In our first of two debates, I was able to clearly articulate a vision for the 10th Norfolk District. It was a great opportunity to highlight the differences in how we would approach life on Beacon Hill.
You can view the debate online by clicking here. You can view the Milford Daily News report by clicking here.
Our next debate will be on Tuesday, August 21 at Medway High School.
I had the pleasure of sitting down and talking with Frank Falvey for his local access cable show, Frank Presents. Frank covered a wide range of issues involving state and local government. The interview will give you good insight into our campaign.
Besides running on local access, the interview is available online in three segments. You can view Part 1 by clicking on the image below. The links to Part 2 and Part 3 are below the image. I am interested in your feedback and would love to hear from you after you have an opportunity to watch it.
To view Part 2, click here.
To view Part 3, click here.
This week we will be opening our campaign headquarters at 357 Union Street in Franklin. The space will serve as a meeting place for campaign activities and a location for residents to learn more about our candidacy.
This space will serve as a hub for our campaign. We have launched our website, distributed literature, and gone door-to-door for several weeks throughout the district to reach out to the residents of Franklin and Medway. Having an office will supplement these efforts, and we hope that people will stop in to chat about the race and get engaged with our campaign.
A grand opening for the campaign headquarters is scheduled for later in July.
In addition to the office opening, we ran our first print media ad in the July issue of the Franklin News (see picture attached to this article). Getting the word out on our campaign in multiple mediums is important for success.
This campaign and election will be about the type of government we want and how we as citizens will work together to make Massachusetts a better place to work and live. If elected, I will be a fierce advocate for Franklin and Medway. My 14 years of service to Franklin demonstrates my commitment to the task at hand and provides a primer on how I will perform as a legislator.
We participated in an extremely successful Democratic State convention last weekend. An estimated 3,500 delegates (including 14 from Franklin and 12 from Medway) traveled to Springfield to work on business for the 2012 elections.
At the convention, U.S. Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren received the endorsement after capturing support from 96% of the delegates. We also heard passionate speeches from Gov. Deval Patrick, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, and a host of other political leaders from across the Commonwealth. You can view the Governor’s rousing speech by clicking here.
Our campaign had a strong showing at the convention, and I thank the supporters from Franklin and Medway who were there with us. It’s now on to the primary on Thursday, September 6, 2012.
Today I officially filed nomination papers with the Secretary of State’s office in Boston. They were accepted, counted, and acknowledged by the office, meaning that my name will appear on the ballot in the fall.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to everyone who helped me gather the necessary signatures to get on the ballot. Together we collected over 300 signatures, well above the 150 required to be on the ballot. And I also thank each of the district residents who signed my papers. I will work hard over the next several months to earn your support and vote.
As I have said all along, this campaign and election will be about the type of government we want and how we as citizens will work together to make Massachusetts a better place to work and live. We’ve taken the first step together, and I look forward to your support and participation as we move into phase II.
Again, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you and look forward to working with you.
Here is a copy of the press release that was issued concerning my campaign:
FRANKLIN — Jeffrey Roy of Franklin, Massachusetts has entered the race for State Representative in the 10th Norfolk District. He is seeking election to the seat that Jim Vallee will be vacating in December. The district includes all of Franklin and precincts 2, 3 and 4 in Medway.
Roy is an attorney who has maintained a trial practice in Boston for the past 26 years. He is also a member of the Franklin Town Council and served on the Franklin School Committee from 2001 through 2011. He is the current chair of Franklin’s Democratic Town Committee.
“I have considered entering this race for a long time,” noted Roy. “When Representative Vallee made his announcement last week to step down, I knew it was my time to step up. It has been an honor and privilege to serve Franklin at the local level, but much work lies ahead at the state level, and I will bring my commitment, dedication and experience to those tasks.
“Jim Vallee is one of the most honorable public servants I have had the pleasure to know. He has served Franklin admirably and has been a great friend to our community. His assistance with securing a new Franklin High is the most recent of the many ways he has helped build the Franklin/Medway area into one of the most desirable places to live in America. He is a model legislator and has been a helpful advocate on the school and town issues. It would be an honor to succeed him at the State House.”
Roy grew up in Milford and he and his wife Maureen moved to Franklin in 1986. They have three children — Alicia (21), Natalie (18), and Jeff Jr (15) — all of whom were educated in the Franklin Public Schools.
Roy is a 1986 cum laude graduate of Boston College Law School in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. He received his undergraduate degree from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine in 1983, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Bates Student newspaper. In addition, he received engineering training at Worcester Polytechnic Institute from 1979 to 1981 and one year of legal training at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois.
