"Iconic Framingham hotel sells for $15M at auction"

Anyone traveling into Boston up i495 to i90 and east has likely seen on the return route, the castle like structure that is/was the Sheraton Tara Hotel.

"The famed Framingham Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center was sold for $15 million at auction Tuesday.

People’s United Bank, which owns the first mortgage on the property, was the winning bidder of the iconic 376-room hotel that is designed to look like a castle and is visible from Rte. 9 and the Mass Pike.

“It was a buy-back by the mortgager,” said Justin Manning, president of JJ Manning Auctioneers. “Nobody beat the lender.”

The facility could "possibly" remain a hotel or may be sold, said Manning."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)

https://www.telegram.com/story/business/real-estate/2020/12/15/framingham-sheraton-sells-15-m-auction-could-possibly-remain-hotel/3909350001/

With this building being sold at half the assessed valuation, is it any wonder why the new hotel under construction off King St/Union St has halted their construction due to these economic conditions.

"Iconic Framingham hotel sells for $15M at auction"

Senior Center Parking Lot - Holiday Sing-A-Long - Dec 16

PARKING LOT SING-A-LONG! 

With highly accomplished soprano singer, Monica Spencer! 

Hot Chocolate, Cookies and Lyric Sheets will be handed out by the one and only… Mrs. Claus! 

A fun day to be had, but space is limited; Call to sign up today! Sound will be broadcasted right to your car stereo! 

Wednesday, December 16th at 12:30 PM  

Senior Center - Parking Lot - Holiday Sing-A-Long - Dec 16

Voices of Franklin: Karen Landers questions zoning variance request

As an abutter, I received notification that there is to be a remote public hearing on Thursday, December 17th at 7:30 pm regarding an application that is requesting a variance to build a rather large 2-unit dwelling on a lot that is smaller than the zoning laws require. Instead of the required 35% impervious coverage, the builder wants to cover 50% of the lot.  This is so that the Project can be as profitable to him/them as possible.  

This dwelling will overpower the homes adjacent to it, among other things.  I thought this town was concerned with Storm water runoff.  Why do zoning laws exist if a variance request can be had without much concern to the neighbors Involved.  According to the annual town report, from 2008 to 2018, there were 315 requests for a variance for many reasons.  Only 23 were denied. 

 

While I have an appreciation for our town citizens serving on boards, giving of their time and effort, perhaps there are way too many town officials who are in the real estate business, and, therefore, may have a conflict of interest.   

If any Franklin resident is concerned about how variances are reviewed and want to get informed, go to the town website and sign up to get onto Zoom for this hearing.  We are all abutters!

Karen Landers

Franklin Resident 

 

 

 

If you have something to say, you can find the guidelines here
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2011/03/introducing-voices-of-franklin.html

 

 

United Regional Chamber issues the $50 Challenge

"I'm Issuing a $50 Dollar Challenge" A Message from Our CEO/President Jack Lank  Typically, right about now we'd be singing about "the most wonderful time of the year". It's an understatement to say that 2020 has had other plans. If you've replaced wonderful with some other choice words, I promise, you're not alone. I always ask small business owners, "What keeps you up at night?" In the past, they responded that prime concerns are regulations or the ability to retain quality employees. This year, the most common response has been, "How is my business going to survive?" The corona virus has significantly hit our communities' economy.

 

Jack Lank How can the chamber help? The chamber supports local business by advocating on their behalf and communicating their needs to elected officials. We work with local partners to provide a prepared workforce so that our member businesses have access to qualified employees. We hunt down resources designed to help them succeed in entrepreneurial ventures. We create networking opportunities and facilitate connections. THIS year, especially, shopping local is what's going to keep small businesses ALIVE. The truth is we can shop and remain safe. Shopping looks different this year, but most small businesses are still open for business. We can shop safely (masks ON please), support our community, and make a significant difference in our friends' and neighbors' lives. This isn't about politics or your opinion on wearing a mask. This is about preserving what makes our communities special before it's too late. One study found that for every $100 spent at a local business, $68 remained in the community. However, only $43 of $100 spent at a chain retailer remains in the community. I'll be the first to admit that I shop at the big chain retailers. Many of these businesses employ our friends and neighbors, and they're a vital part of our community. However, let's not forget the local businesses – the ones that support our children's baseball team or theater program, volunteer their time, and give to the non-profits in our community. According to the small business support organization Independent We Stand, "If every family in the country shifted $10 a month to locally owned, independent businesses instead of national chains, over $9.3 billion would be directly returned to local economies." I have a challenge for you: Shift $50 of your holiday budget this month to a locally owned, independent business. If you don't have $50, shift $25. If you don't feel comfortable going inside, every shop will walk products or gift cards out to your car if you'll only ask. Post this challenge on social media with the hashtags #50 DollarChallenge, #URCC, and #Supportsmallbusiness. Check in and tag businesses on social media and post pictures to show your support. Together we can do this. This time next year, no matter where COVID takes us, we'll all be better for it.

