Showing posts with label Joint Budget Subcmte. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joint Budget Subcmte. Show all posts

Saturday, October 3, 2026

Major or minor, the meetings are important

9 meetings on tap this week and 1 special event being recorded for future broadcast.

I hesitate to call some meetings “major”, which means some are “minor”, when all are important to the operation of the Town and School services. And yet, some are more important than others.

School Superintendent Lucas Giguere is the representative for the District to the BICO Collaborative. Their transportation subcommittee meets on Monday. 

The Recreation Advisory Board and the BFCCPS School Governance committees also have regular sessions on Monday.

The School Committee budget subcommittee meets on Tuesday to start preparing for the next budget cycle, especially in acceptance of the Joint Budget Subcommittee Meeting on Wednesday. 

Town Clerk Nancy Danello has an information session on Wednesday with Liz Harkins, Franklin TV executive director. The event will be recorded for a future broadcast providing the ins and out of mail ballots, early voting, etc. to prepare us all for the multipage ballot for the November 3 state election.

The Board of Health is scheduled to meet Wednesday. Their agenda is not yet published but will likely be on Monday.

The Joint Budget Subcommittee is composed of representation from the Town Council, School Committee, and Finance Committee. They have the task to figure out how to solve our structural budget deficit. 

This is one of those “major” meetings. Don't hide behind your keyboard and walk up in a couple of months “surprised“ when the opportunity for input is now.

The Municipal Affordable Housing Trust is scheduled to meet on Thursday. Their agenda is usually posted no later than Tuesday.

The Conservation Commission and the Cultural District Committee close out the meeting week with their respective sessions Thursday. 

Friendly reminder that it does take over 200 unpaid volunteers serving on these boards, committees, and commissions providing oversight and direction for the Town of Franklin authorizing the services the Town provides for all of us. 
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. 


*** Event & Meeting schedule (with agendas) as of Town pages 10/02/26 8:00 PM ***

BICO Transportation Subcommittee Meeting
Monday, October 5, 2026 Time: 2:30pm

Recreation Advisory Board Meeting
Monday, October 5, 2026 Time: 7:00pm

BFCCPS School Governance Cmte
Monday, October 5, 2026 Time: 7:30pm

Franklin Public Schools Budget Subcommittee Meeting
Tuesday, October 6, 2026 Time: 6:00pm

Your Vote, Your Voice! An Information Session
Wednesday, October 7, 2026 Time: 4:00pm
No agenda posted, will be recorded for future broadcast

Board of Health Meeting
Wednesday, October 7, 2026 Time: 5:00pm
Agenda usually posted Monday 

Joint Budget Subcommittee 
Wednesday, October 7, 2026 Time: 6:00pm

Municipal Affordable Housing Trust Meeting
Thursday, October 8, 2026 Time: 2:00pm
Agenda usually posted Monday 

Conservation Commission Meeting
Thursday, October 8, 2026 Time: 7:00pm

Cultural District Cmte Meeting
Thursday, October 8, 2026 Time: 7:00pm


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


Town & School meetings

The Planning Board met on Monday, among the key items was the opening discussion on the Depot Plaza proposal. View the replay https://www.youtube.com/live/ofxfKrbslNE?is=MOMwVA8TwQHUs5YJ 

The Zoning Board of Appeals met on Thursday, view the replay here

FHS Sports

FHS girls soccer on Monday 

FHS boys soccer on Wednesday 

FHS volleyball on Wednesday 

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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 

Saturday, August 8, 2026

Middle of August and the summer might be already over (audio)

For the summer Town and School meetings, the relatively quiet short list of meeting weeks are behind us now. We are faced with a week chock full of sessions. Yup, from 4 meetings last week to 13 this week.


On Monday, the Franklin Housing Authority starts off with a session at 4:30 at Central Park Terrace.


Franklin Public School Horace Mann Legacy Subcommittee meeting at 7 PM has State Rep Jeff Roy scheduled for a visit to get an update on the work of the committee. The Planning Board also meets at the same time (this session is broadcast). Note that the Depot Plaza development proposal was withdrawn and resubmitted so that item will be on the August 24th agenda.


Closing out Monday, the 250th Anniversary Committee meets virtually to continue their planning.


