🔨 Important: Route 9 Closure!
Council Continues Hearing Tonight | Water & Sewer Rates Increase? | Walnut Street Area Flood Mitigation Begins | Election Day Tomorrow | Community Events | The Civic Week Ahead
All the leaves are brown and the sky is gray, Framingham.
My guide to November was published on Friday. If you missed it, you can catch up here.
Big news: Huge congratulations to the FHS Varsity and JV Cheer teams for winning the 2024 Baystate Conference Championship! Way to go Flyers!
Important Route 9 Closure This Weekend!
Emergency: As I wrote about in last week’s issue, CSX is making emergency repairs to the train track crossing Route 9 near the fire station on November 9 - 10.
But first, last minute announcement about tonight: The Sisitsky Administration sent an email this afternoon stating that MassDOT will close the left lanes both east and west on Route 9 starting at 8:00pm tonight. It is expected to re-open on Tuesday, November 5 at 5:00 am.
According to the email, tonight’s work is to open a portion of the median at AL Prime on the westbound side. “Opening the median break, a suggestion of the Framingham Mayor, will allow businesses on Route 9 to stay open during the closure of the road between Temple Street and Maynard Road this weekend.”
Up next, Saturday’s Work Time: The repair work begins at 8pm on Saturday. Anticipation of reopening Route 9 is noon on Sunday.
Detour, detour: Route 9 will be shut down both ways during repairs. The City and MassDOT released the following plan for traffic:
Westbound: Exit at the Edgell Street ramp into Framingham Center, head west on Pleasant Street and use Temple Street to access Route 9 westbound.
Eastbound: Turn right onto Temple Street and use Salem End Road to access Route 9 eastbound.
Be prepared: Traffic is going to be a mess Sunday morning. I imagine this will not only affect all the side streets in the area, but the Pike as well. Avoid the area if you can - or if you don’t have to leave your house, don’t!
Spread the word: Please share this with your neighbors. You don’t want them to be the one who asks on Facebook why the traffic is so bad on Sunday morning.
Council Continues Hearing Tonight
Packed room: Passion ran high as residents spoke about the proposed MBTA Communities Act at the Council’s public hearing last Tuesday. The Blumer Room was packed with residents, while the Zoom had nearly 100 people logged in.
Concerns and support: For 3 hours Councilors heard from residents. An overwhelming majority of those who spoke were against any development in Nobscot. Neighbors of the proposal cited traffic issues, the state of Edmands Road, ruining the neighborhood, and density as reasons why the proposal is unsuitable for Nobscot. Another major thread through comments was concern about 10,000 new residents moving into Framingham in a short window, and how this would strain the city’s schools, services and roads, and what Framingham’s plan is to plan for such changes.
While not all commentary was negative, several people did call in to support the plan as a good step to increase housing opportunities for people. Some remarked they would love to move into Nobscot because of its village atmosphere and open space.
Residents did share ideas on new parcels, suggested the city stand up to the Commonwealth and say no because we did our part, and encouraged the Council to reject the proposal and readvertise to start over.
Hearing continued: With 20 minutes left in the meeting, Councilor Noval Alexander made a motion to continue the public hearing to Monday, November 4 at 7pm in the Blumer Room. Councilor Adam Steiner attempted to make a friendly amendment, saying the Council will advertise the issue once the Planning and Zoning Subcommittee meets. Alexander responded with a no, since there were no new parcels or changes in front of the Council.
Readvertising what?: In their comments, a number of Nobscot residents said the Council should “readvertise”, which is a plan supported by Councilors Christine Long and Steiner. So, what does this mean?
Part of the process requires legal notices ahead of meetings and hearings. The legal notices published in the newspaper must be specific as to what parcels are included in the MBTA Communities plan.
The last minutes of Tuesday’s meeting saw a back and forth between Long and Chair Phil Ottaviani about what to do next. Long, the chair of the Planning and Zoning subcommittee, wanted to make a motion to reject the proposal and advertise. Ottaviani said things must be taken one at a time, and that what was on the table is extending the public hearing. He also reiterated there are no parcels to readvertise, and the Councilors need time to discuss and share their thoughts.
The meeting ended at 11:00pm due to the Memorial Building closing.
This week: Tonight is the continuation of the public hearing. If you have thoughts in favor or against of the proposal, tonight is your time to share it. The MBTA Communities proposal is on the Council agenda for Thursday, when they will debate and vote. And it's then we’ll find out where Framingham goes with this proposal.