Jack Lank, IOM
President & CEO
The United Regional Chamber of Commerce
310 South Street
Plainville, MA 02762
Phone:  508-316-0861
www.unitedregionalchamber.org
"People Do Business With People They Know" 

Boston Globe: All Scholastics for Fall 2020

Catching up to the Boston Globe Fall 2020 All Scholastics that were published in the Sunday paper. Two from Franklin received top recognition.

"Nicholas Calitri - FRANKLIN | SENIOR

Calitri helped Franklin finish 5-0 in the Hockomock League and earned league MVP honors. The two-time All-Scholastic placed second at the Hockomock League championship meet (16:07.48 5K) and seventh in the MSTCA Cup race (16:12.8 5K).

Amanda Lewandowski - FRANKLIN | SENIOR

The league MVP (20 goals, 8 assists) saved her best for the biggest moment, scoring the lone goal in the Hockomock Cup-clinching win against King Philip for the 11-0 Panthers. Lewandowski is also a four-year starter on the ice."

The top page for the publication from which you can navigate to each of the fall sports

https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/high-schools/all-scholastics/

Boston Globe: All Scholastics for Fall 2020

FPS Voice: Get the Facts from the Franklin Public School Nurses (audio)

A group of our Franklin Public School nurses share important information related to Health Office procedures, guidelines, and COVID-19 testing. 

 
Topics covered include: 

• FPS Dismissal Procedures 
• Reporting of Absences  
• COVID-19 Testing and Timelines 
• Travel Information 
• Over the Counter Medicine 
• Where to find information!

Thank you to Franklin TV & Radio for their assistance in creating this podcast! 

Audio file => https://anchor.fm/fpsvoice/episodes/Get-the-Facts-from-the-Franklin-Public-School-Nurses-enpre1

FPS Voice: Get the Facts from the Franklin Public School Nurses (audio)

St John's Episcopal - Christmas Eve Service - 9 PM

You are invited to join us for a festive Christmas Eve service at 9 PM on Facebook Live: St John's Episcopal Church (https://www.facebook.com/stjohnsfranklinma). 

Blessings to you and yours in this season of light and hope.

St John's Episcopal - Christmas Eve Service - 9 PM

Attention film buffs: TCM to Screen 2020 National Film Registry Selections - Dec 15

TCM to Host Screening Special Featuring National Film Registry Selections Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced today the annual selection of 25 of America's most influential motion pictures to be inducted into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will host a television special Tuesday, Dec. 15, starting at 8 p.m. ET to screen a selection of motion pictures named to the registry this year. Hayden will join TCM host and film historian Jacqueline Stewart to discuss the films. Select titles from 30 years of the National Film Registry are freely available online in the National Screening Room  (https://www.loc.gov/collections/national-screening-room/).  Click here for more information (https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-20-082/?loclr=ealn).

New York Times: Scope of Russian Hack Becomes Clear: Multiple U.S. Agencies Were Hit"

From the New York Times, an article of interest for Franklin:

"The scope of a hack engineered by one of Russia’s premier intelligence agencies became clearer on Monday, when some Trump administration officials acknowledged that other federal agencies — the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security and parts of the Pentagon — had been compromised. Investigators were struggling to determine the extent to which the military, intelligence community and nuclear laboratories were affected by the highly sophisticated attack.

United States officials did not detect the attack until recent weeks, and then only when a private cybersecurity firm, FireEye, alerted American intelligence that the hackers had evaded layers of defenses.

It was evident that the Treasury and Commerce Departments, the first agencies reported to be breached, were only part of a far larger operation whose sophistication stunned even experts who have been following a quarter-century of Russian hacks on the Pentagon and American civilian agencies."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/14/us/politics/russia-hack-nsa-homeland-security-pentagon.html

New York Times: "2020: The Year in Sports When Everybody Lost"

The New York Times article is highly interactive but the research on professional sports is detailed. One could easily translate the impact from Wisconsin to Massachusetts. While the Red Sox, Patriots and others are and/or were playing, the economic impact is staggering beyond the field/court/rink.

"In 2020, the sports industry in North America was projected to generate $75.7 billion, according to PwC, the accounting firm. Instead, it lost more than a third of its value as leagues suspended play before returning with stripped-down seasons.

Television ratings have tumbled for many top sporting events, and advertising, printing and revenue streams connected to the sports business, like concessions, have practically vanished.

While the coming vaccine in the United States raises hope that fans will be able to return to stadiums by late spring or early summer, the spread of the virus this winter will only deepen an already cratered sports economy. The modern sports industry has never faced such a prolonged, devastating interruption, and it is premature to gauge when sports will return fully to their pre-pandemic state, or if they ever will."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/12/13/sports/coronavirus-sports-economy-wisconsin.html

There was a hashtag, soon there'll be tone indicators

This came across the radar last week but got dropped and is definitely share worthy.

"Tone Is Hard to Grasp Online. Can Tone Indicators Help?

We all struggle to communicate on the internet. Now, young people are leading a sincere effort to clear things up.

Written language is an imperfect method for the messy, complex business of communication, where facial expressions, gestures and vocal tones transmit oceans of meaning and subtext — for those, at least, who can read them.