On Tuesday, the Franklin School Committee Policy Subcommittee meets at 6 PM to get into a bunch of potential policies for review & revision. 


At 7 PM, the Franklin School Committee meets. Among the standard agenda items is the approval of the submission to the Town Annual Report, and a 2nd reading on the restraint policy reviewed at a prior meeting.


On Wednesday, the Charles River Pollution Control meets at 3:30. The Tri-County School Committee Nomination Committee is scheduled to meet at 5:15 to confirm an appointment to an open seat on the Committee. 


The Town Council meets at 6 PM mostly in Executive Session negotiating the Town Administrator's contract and then in public session to vote on such an agreement. 


On Thursday, the Municipal Housing Trust and Conservation Commission have regular sessions scheduled. The Joint Budget Subcommittee is also scheduled to meet either for a short session in Chambers, or a ‘normal’ session in the 3rd floor conference room. Stay tuned for an update on this.


On Saturday, the Town Council added an “Office Hours” session at the library beginning at 10 AM.


The complete agenda for each of these meetings are listed below.


For all the meetings and cultural events, check out 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-1794-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-08-09-26/



*** Event & Meeting schedule (with agendas) as of Town pages 8/07/26   7:30 PM   ***


Franklin Housing Authority Meeting

Monday, August 10 Time: 4:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08102026-2437 


Franklin Public School Horace Mann Legacy Sub Committee Meeting

Monday, August 10 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08042026-2436 


Planning Board Meeting

Monday, August 10 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08102026-2438 


250th Anniversary Celebration Committee Meeting

Monday, August 10 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08102026-2439 


Franklin School Committee Policy Subcommittee Meeting

Tuesday, August 11 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08112026-2442 


Franklin School Committee Meeting

Tuesday, August 11 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08112026-2448 


Charles River Pollution Control Meeting

Wednesday, August 12 Time: 3:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08122026-2435 


Tri-County School Committee Nomination Committee Meeting

Wednesday, August 12 Time: 5:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08122026-2446 


Historical Commission
Wednesday, August 12 Time: 6:00 PM

Town Council Meeting

Wednesday, August 12 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08122026-2444 


Municipal Affordable Housing Trust Meeting

Thursday, August 13 Time: 2:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08132026-2453


Joint Budget Subcommittee Meeting

Thursday, August 13 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08132026-2445 


Conservation Commission Meeting

Thursday, August 13 Time: 7:00 PM (3rd Fl Trng, updated 8/10)

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08132026-2452


Town Council Open Office Hours

Saturday, August 15 Time: 10:00 AM

No agenda for this open discussion session



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



Town/ School meetings


The Economic Development Subcmte met on Tuesday, Aug 4. The recap and TV link can be found https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/08/econommic-development-covers-variety-of.html 


The Zoning Board of Appeals met on Thursday, Aug 6. Franklin TV video can be found on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex5AJ_0B8Ik


The Commission on Disability met on Thursday at the Senior Center. The recap and audio of this meeting can be found https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/08/audio-recording-available-for.html 



All Access Programming


A new Once Upon a Town episode on the Ray Block can be viewed on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmvrPrdW3qM 



—-----------


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    


Saturday, May 2, 2026

Budget, budget and in May, there is more budget (audio)

Budget, budget and in May, there is more budget before it gets finalized in June


You should recall that April (April 6 - April 9) saw the Finance Committee (FinCom) spend 16+ hours going over the budget with each department. Some of the FinCom members thought that they would be able to avoid using much of the proposed $2M in free cash to balance the budget. 


Alas, they did not. If my notes and math come close, they do propose use of $1.8M.


There is one big number outstanding, in that with May 1 behind us (and health care enrollments complete), the cost for coverage provided by the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) plans will be revealed later this month.  Maybe by the time the Town Council conducts their budget hearings (May 20 & 21), but more likely by the next FinCom meeting, May 27. 


So what will the Council budget hearings reveal? 

Will they agree with the budget as proposed, or make adjustments of their own? 


The FY 2027 budget narrative is being published, one section per day (started April 13) and it may not be completed by the time the Council hearings actually roll around. That is a whole lot of reading material. Many questions that were asked and answered during the FinCom hearings were actually detailed in the FY 2027 budget narrative. 