His entire legal career has been primarily devoted to the representation of injured persons. He specializes in product liability cases, automobile accidents, construction accidents, and other work-related injuries. He has represented clients at all levels of the trial and appellate courts in Massachusetts. In addition, he has appeared in cases before the New Hampshire Supreme Court and Superior Court, the Federal District Courts of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, the Rhode Island Superior Court, Colorado Superior Court, and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He was sworn in last year as a member of the United States Supreme Court bar.
“I am humbled by the outpouring of support I have received from my friends and colleagues about my candidacy,” said Roy. “I look forward to engaging in a healthy campaign and demonstrating why I am the best choice to represent the citizens of Franklin and Medway in the next legislature on Beacon Hill.
“This campaign and election will be about the type of government we want and the type of things we choose to do together as people. If elected, I will be a fierce advocate for Franklin and Medway. My 14 years of service to Franklin demonstrates my commitment to the task at hand and provides a primer on how I will perform as a legislator.”
For more information on Roy and the campaign, please visit http://www.jeffreyroy.com.
Today’s email from the Citizens for a new FHS made a very compelling case for the facility. It focuses on the impact the project will have on property values in our community. I have reproduced it here in its entirety:
The campaign for a new Franklin High School is entering the homestretch with strong support from many families, individuals and civic leaders. Now, we’re pleased to report that 12 prominent Franklin real estate agents have put their competitive spirits aside to unite behind a YES vote on the March 27 debt exclusion to bring our community a fully furnished and equipped 21st century high school.
In a Letter to the Editor published this week and available here, the realtors argue, “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.”
A top-of-mind concern among new home buyers is the quality and reputation of the local school system. The real estate agents say that the new Franklin High School will make a “powerful impression on potential buyers” and will “strengthen our position amongst towns with sought-after school districts.” The professionals say the end result is an increase in property values.
They also warn that property values could diminish if the high school project is not approved since some families will consider moving out of Franklin to a town with a more desirable school system. With a surplus of houses on the market, sales prices will be lower and therefore will negatively impact property values.
The outcome of the debt exclusion vote will also impact commercial real estate values. The real estate agents say that if the new high school is approved, companies will be more likely to invest in Franklin by locating businesses in our community. “This will help to fill the vacant spaces we have and will strengthen the long term viability of our community to remain one of the Top 10 communities to LIVE and WORK in the nation,” they argue.
More importantly, if the debt-exclusion vote is passed, “home and business owners are likely to see an increase in the value of their respective properties many, many times more than the temporary increase in property taxes that will be required to pay for the new school.”
Again, you can read this very important Letter to the Editor in its entirety by clicking here.
The bottom line for all of us, whether you have children in the schools or not, is that a YES vote on March 27 will not only provide our present and future students with the facility they need to compete in the global economy, but also will deliver long-term benefits for the entire community in the form of increased property values and business investment.
March 27 represents a now-or-never chance to support construction of a fully furnished and equipped 21st century high school and auditorium for our community. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a new, fully furnished and equipped high school with a state reimbursement rate of 59.52 percent, taking full advantage of historic low construction and borrowing costs and protecting our property values’
Do NOT take this vote for granted. Voting YES is important. Do NOT assume the debt exclusion will win approval without YOUR VOTE on March 27. For more information, please visit the website at www.newfhs.com and “Like” and visit the Facebook page often for updates: http://www.facebook.com/newfhs.
Please share this note with your friends, neighbors and social networks so that everyone understands the benefits that a new FHS will bring to our entire community. Encourage your friends to vote YES on March 27. Make no mistake: Every vote will be needed!
Franklin is offering a lottery for five, two-bedroom town homes in the 55 and over community Meadowbrook Heights. The homes are on Grey Wolf Drive, off Longhill Road, and are priced at $165,000.
Each home is about 1,850 square feet and includes a one-car garage and two floors. A kitchen, dining room, family room, master bedroom, full bathroom, and laundry room are on the first floor.A second bedroom, bathroom, and loft space are on the second floor. Air-conditioning is installed.
Applicants must adhere to household limits – one person can make up to $45,500 per year, two people can make $52,000 collectively, per year, and three people can make $58,500 collectively, per year. At leats one household member must be at least 55 years old to qualify.
An information workshop will be held in the Council Chambers, on the second floor of the Municipal Building, at 355 East Central St., March 17, at 11 a.m.
Applications are available by clicking here. You can also obtain them at the public library, senior center and municipal building. Applications are due to the Town Administrator’s office in the Municipal Building by 1 p.m. on April 13, and lottery winners will be chosen by April 23.
For more information on the lottery, click here.
