Adirondack Town Of Franklin
Adirondack Town Of Franklin

Town of Franklin Board Newsletter

The Franklin Flyer Our Town News - OCTOBER 2023

SUPERVISOR'S REPORT - By Dot Brown

I'm sure everyone has driven by the Town Hall and noticed all the work being done. We had a new porch, stairs, handicap ramp and roof put on the front of the building. The back of the building off the old kitchen has a new porch and roof. The building is getting a fresh coat of paint, which hopefully will be done by the time this newsletter reaches you. We are also having the bell tower on the town hall fixed and will be placing the old school bell back in it. We have an old building, but with some TLC it will serve the town offices for many more years to come! On July 27th, Councilperson Rachelle Waters submitted a letter of resignation effective immediately. She will be missed and was an asset to the board. Thank you, Rachelle, for your commitment to the town for the 19 months that you served. At the August 14th board meeting, we voted to fill the vacant town board position. I proposed that we appoint Rich Brandt and the board voted unanimously in favor. Rich took his oath of office after the August board meeting and will fill the vacant seat until the end of 2023. Thank you, Rich, for accepting the role of councilperson and helping the board move forward. Happy Fall and we look forward to Halloween and Trunk or Treat at Kate Mountain Park. We had a great turnout last year. We hope you can participate and enjoy the fun!

ODDS AND ENDS!- by Lauren LeFebvre

ToF Jeopardy: Answer-Joe Arnold, Hometown Guy

Question: Who did the back porch on the Town Hall?

Now on to the rest of the story. Last year I applied for a Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund grant through the NYS Archives Department. (Shout out to former Council Member Rachelle Waters for her help—I would not have been able to navigate all the crazy grant portals alone)

In June, my office was awarded $21,420 for the construction of a secure records room. Town Law dictates that the Town Board provide a suitable facility to house the records, however, it is the Town Clerk's responsibility to ensure the integrity of town records by controlling access to those records. Until this point, all records were kept at the Merrillsville Town Hall which is deteriorating significantly.

I'm proud to inform you there is now a 14x14 secure records room at the Franklin Town Hall. The new back porch and spiffy black roof are part of the same project. Come on in and I'll show it to you.

Halloween is my FAVORITE holiday so Trunk or Treat is coming back for another year! It will be at Kate Mountain Park, Tuesday—October 31–4:30-6:30. Last year was our first one and we learned a lot. If you would like to be part of this, decorate your car, get some candy and come over. One thing new to note—let me know you're coming. Last year, a few people couldn't make it until they got home from work. I'd like avoid cars driving onto the field, and kids walking, in the dark this year. I didn't think of that last year. So, if you'd like to participate—let me know. By then, I'll have a plan on parking, lighting and all that. If you're going to be later than 4:30—let me know. You'll have a spot that won't require driving too far across the field. Wait, wait! I know your next question. Yes, you should dress up, too.

SUMMER YOUTH PARK PROGRAM AT KATE MOUNTAIN PARK- by Gail Huston, Town Youth Committee

Another summer and youth park program has come and gone. We had 61 youngsters ranging in age from 4 to 14 attend. They were kept active thanks to Zach Sprott-Scribner, our director and his team of camp attendants: Gabriella Allen, Jessica Peckham, Alexis Whitacre and Colden Damon. A huge thank you goes out to each of them for a job well done! We were also able to hook up with the Saranac Lake Central School district to offer daily lunches at no charge. Many thanks to Ruth Pino, SLCS Food Service Director, for helping us offer this.

If you have any feedback on the program, good or bad, please contact me at adirondackdogss@gmail.com so we can continue to improve our youth program.

SAINT PAUL'S FOOD PANTRY REPORT

Pantry pickup and order dates
October 12, orders due October 10
November 16, orders due November 14
December 21, orders due December 19


You can order by contacting:
Sara 518-651-5757, call or text
Shirley 518-891-3119, call

Send an email to: Vermontvillepantry@gmail.com

Send a message on Facebook- St Paul's Food Pantry

Order sheets also available at Overlook Apartments for our seniors, as well as shared on Facebook.

We are here to help you!

TOWN HISTORY

by Ralph Etienne, Town Historian

On August 6, on County Route 26 near the Bass Pond Road in Loon Lake, a historic roadside marker was unveiled for the vanished community of Blacksville. The sign reads: "In 1848 Brooklyn editor Willis Hodges established a black settlement near here aided by abolitionists John Brown and Gerrit Smith."

Historian Amy Godine spoke at the unveiling and later gave a reading to a large crowd at the Loon Lake Jewish Center. Her book, The Blackwoods: Pursuing Racial Justice on the Adirondack Frontier, will be published in mid-November. Mr. Hodges and other Franklin residents and locales are among her research. I'm looking forward to reading it

BIGALOW ROAD, A GUEST COMMENTARY By Betsy Miner, Resident, Town of Franklin NNYA Vice-President.