All this in preparation for the June 10 Town Council meeting and vote to approve whatever will be as the FY 2027 budget. Read to be informed. Follow along with the meetings as the discussions progress.


The listing of the agendas for the meetings scheduled this week are provided below.


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-1738-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-05-03-26/



*** Meeting schedule and agendas as of Town pages 5/01/26, 7:30 PM   ***



The FY 2027 budget documents can be found  https://www.franklinma.gov/Archive.aspx?ADID=577

250th Anniversary Celebration Budget Subcommittee Meeting

Sunday, May 3 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05032026-2290 


Franklin School Committee Contractual Negotiations Meeting (Executive Session)

Tuesday, May 5 Time: 4:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05052026-2254 


250th Anniversary Celebration Committee - Communications Subcommittee

Tuesday, May 5 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05052026-2278 


Board of Health Meeting

Wednesday, May 6 Time: 5:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05062026-2246 


Franklin Commission on Disability

Thursday, May 7 Time: 4:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05072026-2279 


Benjamin Franklin Classical Charter Public School - Board of Trustees Meeting

Thursday, May 7 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05072026-2286 


Conservation Commission Meeting

Thursday, May 7 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/593?fileID=9052 



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



Town & School meetings



FHS live streaming

 


Radio - Podcast Interviews published this week 




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  


Saturday, April 11, 2026

The budget discussion blossoms

Spring is here, the budget discussion blossoms. The trees are budding and will shortly start filling out with their leaf cover. 


The Finance Committee spent 16+ hours reviewing the FY 2027 budget and will bring their findings to the Town Council hearings in May and to the Joint Budget Subcmte meeting this week.


The School Committee meets on Tuesday and is scheduled for a District and School improvement plan update.


The Town Council meets on Wednesday and is scheduled for presentations from NationalGrid, as well as the Police & Fire Departments where the Council will get some background and updates on those key public safety operations.


The Joint Budget Subcommittee gets to meet for the first time in this new set of terms with new membership from the Finance Committee, School Committee and Town Council. They get a grounding in the FY 2027 budget approach and as mentioned, an update from the FinCom on what they have found and will recommend to the Council.


The 250th Anniversary celebration has a subcommittee meeting on Sunday and another subcommittee meeting on Wednesday. The ZBA is not holding a meeting on Thursday.


Thursday morning at the Senior Center local town officials will meet for an informal discussion and coffee.

 

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-1714-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-04-12-26/



*** Meeting schedule and agendas as of Town pages 4/10/26, 10:00 PM   ***


250th Anniversary Celebration Budget and Fundraising Subcommittee Meeting

Sunday, April 12 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04122026-2248 


Franklin School Committee Contractual Negotiations Meeting - Executive Session

Monday, April 13 Time: 4:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04132026-2197 


Franklin School Committee Meeting

Tuesday, April 14 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04142026-2250 


Town Council Meeting

Wednesday, April 15 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04152026-2251 


250th Anniversary Celebration Subcommittee on Events and Logistics Meeting

Wednesday, April 15 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04152026-2245 


Town Council Monthly Office Hours

Thursday, April 16 Time: 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM


Joint Budget Subcommittee Meeting

Thursday, April 16 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04162026-2252 


ZBA Meeting-no meeting

Thursday, April 16 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04162026-2236 



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


Town/School meetings

The Finance Committee spent 16+ hours reviewing, questioning, and deliberating on the FY 2027 budget over 4 nights. The YouTube videos are available on the TV Town Hall Channel. The meeting recap for each  session is available at Franklin.News


Monday, April 6  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7KSV5MTfHs&t=140s

Tuesday, April 7  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SrQw4jc-r0 

Wednesday, April 8  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8Hb_pCl64A&t=164s 

Thursday, April 9   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oIsBHQ73Ts&t=1170s 


The Planning Board met on Monday and the video is available on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyyk7XtPsLM


The Conservation Commission met on Thursday and the video is available on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDH7mr4BEbw&t=1s 


FHS sports live streaming

Girls lacrosse vs Taunton  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i81AGqEiQxk

Girls softball vs North Attleboro  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCcxtb2IKkg&t=192s 


All Access Programs

Frank Falvey interviews Jason Poulos, a candidate for US House of Representatives, District 4 in Democratic primary in Sept 2026

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtiVLSvBe64 



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