New Sculpture Park Opening in Franklin

The art scene in Franklin is going to get kicked up a real big notch with this new project! I love the idea of it. Just imagine what it will be like to visit where the pool once upon a time was...

View it in your browser. New Sculpture Park in Franklin We need your help. The Town of Franklin has approached the Franklin Art Center to combine their resources in order to create a unique, and first of it's kind, Sculpture Park. The town has agreed to donate the land, the landscaping, and insurance. Construction of a parking lot is already underway as is the clearing of the land. Franklin Art Center will be responsible for contacting artists and sculptors, delivery, and design of placement of 10/15 pieces of sculpture, depending on size and complexity. Franklin Art Center has also agreed to approach the business and the community to try and raise money in order to make this an original and distinctive park, for the enjoyment and pleasure of the residents of Franklin, schools and surrounding areas. All donations raised will go to the artists involved to assist with transportation, the construction of foundations if necessary, and installation of these one of a kind works of art. Please help Franklin develop this special space that we call all enjoy. Even the smallest donation will help. Thank you. Donate now → More from the Center Know A Sculptor We are also looking for work to be on display at the park. Contact us now → Franklin Art Center The team at Franklin Art Center wants to extend a hearty 'thank you' to all of our wonderful students. You're made the Art community shine, and we want to keep that going! Learn about the Center →  Friend on Facebook   Forward to Friend  Copyright © 2013 Franklin Art Center Our mailing address is: 5 Main St Franklin Art Center Franklin MA 02038

Franklin Art Center · 5 Main St · Franklin, MA 02038

Where is your imagination running?

A friendly reminder that I write in a few other places so if it is quiet here, it may be because I have been too busy elsewhere. (Yes, an opportunity for me to better manage my time. It is a constant challenge as you, I am sure, are well aware.)

So what is out there today?

A call to share the snow art that you find in the neighborhood
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/03/snow-art.html

A call for sparkplugs to help with Healthy Futures Franklin
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/03/healthy-future-franklin-seeks-community.html

A Friday night out with food for a good cause!
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2013/03/calling-all-foodies.html

A newly found poem. In that when I came up to our bed room, I found Dolores' exercise pants in a neat little pile and my imagination ran with it!
http://www.quietpoet.com/2013/03/sherku-exercise.html


What are you doing today?

In color style

The variety of leaf colors in New England is legendary. This fall is no exception. Color surrounds us. Most trees seem to have dropped their load aided by Hurricane Sandy but some still hold on.

Running around Franklin Sunday morning found this stretch of trees dropping their leaves as the wind blew.

Network, network, network

Network, network, network

Yes, that could be taken as an update on the legendary "location, location, location". You do need to keep your network aware of what you are doing. You need to be aware of what is happening within your network. I have heard it said that "it is how you know". I have also heard it said that "it is what you know." I think it is more of a combination of those two: who knows what you know and can do!

How do you keep your network informed? Publish updates, send emails, with technology opportunities today, there are so many possibilities. Do what you are comfortable with and works for you.

How do you keep informed of what's happening in your network? Likewise, there are any number of tools available to use. One tried and true method is simply presence. Go where your network is. See and be seen!

I will be at the Franklin Downtown Partnership networking event this evening, if we haven't already meet, please be sure to say hi. If we have, let's catch up on what's been happening since we last met!

"Thursday, November 15th - Starting at 5:00 but come anytime...before 8:00 and we will be there.The event will be at Six One Seven Studios'state of the art film studio located at 25 Kenwood Circle in Franklin"

Additional info can be found on the Downtown Partnership page
http://www.franklindowntownpartnership.org/2012/11/network-with-fdp-members-thursday.html

8% of Franklin

With your help, the Franklin Food Pantry has an opportunity to do more. Given the numbers here, we may not be serving all of these children. There may be several reasons why. So you can help in two ways:

1 - If you know of a family that is being challenged to provide sustaining meals, let them know that the Food Pantry is available to help them. Awareness of the Pantry and its operation is a good first step to serving all that we should.

2 - You can contribute food and non-food items, volunteer your time, or make a financial contribution to help the Pantry serve your neighbors.



For additional information on the Franklin Food Pantry, you can visit their webpage
http://www.franklinfoodpantry.org/



Note: I am working on the Board of Directors because Franklin matters very much to me.

