Early voting and election preparation move to center stage this week

Weather dynamics are upon us. The rains canceled the Farmers Market, caused other events to reschedule, and now the temperature is dropping so bundle up.

Early voting began Saturday and continues each day until Friday, October 30. All the early voting takes place in the Town Clerk’s office. Tabulator testing is scheduled for Monday at 9 AM in the Council Chambers. This is a key step in the preparation by our Town Clerk and her team before each election here in Franklin.

The Board of Assessors, and Housing Authority are scheduled for regular meetings on Monday. The Planning Board will review the traffic study for the Depot Plaza proposal at its session Monday evening.

The Norfolk County Regional Emergency Planning Committee and the 250th Anniversary Celebration Budget Subcommittee are scheduled to meet on Tuesday. The Design Review Commission has a number of items on its virtual only meeting agenda Tuesday evening.

The Finance Committee is scheduled to meet Wednesday. They will review the fiscal policies and discuss the potential for some changes for further review by the Town Council. They are also scheduled for a deep dive into the DPW enterprise funds (water, sewer, solid waste, and stormwater). 

The Conservation Commission closes out the meeting week with their regular session on Thursday.

Friday is the next to last (or penultimate) Farmers Market for this season on the Town Common. Fairmount Fruit Farm has scheduled 2 Saturdays each month from November through March 2027 for the Winter Farmers Market.

For all the meetings and cultural events, check out the calendar at Franklin.news/ where each day, that day's events are posted on the top of the page, the TV and radio schedules are on the bottom, and all the other goodness falls in-between. 

Audio link -  https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1837-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-10-18-26/

*** Event & Meeting schedule (with agendas) as of Town pages 10/16/26 6:00 PM ***

Board of Assessors Regular Meeting

Monday, October 19th Time: 9:00 AM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10192026-2565 

Tabulator Testing for November 3 Election - Council Chambers Room

Monday, October 19 Time: 9:00 AM

No agenda for this observation period

Franklin Housing Authority Meeting

Monday, October 19 Time: 4:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10192026-2567 

Planning Board Meeting

Monday, October 19 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10192026-2564 

Norfolk County Regional Emergency Planning Committee Meeting

Tuesday, October 20 Time: 10:30 AM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10202026-2563 

Design Review Meeting

Tuesday, October 20 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10202026-2566 

250th Anniversary Celebration Budget Subcommittee Meeting

Tuesday, October 20 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10202026-2568 

Finance Committee Meeting

Wednesday, October 21 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10212026-2572 

Conservation Commission Meeting

Thursday, October 22nd Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10222026-2570 

*** Looking back at the week that was ***

There were several video productions by Franklin TV during the past week both broadcast live and pre-recorded for publication via YouTube.

Town & School meetings

The Franklin School Committee met on Tuesday, Oct 13. The video is available here {recap will be available Sunday) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnpWxfXwZgU

The School Committee Policy Subcommittee met before the full Committee meeting on Tuesday. The audio recording should be available soon at Franklin.News. 

. 

The Franklin Town Council met on Wednesday, Oct 14 in the first of a 3 part series on the tax rate. The video is available here (recap available Sunday)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBUfX3OGpgM 

The Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) met on Thursday, Oct 15. The video is available here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSrmcTr7AYs 

FHS Sports

The FHS Varsity Volleyball vs Milford Tuesday October 13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wT1W8z4UTso 

The FHS girls soccer game vs Medfield also on Tuesday Oct 13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXJEtMOohxU

The FHS Football game vs Attleboro on Thursday Oct 15 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXFjCqlHya0

The FHS Varsity Field Hockey vs Natick on Saturday, Oct 17 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1bCc9oEtvo 

All Access Channel

Franklin Union St Cemetery Tour with Dean professor Rob Lawson and Scott Mason https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgAonH4qHxA

Once Upon A Town: Cataldo Block with Joe Landry and Scott Mason

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_Yjl_qVPdQ

Second Sunday Speaker Series: History of Hayward Manor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47959PBbmHg

The October 2026 edition of FM Journal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdtTH6U6LNc 

Local historian Joe Landry visits the New England Chapel to check out the Rotary Club's 10th annual car show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crRrDkDkHUg 

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For all the meetings and cultural events, check out the calendar at Franklin.news/ where each day, that day's events are posted on the top of the page, the TV and radio schedules are on the bottom, and all the other goodness falls in-between.

