FM #1060 - Franklin (MA) Town Council Mtg - 09/06/23

This session of the radio show shares the Town Council meeting held in Council Chambers on Wednesday, September 6, 2023. 8 members of the Council were present in the Council Chambers; Frongillo participated remotely, hence all votes were via roll call. 

Quick recap:

APPOINTMENTS

a. Design Review Commission - i. Andrew Pratt

b. Municipal Affordable Housing Trust - i. Jayaprabha Vijayaraghavan 

Both appointments were approved via 9-0 votes 

c. Fire Department - New Employee - i. Jack Lennon: Firefighter/Paramedic

d. Fire Department - Promotions

• Thomas Konieczny: Battalion Chief

• Paul Molla: Captain

• Laurie Kaye: EMS Captain

• Matthew Kelly: Lieutenant

• Michael Berthiaume: Lieutenant

• Jonathan Chalk: Lieutenant 

The Fire Dept had a bunch of promotions and one new hire to swear in and recognize. The promotions are competitive and occurred over time as other members left or retired creating a domino effect, hence they were batched to be all done at once. Photo album of the ceremony can be found ->   https://photos.app.goo.gl/j98XmZmpzjsg5vGZ6 

Dean College Update - Ken Elmore, President of Dean College 

President Elmore provided a brief update with highlights from the past year, work underway, and still working on better integration of the college within the community and the community within the college. 

Tri-County Regional Vocational School Financing

The MSBA provided formal approval of the building project committing about $90M towards the $283M total cost, leaving approx. $200M to be funded by the 11 communities sending students. The 11 communities will vote as one entity n Oct 24 to approve the project. A 50+1 percent is required for approval. The funding for the Franklin portion of the project is likely to be $2.1M per year for 30 years, so it will likely be a separate vote for a debt exclusion, possibly as early as the November election. Stay tuned for additional info. The Tri-County School Committee will be sharing info on the project advocating for it's passage.

LEGISLATION FOR ACTION

a. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 23-898: A Zoning Bylaw to Amend the Franklin Town Code at Chapter 185, Attachment 9, Schedule of Lot, Area, Frontage, Yard and Height Requirements - Second Reading 

b. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 23-899: Marijuana Use Overlay District, A Zoning Bylaw Amendment to the Code of the Town of Franklin at Chapter 185, Section 5, Zoning Map - Second Reading 

Both the second readings of the above bylaws were approved with 9-0 votes 

c. Zoning Bylaw Amendment 23-901: A Zoning Bylaw Amendment to the Code of the Town of Franklin at Chapter 185, Section 5, Zoning Map 

This measure was referred to the Planning Board and will come back to the Council for further action at a future meeting

d. Resolution 23-49: Authorization for Intermunicipal Agreement with County of Plymouth for County of Plymouth to Provide Parking Ticket Computerization and Processing Services to Franklin 

The intermunicipal agreement was approved by a 9-0 vote. An interesting way to combine services and save money in so doing. 

e. Resolution 23-50: Acceptance of Private Road Covenant with Owner-Developer of Prospect Hills Estates with Access Road Off Prospect Street 

The private road covenant was approved by a 9-0 vote. This means the Town of Franklin will not maintain the road. 

f. Resolution 23-51: Gift Acceptance - Veterans’ Services Dept. ($1,525) 

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT -  Migrant Housing Update 

The recording runs 2 hours and 30 minutes. Let’s listen to the Town Council meeting on Sep  6, 2023. 

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Town Administrator Jamie Hellen provided an update. This audio segment of the meeting was shared separately. https://www.franklinmatters.org/2023/09/town-administrators-report-on-migrant.html

The Franklin TV video is available for replay ->    https://www.youtube.com/live/lUOJJj5hec8?si=IUzMbo_9nNGYa59y&t=194

My full set of notes captured via Twitter during the meeting are collected in a single PDF for easier reading  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_Go0RhESjzP4F3KWutGqZ-kxO3-Fdn0l/view?usp=drive_link

Town Council agenda doc ->  

https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif10036/f/agendas/town_council_agenda_-_9.6.23.pdf

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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.

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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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