Update on life changing

"It is a small world after all"

A Disney attraction and song rings through the mind. Why? We'll go there another day. The life changing event on Washington St that I shared on Sunday? It is connected in a few ways.

Turns out one of the two vehicles in the accident was a motorcycle. Turns out the motorcycle rider was the son of a co-worker. Yes, how small does that get!

My own nephew had passed away in a similar motorcycle accident at a similar age several years ago. Kevin's passing hit the family hard. And here, now another family is going through the same thing.

The obituary for Garrett Haganey, 20

Garrett F. Haganey 20, of Franklin died September 15 in a motorcycle accident in Franklin.
Born in Norwood, September 25, 1991, the son of Stephen and Carlene (Moustakis) Haganey of Franklin, Garrett was raised in North Smithfield, Rhode Island and had lived in Franklin for the past 6 years.

He was a graduate of Natick High School where he played on the football team. 

Garrett was a member of the Laborers Union Local 609; he was working at the new Spaulding Rehabilitation Center in Charlestown and truly loved his work. 

He was an avid sportsman. Garrett loved spending time with family and friends. His humor, spirit, and love for life touched everyone in his path. 

In addition to his parents he is survived by his brother Gregory Haganey of Franklin and his sister Melissa Haganey of Franklin. 

He is also survived by his grandparents, Peter and Dorothy Moustakis of Canton and Patricia Haganey of Naples, Florida. 

His funeral service will be held on Friday September 21 in St. Gregory’s Greek Orthodox Church 1007 West Street, Mansfield at 11:00. 

Burial will be in St. Mary’s Cemetery Franklin. 

Calling hours will be on Thursday from 4-8 in the Ginley Funeral Home of Franklin (www.ginleyfuneralhomes.com) 131 Main Street Franklin. 

In lieu of flowers expressions of sympathy may be made in his memory to the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, 125 Nashua Street, Boston, MA 02114.

Related posts

http://steves2cents.blogspot.com/2012/09/life-changing-on-washington-st.html

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/09/life-changing-on-washington-st.html

Life changing on Washington St

A pleasant scene. Could almost be anywhere.

Yet, it is here in Franklin along Washington St.

Running by this morning I was concerned to see a road side shrine and the familiar markings of an accident investigation. The flowers were fresh so it had to be recent. So recent that it hadn't made the newspapers yet.

The Franklin Police logs did record the accident as multiple vehicles (2 were towed away) with a fatality involved. Saturday morning at 11:17 AM there were multiple 911 calls to report the accident.

There is a story or two inside the police report yet to be known. One or more families lives were changed suddenly on Saturday morning with the death and the aftermath..

Thoughts on the run - 8

Franklin has been on the single stream recycling process now for 2 years. My how time does fly! By all accounts, it is going very well. Trash tonnage is down, recycling is up, the solid waste fee is down, the totters were paid off early. All goodness!

I noticed a good feature of the totter design as I ran around on trash day. The route I happened to be running was the same as one of the trucks so we played tag for a bit. He'd stop to handle a bin, I'd pass him. He catch up, etc. I eventually crossed the street to get out of his way and let him do what he needed to do.

The bins line up so nicely. The street does look much better than it used to with everybody having a different color and configuration of bins and bags on the sidewalk.

One aspect I hadn't noticed before was with the different color lids and how the bins look after the truck has passed. It is easy to tell if the truck has come by or not.

I have seen more of the surrounding communities go this way for their trash. I hope their program is as successful as Franklin's.

Franklin, MA: Memorial Day Parade - 2012

If you missed the Memorial Day parade in Franklin, this slideshow will take you there to show all the groups that marched on Monday.



Enjoy!

We, the people!

The Franklin (MA) Town Council did something interesting this past week. They punted when they could have knocked the ball out of the park. Yes, I understand that is mixing metaphors and it is a deliberate choice.

The agenda was published on the Friday before their Wednesday meeting as normal. The agenda included Res 12-33 which was an endorsement of the People's Rights Amendment. I thought this interesting because while I consider my radar pretty good, there are always holes and new opportunities and this was a surprise.

The Town Council was going to step into a discussion on people's rights? A national discussion that derives itself with roots in local politics (yes, all politics is local). A discussion fraught with political overtones covering the full spectrum of the rainbow. This Council was indeed going to set new ground!

Alas, this was not to be. The agenda was modified and republished on Tuesday without Res 12-33 and the associated documentation. The item was left as a 'presentation'.

