational adequacy in schools built prior to 1996 "
Download your copy of the detailed report here:
View the presentation copy as scheduled for review and discussion at the School Committee meeting Tuesday, October 27, 2020.
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| School Committee: Comprehensive Facilities Assessment |
FM #373 Town Council Mtg - 10/21/20 (part 3 of 3) (audio)
FM #373 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 373 in the series.
This session shares the Franklin, MA Town Council meeting held on
Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge
to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic
period.
I’ve split the full three hour plus meeting into three segments:
- First - covers the opening through the appointments and pinning
ceremonies, including the presentation/discussion on nationalGRID and
their response to power outages during storms (1 hour and 20 minutes)
- Second - covers the presentation/discussion on the Beaver St
interceptor, which could become the largest public works project the
Town has taken on other than building a school (50 mins)
** Third - covers Subcommittee reports through Legislation for Action and ultimately to the close of the meeting (64 minutes)
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and to the presentation document.
Let’s listen to this segment of the Town Council meeting of Oct 21, 2020 (64 mins) (part 3 of 3) Audio file = https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/H6x5mVcK
--------------
Town Council agenda
https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/october-21-town-council-agenda
Beaver St Interceptor presentation
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
My notes from the meeting
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/town-counil-meeting-recap-oct-21-2020.html
--------------
We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.
This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.
How can you help?
- If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors
- If you don't like something here, please let me know
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the
group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana" c.
Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.
I hope you enjoy!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or
your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
hydraulic flow diagram of the Beaver St interceptor covered in detail in Part 2 of the meeting audio
FM #372 Town Council Mtg - 10/21/20 (part 2 of 3) (audio)
FM #372 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 372 in the series.
This session shares the Franklin, MA Town Council meeting held on
Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge
to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic
period.
I’ve split the full three hour plus meeting into three segments:
- First - covers the opening through the appointments and pinning
ceremonies, including the presentation/discussion on nationalGRID and
their response to power outages during storms (1 hour and 20 minutes)
** Second - covers the presentation/discussion on the Beaver St
interceptor, which could become the largest public works project the
Town has taken on other than building a school (50 mins)
- Third - covers Subcommittee reports through legislation for Action and ultimately to the close of the meeting (64 minutes)
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and to the presentation document.
Let’s listen to this segment of the Town Council meeting of Oct 21, 2020 (50 mins) (part 2 of 3) Audio file = https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-372-town-council-mtg-10-21-20
--------------
Town Council agenda
https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/october-21-town-council-agenda
Beaver St Interceptor presentation
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
My notes from the meeting
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/town-counil-meeting-recap-oct-21-2020.html
--------------
We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.
This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.
How can you help?
- If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors
- If you don't like something here, please let me know
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the
group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana" c.
Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.
I hope you enjoy!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or
your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
 |
| screengrab from the Beaver St Interceptor portion of the meeting |
FM #371 Town Council Mtg - 10/21/20 (part 1 of 3) (audio)
FM #371-372-373 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 371-372-373 in the series.
This session shares the Franklin, MA Town Council meeting held on Wednesday, Oct 21, 2020. The meeting was conducted via conference bridge to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic period.
I’ve split the full three hour plus meeting into three segments:
- First - covers the opening through the appointments and pinning ceremonies, including the presentation/discussion on nationalGRID and their response to power outages during storms
- Second - covers the presentation/discussion on the Beaver St interceptor, which could become the largest public works project the Town has taken on other than building a school (50 mins)
- Third - covers Subcommittee reports through legislation for Action and ultimately to the close of the meeting (64 minutes)
The show notes contain links to the meeting agenda and to the presentation document.
Let’s listen to this segment of the Town Council meeting of Oct 21, 2020.
(1 hour and 20 minutes) Audio file = https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/HDK6Bm5K
--------------
Town Council agenda
https://www.franklinma.gov/town-council/agenda/october-21-town-council-agenda
Beaver St Interceptor presentation
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/8b._presentation_-_beaver_street_interceptor_.pdf
My notes from the meeting
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/10/town-counil-meeting-recap-oct-21-2020.html
--------------
We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.
This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.
How can you help?
- If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors
- If you don't like something here, please let me know
Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana" c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.
I hope you enjoy!
------------------
You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"
Police Dept Retiree - Doug Nix and family
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