Words themselves offer none of that: In a famous study, Albert Mehrabian, a psychology professor at U.C.L.A., found that humans tend to perceive only a fragment of a speaker’s meaning through spoken words. Instead, he observed, most meaning is gleaned from body language and tone of voice.

In a text-only environment, how can we ever be certain other people understand what we mean when we post online? Enter tone indicators. "

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/09/style/tone-indicators-online.html

https://static01.nyt.com/images/2020/12/13/fashion/09toneindicators-promo/09toneindicators-promo-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp

Boston Globe: "MBTA service will be cut significantly in early 2021"

The Boston Globe has the following:

"The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will curtail service next year after the agency’s oversight board finalized a plan Monday to reduce subway frequencies and eliminate weekend commuter rail trains on several lines in response to low ridership during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The package, approved 3-2 by the MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board, is more limited in scope than a plan the agency had presented in November that frustrated advocates and political leaders, but still represents a considerable reduction in service.

The MBTA described the budget cuts as a short- to medium-term measure to take advantage of unprecedented declines in ridership, with most changes taking effect between January and March. But with ridership forecasts murky at best, officials said they have not developed plans for service levels during the fiscal year that begins in July, when coronavirus vaccines may be widely available."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/12/14/metro/mbta-board-vote-less-severe-package-service-cuts/

and CommonWealth Magazine has an article on the same topic

"THE MBTA’s Fiscal and Management Control Board approved a series of scaled-back service cuts on Monday and then, in an apparent swipe at Beacon Hill, voted not to raise fares on bus and subway riders until service hours and ridership on those transportation modes return to pre-COVID levels.

Brian Lang, a member of the control board, proposed the fare amendment after expressing frustration about lawmakers who tell him and his colleagues not to cut service but then do nothing to provide the revenues needed to maintain service.

“Taxes have turned into a dirty word,” Lang said. “The Legislature is afraid of it.”

Continue reading the article online

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/transportation/mbta-scales-back-service-cuts-across-board/

Franklin Interact schedules clothing drive for January, 2021

Hello Everyone!

Franklin Interact is partnering up with Savers to collect donations of clothes, shoes, toys, and other household items this holiday season. We will be handing out bunches of flyers to each of our members so the members can then leave flyers in mailboxes around their neighborhood. 

The distribution of Flyers will take place on Wednesday, Dec 16 at 3:30 PM at the Franklin High School Gym Entrance. 

Please fill out this form before noon on Wednesday:  https://forms.gle/TPdRJKQmRJfVMv4x5    

Thank you, 

Franklin Interact 

Note: The clothing collection will be scheduled for Jan 2, 2021 through Feb 6, 2021

Here is the flyer:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KYpSFopnbl93gxl22-jmPA6VhwifFHbJ/view?usp=sharing

Franklin Interact scheduling clothing drive for January, 2021

FAQs for #ThinkFranklinFirst gift cards

It's been two weeks since our #ThinkFranklinFirst Gift Cards launched and we are so happy with the amazing response!  

We wanted to share a few frequently asked questions with the community: 

1. Cards can be purchased for ANY denomination if they are bought at Dean Bank. Cards purchased online at www.franklingiftcard.com have a $25 minimum, due to processing fees.  
2. Cards can be purchased with cash only at Dean Bank, and with credit/debit cards online.
3. This program is not only running during the holiday season! It is our hope that these cards become part of the Franklin shop local mentality. The cards do not have an expiration date.
4. The list of participating businesses will continue to evolve.  Check the website for the most current list.
5. The businesses listed have agreed to accept and honor the cards at their locations, although you may not be able to add a tip on the cards. Please be prepared for that 🙂 
6. A printable list of Participating Businesses is now available on our website here https://franklingiftcard.com/participating-businesses
7. And finally, this is purely an Economic Development initiative! Businesses are 100% reimbursed for any cards redeemed at their location. 

Thank you for your continued support! 

• Dean Bank 
• Random Smile Project

Shared from the Town of Franklin Facebook page => 

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialTownofFranklin/posts/418016829565425

FAQs for #ThinkFranklinFirst gift cards

FM #413 EDC Listening Session #3 - 12/09/20 (audio)

FM #413 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 413 in the series. 

This shares the Economic Development Committee Business Listening Session #3 that was held on Wednesday, December 9, 2020. 

The meeting was conducted in a hybrid mode; some of the key participants were in the Council Chambers, the remainder participated virtually via Zoom conference bridge to adhere to the ‘social distancing’ requirements of this pandemic period.

Note: during a period of technical difficulty, the Council Chambers dropped off the bridge so what if anything was said until they rejoined is not part of this recording.

Links to the meeting agenda, future schedule for the listening sessions, and my notes are in the show notes. The recording runs just over an hour and twenty minutes (~1:20)  Audio file = https://www.hipcast.com/podcast/HsLdWPTS

-----------

Meeting agenda  
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/12/business-listening-session-3-dec-9-2020.html 

Future schedule of listening sessions
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/uploads/business_listening_flyer_-_final_2_1_1.pdf

My notes captured via Twitter and shared here in summary form
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/12/edc-business-listening-session-3-recap.html

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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!

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You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"