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 

Full week of meetings features a packed Town Council agenda & Economic Development session exploring "Permitting 101" (audio)

We are in the middle of September and the week ahead holds a full slate of meetings. 

The Ad Hoc Committee for the Town Administrator Evaluation starts to work on Monday morning.

The Planning Board meeting is canceled on Monday evening but they along with members of the Design Review, Conservation Commission, and Zoning Board of Appeal are slated for participation in a “Permitting 101” discussion on Thursday at the Economic Development Subcommittee meeting.

The Horace Mann Legacy Committee continues their work on Monday. The 250th Anniversary Celebration also meets Monday in a virtual session.

Design Review has enough business to continue to hold their session on Tuesday.

The Town Council has a full agenda with recognition of a number of Town employee retirements, legislative updates from Senator Rausch and Rep Jeff Roy, presentations from the Franklin Food Pantry, SAFE Coalition, and the 250th Anniversary Celebration

The Council holds office hours Thursday morning at the Senior Center

The 250th Events Subcommittee is scheduled to continue their work on Thursday as well as the Economic Development meeting mentioned above.

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-1820-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-09-13-26/

*** Event & Meeting schedule (with agendas) as of Town pages 9/11/26   9:00 PM   ***

Town Administrator Evaluation Ad Hoc Committee Meeting

Monday, September 14 Time: 9:30 AM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09142026-2498 

FPS - Horace Mann Legacy Subcommittee

Monday, September 14 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09142026-2500 

Planning Board Meeting-Cancelled

Monday, September 14 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09142026-2493 

250th Anniversary Celebration Committee

Monday, September 14 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09142026-2501 

Benjamin Franklin Classical Charter Public School Finance Committee Meeting

Tuesday, September 15 Time: 12:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09152026-2510 

Design Review Meeting

Tuesday, September 15 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09152026-2499 

Town Council Meeting

Wednesday, September 16 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09162026-2512 

Town Council Monthly Office Hours

Thursday, September 17 Time: 8:30 AM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09172026-2506 

EDC Meeting (with Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Conservation Commission & Design Review Commission)

Thursday, September 17 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09172026-2504 

DR - https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09172026-2496 

PB - https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09172026-2503 

ZBA - https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09172026-2484 

250th Anniversary Celebration Events Subcommittee Meeting

Thursday, September 17 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09172026-2511 

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

Town/ School meetings

• On Tuesday, the School Committee Policy Subcmte met. The recap and exclusive audio can be found https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/09/schcmte-policy-subcommittee-tackles.html 

• Also on Tuesday, the School Committee got insights into the District Improvement Plan for this school year and provided feedback. The meeting recap and video https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/09/school-committee-gets-insights-on.html 

• The Conservation Commission met on Thursday. Franklin TV video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v0hjRy54lg 

FHS Sports broadcasts

• FHS girls varsity soccer game on Tuesday - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8HrEx4uEyk

• FHS football game on Thursday shared via coverage by Wachusetts High School -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D63b_TI3WA 

• FHS girls volleyball match vs Bishop Feehan on Friday https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AipFJCMPv8 

All Access programming

• The Second Sunday Speaker Series in August features Scott Mason sharing the Franklin connection to the bombing of Nagaski, Japan in World War II. The video is available for replay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGtNLXDSr-Q 

• An episode of Once Upon a Town, filmed with an audience at Franklin TV Studios was published to YouTube. Watch to find out about the history of the race track that used to be on the land where Shaw’s and the HOrace Mann Plaza is today. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwWnZ06S0dw 

Franklin Matters

• Town Council Quarterbacking with Councilor Max Morrongiello recapping the Council’s Sep 2 meeting is available https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/09/town-council-quarterbacking-with-town.html 

• The audio recording of the 25th Anniversary 9/11 Memorial Services is available  https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/09/franklin-fire-dept-25th-anniversary-911.html 

—-----------

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    

September opens with a host of meetings and key topics, oh and the State Primary, Sep 1

September arrives Tuesday with the State Primary election taking center stage from 6 AM to 8 PM. A newly announced write-in campaign may delay the results as those write-in ballots require manual counting; so let’s be patient and allow time for the democratic voting process to work and count accurately.

The Cultural Council meets on Monday. Their agenda is rather spartan and by the way, there are still a number of vacancies for this group that administers the cultural grant process locally.

The Agricultural Commission is also scheduled to meet on Monday. A key item on this agenda is planning for the Pumpkin Festival at the Farmers Market Oct 2.

The 250th Anniversary Celebration Communications Subcommittee meets on Tuesday to work on  several items relating to their formal communications (website, press releases, guidelines for social media, etc.)

The Board of Health returns to meet on Wednesday after taking the summer months off. A bunch of health related items are on this agenda.

The Town Council has a full session of work on its agenda for Wednesday. The Police Station Building Committee formally makes their presentation/recommendation, the new Police Chief is up for approval, the Deputy Town Administrator and Administrative Assistant is introduced.

The excess sewer capacity discussion and potential decision is back again (as promised), an overview of town owned buildings is scheduled (to set up for the future police station decision and related decisions on Parmenter, Davis Thayer, etc.). The public session also closes with an Executive Session on “other town property”

The Commission on Disability has its monthly meeting on Thursday at 4:00 PM in advance of the Ad Hoc Charter Committee (6:00) and the ZBA meeting (7:30).

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-1806-fm-weekly-outlook-lookback-combo-08-30-26/

*** Event & Meeting schedule (with agendas) as of Town pages 8/28/26   7:30 PM   ***

Franklin Cultural Council Meeting

Monday, August 31 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08312026-2476 

Franklin Agricultural Committee Meeting

Monday, August 31 Time: 7:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08312026-2472 

250th Anniversary Celebration Communications Subcommittee Meeting

Tuesday, September 1 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09012026-2475 

Board of Health Meeting

Wednesday, September 2 Time: 5:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09022026-2480 

Police Station Building Committee Meeting

Wednesday, September 2 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09022026-2481 

Town Council Meeting

Wednesday, September 2 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09022026-2482

Franklin Commission on Disability Meeting

Thursday, September 3 Time: 4:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09032026-2474 

Town Charter Ad Hoc Committee

Thursday, September 3 Time: 6:00 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09032026-2479 

ZBA Meeting

Thursday, September 3 Time: 7:30 PM

https://www.franklinma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09032026-2469 

—-----------

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

Town/ School meetings

• The Planning Board met on Monday, Aug 24. The video is available on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMZ_KePpqkM 

• The School Committee met on Tuesday, Aug 25. The recap and video link is available  https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/08/school-committee-welcomes-new.html 

• The Conservation Commission met on Thursday, Aug 27. The video is available on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqZtdHye7Wg 

• The 250th Anniversary Celebration Committee also met on Thursday, Aug 27. The recap and video link can be found - https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/08/250th-anniversary-celebration-committee.html 

All Access programming

•  A new episode of the Aging Agenda is available on the All Access channel as well as YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tm6O1M5Ahz0 

Franklin Matters

• The recap and audio recording of the first “Voices of Franklin” series held at the Senior Center on August 18 is available - https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/08/voices-of-franklin-audio-recording-of.html 

—-----------

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