Town calendar -> https://www.franklinma.gov/Calendar.aspx         

Community calendar -> https://bit.ly/FranklinCommunityCalendar       

Subscribe for the daily dose of information -> https://www.franklinmatters.org/p/welcome.html      

Subscribe for the weekly dose of information -> https://www.franklinmattersweekly.org/p/subscribe-for-email.html 

Happy Birthday Town of Franklin !!! 248 years young (audio)

Happy birthday, Town of Franklin! Yes, March 2, 1778 was the day Franklin was officially recognized by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Stop by the Historical Museum on Sunday, March 1 for a piece of cake and to view the movie from the 200th anniversary celebration.

Plans for the 250th Anniversary in 2028 are underway by that Committee. One of their subcommittees meets Sunday, and the full committee is scheduled for a special session on Tuesday to authorize the deposit for a gala to be held at Lake Pearl on November 3, 2028. 

The first measles case has appeared in MA and there might be something of a discussion touching on that at the regular monthly meeting of the Board of Health on Wednesday. 

The Town Council picks up the goals discussion again this week. Whether they will decide on goals, or defer to a future meeting, remains to be seen? The Council will need to decide on the funding recommendation to replace Engine 3 as put forward by the Town and Fire Dept. and approved by the Finance Committee. This is time sensitive, so if they don't resolve, we lose an opportunity to replace for multiple years.

The Council also gets to find out about parking meter revenue from the downtown lots as well as approve a subcommittee they requested to look at potential charter changes. Potential charter changes have come up in discussion and gone over the years and usually overtaken by other priorities. 

This Council apparently would rather attempt to tackle charter changes than to try and fix the more serious issue of the strategic budget gaps we have including important work that can’t be done because resources are lacking (i.e. the Town Administrator's office).

A helpful reminder to those frustrated by lack of this or that related to the aftermath of the blizzard. 

• Ancient proverb: "If you choose not to find joy in the snow, you will have less joy, but the same amount of snow" 

We should be grateful for 4 days moving about town that the South Coastal communities of MA didn’t have. 3 days of school for our kids that those same communities didn’t have. And while trash pickup wasn’t perfect in the blizzard aftermath, most did get picked up. Let’s be grateful for what we do have. 

For all the meetings and cultural events, check out the calendar at Franklin.news where each day, that day's events are posted on the top of the page, the TV and radio schedules are on the bottom, and all the other goodness falls in-between.

Audio link - https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1678-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-03-01-26/

*** Meeting schedule and agendas as of Town page 2/27/26, 6:00 PM   ***

250th Anniversary Celebration Budget and Fundraising Subcommittee Meeting

Sunday, March 1 Time: 7:30 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03012026-2160 

Library Board of Directors Regular Meeting

Monday, March 2 Time: 7:00 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03022026-2157 

Recreation Department Meeting

Monday, March 2 Time: 7:00 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03022026-2158 

250th Anniversary Celebration Committee Special Meeting

Tuesday, March 3 Time: 7:30 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03032026-2165 

Board of Health Meeting

Wednesday, March 4 Time: 5:00 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03042026-2164 

Town Council Meeting

Wednesday, March 4 Time: 6:00 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03042026-2166 

Franklin Commission on Disabilities Meeting

Thursday, March 5 Time: 4:00 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03052026-2163 

Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) Meeting

Thursday, March 5 Time: 7:30 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03052026-2146 

Franklin School Committee - Policy Subcommittee Meeting

Friday, March 6 Time: 8:15 AM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03062026-2169

*** Looking back at the week that was ***

For Franklin TV meeting broadcasts:

• The School committee met via remote only on Tuesday. They formally approved their FY 2027 budget proposal with a 2.5% increase over prior year. The recap and video link is available via Franklin.News  https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/02/school-committee-approves-fy-2027.html 

• The Finance Committee met on Wednesday to review and approve funding options for the Engine 3 replacement . The recap and video link is available via Franklin.News https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/02/finance-committee-approves-funding.html 

