How many times can a politician try to mislead the public on behalf of special interest groups and hope to retain any semblance of credibility or believability in the eyes of the taxpayers?  When it comes to Charlestown Town Councilor James Mageau, there is no limit to his schemes to intimidate or mislead the citizens of Charlestown.  Mr. Mageau’s latest attempt to reinvent himself before the 2008 election campaign kicks off, involves  portraying himself as a friend of all taxpayers.  Unfortunately, for the taxpayers nothing could be further from the truth based on Mr. Mageau’s voting record and public statements as a Town Councilor.  He has shown himself to be a politician who supports pro-development and pro-gambling special interest groups at the expense of taxpayers..

Mr. Mageau’s latest attempt to craft a public policy that provides windfall profits for developers involves his scare tactics to induce citizens to support him in overturning an existing Department of Environmental Management (DEM) ruling that protects the cleanliness of our groundwater, salt ponds, and ocean water.  He claims he would be saving the individual taxpayers the cost of installing a new septic system which could run as high as $35,000 per family, by transferring the cost to all taxpayers to build a town-wide sewer system and treatment plant.  What Mr. Mageau fails to mention to Charlestown taxpayers is that in two coastal Cape Cod, MA. towns who priced similar systems discovered that the costs for a coastal sewer system far exceeded the cost of a new septic system per homeowner.  In Falmouth MA. the cost per homeowner with a sewer system was calculated at between $50,0000 and $100,000, and in Chatham MA the cost was calculated at $150,000 per homeowner. Let’s keep in mind that not all homeowners will need to replace their systems at the same time. Also, lets keep in mind that most home owners realize that any home improvement to increase your property value requires a financial investment, whether it is a new kitchen or a new septic system.

Simply put, Mr. Mageau is a political scam artist who preys upon uninformed citizens to push forth unsound public policies that are fiscally irresponsible to the taxpayer, and dangerous to both the environment and the quality of life in Charlestown.  You do the math, would you rather pay $35,000 for a new septic system, or would you like to pay $100,000 per household or more to implement Mr. Mageau’s  sewer system and treatment plant.

The Charlestown Salt Pond Coalition Board of Directors, DEM, and the Costal Resources Management Commission (CRMC), and other environmental experts have written to the Town Council and the newspapers to denounce Mr. Mageau’s proposal as being unworkable.  They show factual evidence that his plan is not in the best interest of the environment including the salt ponds, the ocean, the impact on the water table for homeowners, the urban density of development it can support which further pollutes the environment, or the taxpayers who will have to pay for this ill conceived plan that benefits only developers.

But there is one other important ethical point that needs to be made with regards to Mr. Mageau’s most recent proposal.  Since his election, in 2006,  Mr. Mageau has ignored the will of citizens who have spoken up in public and in the press to express their opinion on public policy and their long-term vision  for Charlestown.   Recently, I endorsed an
e-mail citizen survey in Charlestown that asked citizens what was important to them.  The survey produced a deluge of e-mails, phone calls, letters, and personal comments to our members.  There was a theme repeated in the responses.  Over 99 percent of those responding wanted responsible development that retained the rural charm and current quality of life that exists in Charlestown. They did not vote for Urban Density or unchecked development that could adversely impact life in Charlestown.

Once again, Mr. Mageau has ignored the wishes and concerns of voters and taxpayers.  After all, what’s more important, truly listening and representing the people or pretending to be the friend of taxpayers while pushing a personal agenda that facts prove only benefits special interest groups like developers or casino owners who would welcome a municipal sewer system that would pave the way for a casino in Charlestown.
In November of 2008 citizens will have the opportunity NOT TO ELECT Mr. Mageau and correct their mistake of 2006.

Daniel Slattery