Wednesday evening comes and several members of the Council make their sentiments clear that this was not the proper forum for the Council to discuss this item.

I beg to disagree. There may be a better set of language to put forward for this issue. There are at least two proposals out there, there may very well be more. The problem I have with the Council is that the Council is indeed a good forum for this discussion. Why?

What does the US Constitution say? You may recall that the US Constitution begins

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

http://billofrightsinstitute.org/founding-documents/constitution/

What does the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts say? In the third paragraph, you'll recognize the key phrase but pay attention to the first two paragraphs!

The end of the institution, maintenance, and administration of government, is to secure the existence of the body politic, to protect it, and to furnish the individuals who compose it with the power of enjoying in safety and tranquility their natural rights, and the blessings of life: and whenever these great objects are not obtained, the people have a right to alter the government, and to take measures necessary for their safety, prosperity and happiness. 

The body politic is formed by a voluntary association of individuals: it is a social compact, by which the whole people covenants with each citizen, and each citizen with the whole people, that all shall be governed by certain laws for the common good. It is the duty of the people, therefore, in framing a constitution of government, to provide for an equitable mode of making laws, as well as for an impartial interpretation, and a faithful execution of them; that every man may, at all times, find his security in them. 

We, therefore, the people of Massachusetts, acknowledging, with grateful hearts, the goodness of the great Legislator of the universe, in affording us, in the course of His providence, an opportunity, deliberately and peaceably, without fraud, violence or surprise, of entering into an original, explicit, and solemn compact with each other; and of forming a new constitution of civil government, for ourselves and posterity; and devoutly imploring His direction in so interesting a design, do agree upon, ordain and establish the following Declaration of Rights, and Frame of Government, as the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

http://www.malegislature.gov/Laws/Constitution

And of course, the Franklin Charter, by which we are empowered to govern ourselves begins:

We, the people of the Town of Franklin, Massachusetts, in order to form a more perfect community, reaffirm the customary and traditional liberties of the people with respect to the conduct of our local government and take fullest advantage of the Home Rule Amendment to the Constitution of the Commonwealth, do ordain and adopt this Home Rule Charter for our Town.

http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_TownCharter/towncharter.pdf

So we have three levels of government, the two most local to us (MA and Franklin) clearly state that we the people have "a right to alter the government", the process includes "an equitable mode of making laws, as well as for an impartial interpretation, and a faithful execution of them; that every man may, at all times, find his security in them."

We should have a discussion on the people's rights amendment. Maybe we can come up with the phrasing that will correct the money problem!


Part of this essay was originally posted to the Franklin Matters Weekly website here
http://franklinmattersweekly.blogspot.com/2012/05/week-ending-may-20-2012.html


------

My normal practice is to download a copy of the agenda and documents prior to the meeting, one to prepare, but more importantly to have a local copy to refer to during the meeting rather than be dependent upon the network in the Town Council Chambers.

The full set of agenda and documents as originally published for the 5/16 meeting can be found here
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B0wjbnXDBhczWnBncV9lQVhheVU/

The revised agenda and set of documents (missing all the People's Rights Amendment pages) can be found here  https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B0wjbnXDBhczSWh2b1pHTEdxRHc/

My summary of notes from the meeting reported live can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/05/town-council-051612.html

Franklin, MA - Let's get out and vote today!

15 Letters to the Editor

by shersteve@gmail.com

If this is any indication on the level of civic engagement in Franklin, then this election has been good to get so many involved. Let's all get out to cast our ballot.

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/03/15-letters-to-editor.html

What's the solution?

Historically Franklin's voter turn out is about 20% (of the registered voters) for a local election, about 40% for an override or debt exclusion (to raise taxes) and 80+ % for a state or national election.

These results are not what they really should be. The local election, for our town council, school committee and other elected positions occurs every two years. Some of the elected positions are every four years (Town Clerk, Treasurer/Collector). These local elections are the most important under our city form of government. Yes, even though was are "the Town of Franklin" we operate with a city form of government. We have a council where members are elected to represent the residents at large. They have final say on all budget and business matters. The School Committee governs the school budget. The Town Council can only approve at the bottom line dollar level, they can't get into the individual details, contracts, etc. of the school budget.

So these groups get elected with only a 20% turnout!

