Town of Franklin Press Releases

June 13, 2025

Temporary Closure West Main Street From Maple Street to Porter Street

The Town of Franklin has temporarily closed the eastbound lane of West Main Street at Maple Street due to the retaining wall collapse behind Ace Hardware.  There are detour signs in place and cones blocking the street.   There is no estimate as to repair completion at this time.

Both the Town and Ace Hardware request that individuals avoid the retaining wall area due to potential instability of the slope.  Ace Hardware is open for business and accessible from West Palmer Street. 

Should you have any questions, please contact Amie Owens, Town Manager, at 828-524-2516 x 305. 

 

June 2, 2025

Franklin Seeks Volunteer Board Applicants – Tourism Development Authority Board

The Town of Franklin Town Council is accepting applications to fill the following vacancies on a community board. Applications should be submitted no later than July 1, 2025 for consideration. Applications are kept on file for one year. 

•  Tourism Development Authority – two vacancies – must be in a tourism related position or collect occupancy tax within the Town limits.

The term for this board is three years. 

Applications are available online at www.franklinnc.com/authorities-franklin-nc.html or can be obtained at Town Hall, 95 East Main Street, Franklin. For more information, contact Town Clerk Nicole Bradley at 828-524-2516 x 312 or via email at nbradley@franklinnc.com.

 

May 15, 2025
Trimont Trail and Wilkie Street Resurfacing

The Town of Franklin has been informed by Bryson Enterprises, the contractor who will be completing the resurfacing on Trimont Trail and Wilkie Street, that they have completed preparation work and paving has commenced beginning at the intersection of Trimont Trail and Harrison Avenue and working toward Wilkie Street. The change in the paving priority is due to maneuverability of equipment by the contractor.

This resurfacing began today, May 15, 2025 and will continue daily, weekdays only, until the project is completed. The road will be blocked intermittently for this work and the street will be open to residential traffic only.
Individuals who live on Wilkie Street, Meadowbrook Drive and Treeline Trail and Trimont Trail should enter and exit the area using Wilkie Street. There will be barricades and signs in place indicating the work zone.

Should you have any questions, please contact Bill Deal, Public Works Director, at 828-524-2516 x 402.

 

February 18, 2025
Public Education on Lead in Drinking Water

As part of the Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) published December 16, 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires that all community water systems (CWS) and non-transient non-community (NTNC) water systems develop an inventory of all service line connections, both system-owned and customer-owned. The inventory must identify the potential presence of lead within each service line connection.  The Town completed this inventory and submitted to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NC DEQ) in October 2024.   

Another requirement of NC DEQ is for the Town of Franklin to regularly test 20 sites in various locations within the water system as assigned. During the monitoring period of July 2024 to September 2024, of the 20 sites surveyed, four tested with an amount of lead in excess of the action level indicated by the State. The four testing site property owners were notified regarding the lead levels, as was NC DEQ.  

The testing locations where excesses occurred were inside of homes whose plumbing was older than 1986, which is thought to be the source of the lead and the readings. All other monitoring sites were within normal limits and there were no lead overages at the Water Treatment Facility or in other water system testing sites. Based on the results from July and September, the Town is doubling its monitoring to 40 sites and is sending out information to all water system customers as a means to educate the public regarding lead in drinking water.  “There is nothing to indicate that there is an issue with the water system and the drinking water is of sound quality and cleanliness; however, notifying all customers is the best way to share the required information,” said Town Manager Amie Owens.    

In December 2024, the Town of Franklin was recognized with the NC Area Wide Optimization Program (AWOP) Award from NC DEQ which is a joint program between the EPA and State to enhance the performance of existing surface water treatment facilities.

“The Town’s water treatment processes are being improved and modernized each year as our primary goal is to provide customers with a safe and dependable supply of drinking water,” Owens noted.      

A copy of the educational material that is being sent to all water system customers is available on the Town’s website at www.franklinnc.com/water-sewer-franklinnc.html.