I, like many residents of the Town of Franklin and beyond, enjoy a nice walk on Bigalow Road. Sometimes I am walking my dog or out looking and listening for birds. Many people may not know this but Bigalow Road is a destination for many birders in and out of the area. It has been featured in books and articles as a place to see Boreal birds like Canada Jay, Black-backed Woodpecker and Boreal Chickadee. Unfortunately, it has also become a bit of a dumping ground. Old mattresses, a gas grill, construction debris, and other large items have been littered along the road. During the recent Great Adirondack Birding Celebration, a fellow birder mentioned that the cleanup of that road would be a great project for Northern New York Audubon. I agreed!

My first stop was to see Lauren at the Town Hall. She told me that the Town of Franklin owns the road and NYS DEC owns the land on either side. My next stop was the Raybrook office where I learned that Joseph Ordway was the Forest Ranger for our area. I called him to explain my tentative plan. I was hoping that NYS DEC would come and remove the large items and I would organize a cleanup of the smaller trash. He was totally in favor and very helpful. A crew from DEC came out and did a wonderful job cleaning up the road. I, and maybe others, walked along the road after they cleaned up and there was very little trash left to be removed.

I want to give a big shout out to Joseph Ordway and NYS DEC for helping out. It is very much appreciated. Bigalow Road is just one of the beautiful areas in our town.

Let's try and keep it trash free.

ENERGY ACTION By Dick Jarvis, Town Energy Committee

Energy Actions at Home: Save Money and Reduce Carbon Footprint Since fall is fast approaching, here is a reminder that it's a good time to implement home efficiency changes and upgrades. Collective actions by everyone can make a difference; be part of the solution.
1-Lower your thermostat in winter, raise it in the summer
2- Change to a “smart thermostat to make it easier to be efficient
3-Seal/repair air leaks in windows and doors with weather-stripping
4- Install energy efficient high R windows
5-Switch to energy efficient LED lighting/bulbs
6-Switch to energy-efficient electric appliances (heat pump, hot water heater with heat pump, etc); wash laundry in cold water and hang to dry
7-Add insulation to ceilings
8-Increase composting, recycling, reuse, repair; and consolidate shopping trips.

FRANKLIN COUNTY NEWS & UPDATES By Lindy Ellis, Franklin County Legislator

Franklin County is currently working hard on a Franklin County Broadband buildout. Funded by Congressional Directed Spending, network design is being completed for the Town of Franklin. The design is for a hybrid buildout to parts of both Fletcher Farm Road and Cold Brook Road. The network design being completed now, will beam the signal to a receiver on Fletcher Farm Road at the stream east of Norman Ridge Road, that will connect to a fiber build out down Fletcher Farm to Cold Brook Road and up Cold Brook Road about 1.5 miles. Network design and environmental inputs will be submitted to the USDA at the end of September, to move forward the funding. Buildout should occur in 2024.

FRANKLIN COUNTY NEWS & UPDATES By Lindy Ellis, Franklin County Legislator

Franklin County is currently working hard on a Franklin County Broadband buildout. Funded by Congressional Directed Spending, network design is being completed for the Town of Franklin. The design is for a hybrid buildout to parts of both Fletcher Farm Road and Cold Brook Road. The network design being completed now, will beam the signal to a receiver on Fletcher Farm Road at the stream east of Norman Ridge Road, that will connect to a fiber build out down Fletcher Farm to Cold Brook Road and up Cold Brook Road about 1.5 miles.
Network design and environmental inputs will be submitted to the USDA at the end of September, to move forward the funding. Buildout should occur in 2024.

COMMUNITY INFORMATION

There can never be too much information out there to support those dealing with addiction. This new page from Annuity.org could offer some unique information. Addiction recovery is a complex process and financial well-being plays a crucial role in achieving long-term stability. https://.www.annuity.org/.personal-finance/.financial-wellness/.addiction-recovery/.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Saturday, October 14th, 12:00-3:00

Kate Mountain Park Grand Opening of our Bike Park
KC Brousseau, the designer and builder of the pump tracks will be on hand to answer any questions and he'll hold a workshop on end-of-the-season bike maintenance. There will be pump track demonstrations, refreshments and more! Come watch or bring your bikes and participate!

Tuesday, October 31st 4:30-6:30
Halloween Trunk or Treat is coming back for another year! It will be at Kate Mountain Park

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Town of Franklin
P.O. Box 209, Route 3, Vermontville, NY 12989  ·  Tel: 518-891-2189  ·  Fax: 518-891-6389  ·  info@townoffranklin.com
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