The state and national elections get a 80+ turnout and yet they have very little direct effect on the local issues. Yes, the sate aid does account for about 30% of Franklin's budget but otherwise, they have nothing to do on a day-to-day basis.

Even when it comes to raising taxes, only about 40% of the Franklin voters turn out. This vote has a direct effect on each taxpayer. Does it mean the vote doesn't matter? Does it mean that the dollars don't matter?






Trying to get the word out to keep the voters and taxpayers informed has been my mission for the past four plus years. If you have any suggestions or recommendations, please send them along. I am ready to listen.

Franklin Agents and Brokers: Real estate brokers support new high school

For me, the most compelling reason for the new high school is what it does for real estate values. Seeing the realtors get together to write this is great!

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Franklin Agents and Brokers: Real estate brokers support new high school

via Wicked Local Franklin Opinions RSS by GateHouse Media, Inc. on 3/8/12

The undersigned are agents/brokers from some of the larger real estate brokerages in the Town of Franklin, specializing in both residential and commercial real estate sales. We are writing to explain why we support the new Franklin High School from a real estate perspective. One of the first questions every potential buyer asks us is "How is the school system?" There is an absolute, indisputable correlation between home values and school ranking. So, whether or not you have a child in the Franklin school system, this impacts every home and/or commercial business owner in the town of Franklin.

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Wicked Local Franklin Opinions RSS using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

Grease is the word!

FHS production of Grease. March 23 & 24, 2012 at the Horace Mann Middle School in Franklin starting at 7pm. Tickets are $10 at the door.

Citizens for the New Franklin High School

For those looking for information on what's happening in Franklin one of the major stories to follow this year will be the proposal for the new high school. I was able to report on the organizational meeting of the "Citizens for the New Franklin High School" on Thursday evening. I will not be able to take an active role in this effort. With all that is going on with the family and my work on the Food Pantry board, I will do what I can to report on the matter to keep all in Franklin informed.

Over 60 Almost 80 people have gathered here in the library in the middle of Franklin High School to start the committee to promote and advocate for the new high school proposal.

School Building Committee Chair Tom Mercer is providing an overview of the work performed to date. The various proposal put together, what was rated and ranked, pros and cons, then ultimately the MSBA invited Franklin into the "Model School" program.

Participating were at least one representative from the Finance Committee, many of the School Committee and Town Council members.

Among the items shared:

The Whitman-Hanson model school has been replicated 8 times around the state. One other model school has been replicated once. The other two model schools have not yet been replicated.

The foot print of the new building is two-thirds of the size of the existing building. It goes up three stories to reduce the foot print over the existing space.

There is 850 seat auditorium/theater in the new design.

MSBA will vote on Jan 25th to approve or deny our proposal. The School Building Committee will then come to the Town Council asking for a debt exclusion with a target date for the vote - March 27. The Town Council has final say on the debt exclusion and date for the vote.

If all goes well, ground will be broken this fall and the new building should be open in the fall of 2014.

The total cost of the project is projected to be $104.5 M
Franklin's share would be $47 M. The State will pick up 59.52% of the cost (the balance).
When the project started the expected reimbursement was expected to be 30-34%

The debt exclusion is for a twenty year period. It will be an increasing cost and then flat for the remainder of the twenty year term. Compared to an override, the debt exclusion increase in taxes will expire at twenty years. The override never expires (unless there is an 'underride' - and yes, it does happen but not frequently in MA).

Tom is doing this 'road show' several times and the schedule will continue to develop.

The group has a Facebook page
There is a Twitter account created:  https://twitter.com/#!/sayYEStoFHS
There will likely be a website (link to be added when available)

The other model schools being built with the Whitman-Hanson model are coming in on or under budget and schedule.

One of the major items bringing the current high school to warning status is the lack of handicap access. The cost to provide accessibility to the current facility still wouldn't address other issues affecting the warning status.

The current facility is experiencing a rash of electric shorts causing fire alarms. This is part of the overall infrastructure problem.

Important dates
Jan 31 - Finance Committee meeting to preview the proposal and make their vote
Feb 1 - Town Council meeting
Feb 28 - School Committee meeting

The model school is a take it or leave it proposal Franklin can get a 104.5 million facility for $47M.

"Citizens for a New Franklin High School"

Additional information on the high school project can be found in this Franklin Matters collection
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2011/12/collection-high-school-building-project.html

Note: this was originally posted to Franklin Matters!

