Milford committee finalizes outreach push for May 28 housing forum

A committee of Milford town volunteers and staff at a recent meeting agreed to a multi-pronged outreach plan for a housing forum scheduled for May 28 from 5 to 7 p.m., focusing on postcards, social media posts and in-person distribution at high-traffic locations.

The committee emphasized that broad, repeated outreach will be key to attendance, citing continued local interest after a recent warrant article to change the town’s R zoning did not pass. A committee member summarized the night’s priority as “talking about how we’re gonna market the housing forum that’s scheduled for May 28,” and members identified a list of distribution channels and volunteer tasks.

Committee members said they have 500 printed postcards and about 1,000 small “business-card” style flyers with a QR code linking to online materials. They agreed to post the event on the town Facebook page, the Milford residents’ Facebook group, and additional community Facebook pages; to ask Granite Town Media to add the notice on the town website and reader board; and to request placements at local businesses and community bulletin boards, including Market Basket, Shaw’s, Tractor Supply, Hitchner’s, and other changeable-copy signs.

Volunteers and timing: Members identified the transfer station on busy mornings (roughly Saturdays between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.) as a high-value spot for in-person distribution and asked volunteers to coordinate so the postcards would be actively handed out rather than stockpiled. The committee also discussed placing sandwich boards at the transfer station and other reader boards on Nashua and Elm streets, and agreed to coordinate with DPW and town staff about borrowing or producing a sandwich-board poster.

Focus groups and outreach targets: The group proposed running small focus groups before and after the forum to capture deeper feedback. Suggested target groups included families (PTOs), seniors (senior lunches and the community center), renters (apartment complexes such as Red Oak and other multifamily properties), local businesses and EDAC, faith communities, and existing town committees (Friends of the Library, Recreation, Heritage, Conservation). The committee discussed recruiting focus-group participants via sign-ups at the forum and by offering to host small, facilitated sessions; they said focus groups should be note‑taken (not recorded) and follow a consistent set of questions provided by the consultants.

HOP grant and Planning Board timing: Members were briefed on related technical work under the town’s HOP grant. The consultants will present a draft fiscal impact analysis at the Planning Board work session on Tuesday, May 6 at 6:30 p.m.; committee members were encouraged to attend or view the posted recording on GTN. The consultants are also auditing zoning and land‑use regulations; the committee was told the consultants hope to present additional findings to the Planning Board on June 17, and the committee’s next regular meeting is tentatively scheduled for June 24.

Logistics and materials: Committee members said the consultant team supplied a longer explanatory blurb and a graphic (JPEG/PDF) that the committee will adapt for different channels. Specific distribution commitments included library posters, stacks at Town Hall (Community Development office), placements at Starbucks in Hampshire Hills, rotary and Lions meetings, Boys & Girls Club e-news, the police department Facebook page, and shareable JPEGs/PDFs for local realty and changeable-copy signs. The event page and educational materials are already posted on the town website’s master plan/housing page; the committee asked to add the materials to the Planning Board page as well.

Volunteers and event staffing: The forum will use a drop‑in, station-style format (similar to the prior event), so volunteers will be asked to staff registration and sign-in to collect emails and distribute materials; committee members will circulate rather than sit at fixed tables. Several members volunteered to arrive early (about 4:30–4:45 p.m.) to assist with sign-in.

Food and budget: The group discussed refreshments and said they will arrange simple items (water, granola bars, fruit or cookie platters) and coordinate a budget; an approximate reference from prior events was about $100 for light refreshments. The committee noted leftover perishables from the last event and agreed to plan quantities conservatively.

Minutes approval: The committee approved the prior meeting minutes by motion and second; members present recorded affirmative votes during roll call and the minutes were approved.

Next steps: The committee chair or staff will send a single JPEG/PDF package for all members to share on their channels, ask Granite Town Media to post on the town website and reader board, arrange sandwich boards with DPW and Leo (reader board contact), distribute postcards to agreed locations and volunteers, and circulate a volunteer sign-up and schedule for May 28. Members were also asked to consider hosting or recruiting attendees for focus groups and to review the Planning Board presentation on May 6.