• The Conservation Commission met on Thursday. The Franklin TV video is available on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWSq6V_2iZA 

For FHS live streaming:

• Boys basketball on Weds vs. Lowell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xamybg7phjo

• Girls basketball on Thursday vs Arlington https://www.youtube.com/live/m3bvo8AS7Pw?&t=1592 

• The FHS Concert Hour on Thursday https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-USQsFy9hc 

For All Access programing:

• The newest Aging Boldfully episode is available  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8zhy3wuZ3c 

From Franklin Matters/ Franklin Public Radio

• Town Council Quarterbacking with Max Morrongiello  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3CWzcPK1nw 

• Town Council Quarterbacking with Ted Cormier-Leger  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jzsml1PYrak 

For all the meetings and cultural events, check out the calendar at Franklin.news where each day, that day's events are posted on the top of the page, the TV and radio schedules are on the bottom, and all the other goodness falls in-between.

Town calendar -> https://www.franklinma.gov/Calendar.aspx      

Community calendar -> https://bit.ly/FranklinCommunityCalendar     

Subscribe for the daily dose of information -> https://www.franklinmatters.org/p/welcome.html      

Subscribe for the weekly dose of information -> https://www.franklinmattersweekly.org/p/subscribe-for-email.html  

For the sake of an old time Franklin, we need to take time to go forward together.

“Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

And never brought to mind?

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

And auld lang syne!”   https://poets.org/poem/auld-lang-syne 

"Auld Lang Syne" is a Scots phrase that literally translates to "old long since," but has taken on a more fluid definition along the lines of "for old time's sake" or "the olden days."   https://www.countryliving.com/life/a30201370/auld-lang-syne-meaning 

As we greet the new year, let’s use this time of no town or school meetings to build some relationships. The past is now passed into history. We can no longer go back there. 

Time and life are more river-like, go with the flow, step aside, and the flow continues on.

Step in again, and it is a new flow, the waters you left are now ahead of you, not to be caught up again.

There is an African proverb that says if you want to go quickly, you go alone. If you want to go sustainably, you go with others. Going with others takes time, lots of discussion, lots of negotiation, lots of agreement. There may be times of agreeing to disagree but let’s at least agree to go forward.

For the sake of an old time Franklin, we need to take time to go forward together.

For all the meetings and cultural events, check out the calendar at Franklin.news where each day, that day's events are posted on the top of the page, the TV and radio schedules are on the bottom, and all the other goodness falls in-between.

Audio link ->  https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1619-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-12-28-25/

*** Meeting schedule and agendas as of Town page 12/26/25, 7:00 AM   ***

There are NO Town meetings scheduled this week

Senior Center 

Closes at noon, December 31

Public Library

Closes at 2 PM December 31

All Town and School facilities closed January 1

The trash/recycle curbside pick up is one day offset due to New Year’s

• Those scheduled for Thursday will get picked up Friday

• Those scheduled for Friday will get picked up Saturday

Senior Center

Regular hours, 8:30 AM to 4 PM - January 2

Public Library

Regular hours, 9 AM to 5 PM - January 2

*** Looking back at the week that was ***

ZBA met for 4 hours on Tuesday, December 23 ultimately rendering their 2-1 decision for the 444 East Central project with a long list of conditions and some exemptions. The final document should be available for filing by the Town Clerk before December 31, 2025. The Franklin TV video is available for replay ->  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHzHv26ryV0 

High school live streamed sports:

• FHS boys basketball on Monday, 12/22 vs. King Philip  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M3T6IpUb7M 

• FHS boys hockey on Tuesday, 12/23 vs Archbishop Williams  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UCc8r3VzEw 

For all the meetings and cultural events, check out the calendar at Franklin.news where each day, that day's events are posted on the top of the page, the TV and radio schedules are on the bottom, and all the other goodness falls in-between.

Town calendar -> https://www.franklinma.gov/Calendar.aspx      

Community calendar -> https://bit.ly/FranklinCommunityCalendar     

Subscribe for the daily dose of information -> https://www.franklinmatters.org/p/welcome.html      

Subscribe for the weekly dose of information -> https://www.franklinmattersweekly.org/p/subscribe-for-email.html