Water & Sewer Rates Increase?
Ongoing issue: Water and sewer issues are a persistent issue for the city between discovered broken meters to overcharging Windsor Green to billing errors.
Hearing announced: The Sisitsky Administration announced the yearly Water & Sewer rate public hearing. The hearing is scheduled for Monday, November 18 at 7:00pm in the Blumer Room in the Memorial Building.
Increase proposed: A 4% increase in rates, along with a “ready to serve fee”, which is a fixed fee based on meter size, and an increase to irrigation meter rates, will be proposed by the Administration. Also on the docket is reducing the five tier billing structure to four. For folks who live in condos, part of the proposal is limiting the Multi-Unit Dwelling Factor policy to condos only.
Council agenda: The proposal is on the Council’s meeting agenda for this Thursday, November 7. (Council meets on Thursday this week due to the Election on Tuesday.)
Why a hearing: A hearing is required every year by state law. This gives people the opportunity to share opinions on the rates. The increases and restructuring are proposed to be effective January 1, 2025.
Walnut Street Area Flood Mitigation Begins
Addressing flooding: In an area known for flooding issues, work has begun on wetland, stream channel, and stream bank restorations to reduce flooding and increase brook capacity in the Walnut Street area.
New path: An elevated boardwalk replacing the existing dirt path used by students to get to school will be constructed. (This will be another great asset in our trails network!)
Ecological restoration: The project includes ways to address the flooding, including re-establishing flow patterns and clearing obstructions in Sucker Brook and the unnamed stream along Walnut Street, removing fill and chain link fence to restore habitats, and creating a stormwater treatment system.
Election Day Tomorrow
Go vote: Election Day is here. Polls are open in Framingham from 7:00am - 8:00pm. If you have a mail ballot - do not bring it to your polling location! Put it in the ballot drop boxes at the Memorial Building or McAuliffe Library.
Where do I vote?: Find out your precinct and polling location, visit the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s “Find My Voter Registration Status” website. Or you can go to the City Clerk’s Office website to view their interactive map.
Community Events
Curbside Leaf Collection: DPW crews are collecting leaves curbside on the following weeks on your trash day: November 4, 11, 18, 25. There will be a final brush collection the week of December 8. Paper leaf bags or reusable containers cannot exceed 40 pounds and 35 gallons. Any yard waste or leaves in a plastic bag will not be collected. Questions can be directed to DPW at 508-532-6001
Holiday Marketing Workshop: Pardon the shameless self-promotion here, but this Wednesday, November 6, James Feudo of JVF Solutions and I are holding a workshop on all things holiday season marketing. We'll go through some tips to make your life easier online, and then you can pick our brains to get on the spot advice. Oh, and lunch will be served. The workshop is open to MetroWest Chamber of Commerce members. (All the more reason to join!) Click here to register for the workshop online. And this is the first of a monthly workshop series James and I will be doing for local business owners. To find out more about my day gig, visit my website.
Household Hazardous Waste Day: Saturday, November 9 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. at the DPW Operations Center, 100 Western Avenue. Please see the graphic below for a list of what can and cannot be accepted. If you have any questions, please contact the DPW Sanitation Division at 508-532-532-6001 or visit our website at https://www.framinghamma.gov/168/Sanitation-Division.
Visit Framingham Veterans Memorials: The Framingham Veterans Council will honor deceased military Veterans by visiting memorials throughout the City on Monday morning, November 11. The schedule is above. All are invited to attend.
Veterans Day Ceremony: All are invited to attend on Monday, November 11, 2024, at 11:00 am in Nevins Hall in the Memorial Building. The ceremony honors veterans from all branches of the military, and includes a special presentation of the Medals of Liberty and Fidelity. This year, Medals of Liberty will be awarded posthumously to Captain Richard W. Higgins and Staff Sergeant Scott J. Metcalf. The Medal of Fidelity will be awarded in memory of Staff Sergeant Howard MacGlashing, Sergeant George M. Mitchell, Captain Larry A. Morse, and Specialist Four Donald J. Weir.
The Civic Week Ahead
Monday, November 4
Wednesday, November 6
Thursday, November 7
7:00pm: Council Agenda
In Closing…
Vote.
See you next week,
Mary Kate