By Stephen Smoot
Last week, the Town of Franklin moved its regular meeting of mayor, council, and public to Monday out of respect for Veterans Day.
Michelle Connor, Franklin representative of Mon Forest Towns, gave the council information on recent projects and activities, as well as events to come.
She stated first that “I serve at the pleasure of the Franklin Town Council” and reminded them and the public in attendance about a community meeting held two days after at the Anderson House.
The plan she articulated for the evening sounded like a much less formal version of the annual SWOT analysis conducted by Region 8 Planning and Development. She described how attendees would share Franklin’s positives, its challenges, and what the future should look like.
Then attendees would break up into small working groups. Afterwards they would be welcomed to eat, drink, and socialize in the historic home.
Mon Forest Town representatives from other areas, including Petersburg were planning to assist in the process.
Connor went on to say that because of the community meeting, the normal MFT meeting at Franklin Town Hall for November would not take place.
A major project that MFT has helped to bring to the fore has been stormwater planning and management. Storms last spring and summer revealed problems with stormwater drainage, with Pendleton Senior and Family Services most threatened by rapid water runoff from surrounding slopes.
A team from Thrasher joined Connor and MFT officials. Rick Gillespie, Pendleton County Emergency Services coordinator, and Janice Lantz, executive director of Pendleton Senior and Family Services, toured the town to look for problem areas and start to discuss solutions. Gillespie pointed out locations of underground streams and other potential issues.
Last summer, Lantz shared with the Pendleton County Commission how she and her staff bailed water during a storm to keep it from overrunning the facility. Another critical area developed in the sidewalk near Eddie Sites’ store on Main Street.
Connor also shared the impending occupation of offices in the Franklin Innovation Hub by Seneca Rocks Regional Development Authority and its opening to clients. She informed all that at 4 p.m. on Dec. 8, SRRDA would hold a ribbon cutting to mark its opening.
In other developments, the United States Forest Service plans to open a trailhead near Franklin for the Peters Mountain Trail. It will serve as the closest link from Franklin to the regional forest trail system. Additionally, West Virginia University has engaged Petersburg mural artist Kelson Thorne to take part in a state-focused art project that connects the Mon Forest Towns. Each town will receive an artfully designed statue of a canoe to serve as a focal point and information center.
Students at South Branch Career and Technical Center will work on fashioning the canoes.
Connor completed her presentation and Jared VanMeter followed, representing the Pendleton County Chamber of Commerce. He came to request permission to shut down Walnut Street on the block between Main and High Streets between noon and 9 p.m. on the day of the event. He had already received written or verbal permission from almost all relevant authorities.
Main Street will be closed at 5:30 for approximately an hour for the Christmas parade.
Kristen Dingess, member of council and also on the board of the chamber of commerce, explained, “It’s for Main Street Magic that we do every year.” Also, vendors have instructions to place their tables far enough back so that emergency vehicles, if needed, can use the street.
Bob Horan, mayor, noted, “It looks like you put in a lot of work there.”
Frank Wehrle, town administrator, performed the legally required reading of the ordinance to synchronize town and county elections. The next reading will take place at the Dec. 9 town council meeting, at which point it will be voted on and become law in time for January filings.
Keely Smith, council member, provided an end of season update on parks and recreation. She informed them that an outfit had completed a caulk job to address leaks in the town swimming pool, but that the same company declined to paint the surface of it.
The program to provide swimming lessons was successful, and the employee who conducted them was paid.