Support for the construction of a new Franklin High School gained important momentum this week when State Rep. James E. Vallee endorsed a YES vote in the March 27 town-wide election to pass a debt exclusion for the construction of a$104.5 million high school facility that will cost taxpayers only $47 million.
Rep. Vallee also made a $1,000 contribution to the Citizens for a New Franklin High School, the largest donation so far for efforts to rally the community behind the construction of a fully furnished and equipped 21st century high school and auditorium that would open in fall 2014.
Rep. Vallee’s decision to endorse a YES for FHS vote is unprecedented. Although he is a longtime and consistent supporter of public education in Franklin — bringing our community generous sums of Chapter 70 funding that has kept property tax rates low, he has never announced a public position on any previous local vote. You can view the Milford Daily News front-page article on Rep. Vallee’s endorsement by clicking here.
Rep. Vallee joins more than 550 Franklin citizens who have publicly announced their intention to vote YES for FHS on March 27. A number of community groups have delivered unanimous endorsements, including members of the Franklin Town Council, the Franklin Finance Committee, the Franklin Long Range Financial Planning Committee, the Franklin Recreation Advisory Board and the Franklin Democratic Town Committee. You can view the most current supporters list at www.newfhs.com/supporters.php. It’s updated weekly.
Passage of the debt exclusion is not guaranteed by any means, so your active and ongoing support is vital to making the proposed high school a reality. There are a number of ways that you can help ensure that we get as many YES votes as possible on March 27:
Please share this post with your friends and neighbors here in Franklin so that everyone will continue to have updated information. Please email voteyesforFHS@gmail.com, or visit: http://www.newfhs.com/contact.php for more information.
A few days ago I was reading an article in the Atlantic magazine entitled “Making it in America.” The article truly highlighted for me one of the big the reasons why we need a new FHS.
It describes the tremendous changes to the American economy that have taken place in the last 22 years and does so through the eyes of a manufacturing plant and its employees in Greenville, SC. It talks about how Factories have outsourced and replaced millions of workers with machines. It is a compelling pace and speaks to how we as Americans will need to adapt to the new economy.
A historical chart of U.S. manufacturing employment shows steady growth from the end of the Depression until the 1980’s. Then things stay largely flat until about 1999. After that, the numbers simply collapse. In the 10 years ending in 2009, factories shed workers so fast that they erased almost all the gains of the previous 70 years; roughly one out of every three manufacturing jobs—about 6 million in total—disappeared.
About as many people work in manufacturing now as did at the end of the Depression, even though the American population is more than twice as large today. Across America, many factory floors look radically different than they did 20 years ago: far fewer people, far more high-tech machines, and entirely different demands on the workers who remain.
And what does this have to do with Franklin High. It has much to do with it and here’s why.
What we need today is a more educated workforce that can talk to the machines, robots and computers. What we need today is a facility that will be able to teach math and science in a 21st century environment. And what we need is a facility that will accomodate our growing arts, sports, and technological programs.
The proposed facility meets the needs of the students and the community in all of those regards, and addresses what is necessary to make it in America today. There are volumes of research which demonstrate that better buildings make better students, and that’s the piece that is missing at FHS today.
We started working on a new FHS at the School Committee in the spring of 2005 after being placed on warning for accreditation by NEASC solely because of this building. We asked for a feasibility study. The feasibility study addressed those concerns. Many have talked about the structural deficits in the building so I won’t repeat them here. I’ll just say that I am happy to be sitting here as a Town Councilor 7 years later on the verge of seeking approval from the citizens of the community for a project of this stature that will finally address those issues.
The education we provide in Franklin speaks to the values of our community. Over the last 15 years, our school system has been working to become one of the best in the state. We have talked in recent years about moving from good to great. From kindergarten to grade 8, we have constructed state of the art facilities to bring the best to our students and the community. It has worked and our students have flourished. It is time for us to complete this work and deliver a state of the art high school to bring our entire program into the 21st century.
We have a lot of great people — staff and students — in there. If we give them a new building, they will not only take us off the accreditation warning list, but it will catapult us to a new level.
Franklin is the birthplace of Horace Mann. He would be proud of the things we have done with public education in his birthplace. In Franklin, we have the first public library and from the very origins of this town, we have believed that sense is preferable to sound. We have always valued education and this building is consistent with our mission, vision and values.
So, for the reasons set forth by my fellow councilors, from the big picture perspective on what this flagship will do for Franklin, and based upon by background and experience with this project as a citizen, school committee member and town councilor, I urge positive action by the the community on March 27, 2012.
You can view the Atlantic magazine article referred to above by clicking here. You can get detailed information on the new FHS project by clicking here.
jeffreyroy.com 