Letter to the Editor: O'Neil Responds to Mr. Keegan's Letter

Dear Editor,

    I would like the opportunity to respond to Mr. Keegan’s letter from last week. As was quoted in my comments, the comments section at the end of my letter, and the end of his, I was misinformed about the angled parking near Centre Deli. That parking is actually going to be, and already is, in front of the police station which will contribute to the driving issues in that section left turn light or not. My opposition remains to be that driving pitfalls from the enlarged sidewalks and those angled spaces as my issue with the project, not any of the other improvements.
    I have to say I’m very flattered that he went to the trouble to respond to my letter, but at the same time while we’re on the subject this gentleman is also one of the many things wrong with this town. No I’m not saying Mr. Keegan is not qualified nor am I saying he is not competent. Here is my issue with Mr. Keegan. He doesn’t live here in Dedham. He lives in Scituate. He makes a six figure salary to be our town administrator and is given a gas stipend and is put up in the Dedham Hilton if there is in climate weather and he is unable to commute home.
    His original agreement was that he was to move to Dedham within one year. He never did. Instead he asked that the town charter be changed so that he could live outside Dedham and the Board of Selectman had the charter changed. I find this disturbing. Not only did the town allow him to keep his job even though he didn’t live here, they changed the law so he wouldn’t have to.  

And this was years back before the real estate problems so he can’t use that excuse.  So we are paying more than just his salary to have him be our town administrator. Again not a knock on Mr. Keegan or his ability, but in this whole town are the people we vote for telling us there is not one person living here that is not intelligent enough to do this job? That’s the message I’m getting from this. Also we are paying more than just his salary which I also feel is not fair because our tax dollars are paying for his gas and his room at the Hilton in addition to his salary.
    Do you remember the show Newhart? Some of the readership will, it was out in the 80’s and Bob Newhart owned an Inn and had Larry, Darryl, and there other brother Darryl as neighbors and one of the shows premises was that the small town citizens and officials were all either ignorant or simpletons. I’m wondering if our elected officials think this of us.

I’ll tell you right now I may not be qualified to be a town administrator, but I am college educated- I’m no simpleton nor is anybody in this town.  I’m sure we could find someone here that would be qualified to do the job instead of allowing this man to take the town hostage so he wouldn’t have to rent a U-haul and move here.
    I have friends that don’t live here that constantly ask me why I live in the "two steps forward three steps back" town. I still believe in this town and love living here, but this is an example of "two steps forward three steps back" just like the square project.  I’m not perfect. Nobody is, but anybody who can’t see this situation and this square project both being ridiculous needs to re-evaluate there thinking process.
Dan O’Neil