Franklin Food Pantry gets covered

It is not about me, never has been. The good work being done by the Franklin Food Pantry is highlighted in the November issue of the Franklin Town News which you can view online here

http://issuu.com/localtownpages/docs/franklin_november_paper?mode=window&proSidebarEnabled=true&backgroundColor=%23222222

get outside the box

“Problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.” Albert Einstein

and

“Ignorant people aren’t stupid but merely uninformed; a marvelous advantage when you need a perspective from ‘outside the box.’ When you consult specialists within your industry, you’re talking to the builders of the box, the guardians of the box, the faithful defenders of THE BOX. So when specialists fail to provide the innovative thinking you need, ask the opinions of intelligent people who have no experience in your industry.” Roy H Williams

The meeting of the Franklin Financial Planning Committee on Weds June 22 was a frustrating one. Had I been a member, I'd have considered leaving. As I was reporting on what transpired, I felt I needed to stay. I did not report all that was said that night. There was no need to. There was nothing new there.

The chairman laid out the ground rules for idea generation, not unlike the brainstorming rules that I had just posted. The rules didn't last long. They were abused immediately and consistently. Even after patience admonishment by the chairman, the diatribes continued. The resulting list of ideas was a whopping two.

Not good progress. Maybe it was there frustration that overspilled the table. Maybe they will come around and begin to approach the problem with cooler heads.

I do believe there is always hope.

Aside from hope, there also needs to be action. Time is just passing on by.

Tim Milburn recently tweeted:

Got a problem? You can a) avoid it, b) ignore it, c) run from it, d) or solve it. Only the last one takes care of the problem.

I want to focus on trying to solve the problem. Getting outside the box will be a start!

Papyrus framed

When Carolyn returned from her semester of study in Greece, she brought back this lovely papyrus depicting "The tree of life"

To preserve and protect this, we had it framed by Jane's Frames in downtown Franklin, MA.

She did a wonderful job selecting just the right shading of matting to pick up the colors from the papyrus. The wooden frame itself helps to pick up the grain from the tree. We have this proudly hung in our family room.

Thank you Carolyn for bringing this back for us.
Thank you Jane for the wonderful framing work.

You too can have something framed by Jane. Especially as she has a 30-60% off sale to help clear out some stock that she has had for a while. Something on sale might just be perfect for what you are looking to frame.


Disclosure: Dolores and I paid for the frame taking advantage of the sale prices.

Men's Group - Senior Center at Franklin

Men's Group - Senior Center at Franklin, originally uploaded by shersteve.

What is social media all about?

That was the basic question. These gentlemen now know a little bit more about being social in the Internet world. It is not much different from meeting at the Post Office or barbershop and chatting with your neighbors. The biggest difference is you don't have to walk (or drive) to either the Post Office or the barbershop when it is open for business, you can go to the Internet, go to Facebook at any time during the day.

The notes I prepared for them to take away are as follows:

The two best books to start with

1. The Cluetrain Manifesto by Rick Levine, Christopher Locke, Doc Searls, David Weinberger
2. Trust Agents by Chris Brogan, Julien Smith

Tools to start with
1 - A Google account
    provides email, RSS reader, alerts, photo place (Picassa), video place (YouTube), blogs (Blogger)

2 - Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/
3 - Twitter  http://twitter.com/
4 - LinkedIn  http://www.linkedin.com/

Blogs to read

Seth Godin: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/
Mark Hurst: http://goodexperience.com/
Tom Peters: http://www.tompeters.com/

Steve Sherlock: http://steves2cents.blogspot.com/   and   http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/

The three step process for social media

1. Listen
2. Learn
3. Leverage

My thanks to Ken Norman for arranging this. My thanks to my current boss for allowing me to keep this prior commitment.

PMC - Franklin Water Stop

The Pan Mass Challenge had a water stop this morning at the Remington/Jefferson School on Washington St. It was quite a colorful and festive affair. One rider after pulling over to catch her breath, asked what town she was in. When my wife and I answered, Franklin. She responded; "Oh Franklin, yes, you're a great water stop!"

Here are some pictures of the riders and greeters today:




May the road be kind to all the riders today, and may the wind be at your back!

If you would like to contribute to a rider, you can search for a rider by name here.

Amongst the several riders that I sponsored, Doug Haslam was kind enough to profile me on his blog. You can view that here.

Part of this posting also appeared on Franklin Matters today.