Westerly Sun editorial chastises Charlestown Town Council for lack of openness and transparency

“EDITORIAL: Town needs an open approach,” Friday, March 23, 2012 

By Will Collette

The Sun followed up on its earlier coverage of Dr. John Donoghue’s lawsuit against the Town of Charlestown aimed at blocking the “gift” of $475,000 by the town to the Charlestown Land Trust for the purchase of the derelict YMCA Camp on Watchaug Pond. The Y-Gate Scandal and Dr. Donoghue’s lawsuit were first covered here on Progressive Charlestown (click here for analysis of the suit and click here for Dr. Donoghue’s explanation for his reasons for filing).

The Sun notes the two main charges in Dr. Donoghue’s lawsuit.

One was that the Town Council did not properly notify the public that it planned to give away $475,000 of their money when they advertised the Town Council agenda for February 13.

The other point was that the ad hoc group the Town Council formed to concoct a plan for the YMCA campground completely ignored its obligations under the state’s Open Meetings Act.

The editorial notes the defense by Council member Gregg Avedisian that the ad hoc group was specially formed as an advisory group and was not subject to the Open Meetings Act.

The Mayor of Greater Sonquipaugia, Boston
lawyer Joanne D'Alcomo wanted a seat - but she's
a non-resident. Thus the special deal....

When the Y-Gate board was formed, it was set up to conform to the usual structure of town advisory committees. But later, the Y-Gate board had to be re-invented because it could not meet the usual requirements for a town committee. Several of the groups who wanted a seat on the board – e.g., the YMCA and the abutting Sonquipaug neighborhood – appointed representatives who were not residents of Charlestown.

This is a violation of the Town Charter, so the Council came up with the new formulation to allow the Y to appoint a nonresident and for the Mayor of Greater Sonquipaugia, Boston attorney Joanne D’Alcomo, to sit on the board.

Since the Town Council figured it had crafted a gimmick to subvert the Town Charter, it now looks like they figure they have also subverted the state Open Meetings Act.

Certainly that will be a key issue for the court to decide when it acts on Dr. Donoghue’s lawsuit.

Whether or not the Town Council beats the Open Meetings rap, there’s something very wrong here. The decision to come up with a configuration scheme for the Y-Gate panel to pander to the interests of the YMCA and the nonresident vacation home owners in Sonquipaug should have never happened.

In hindsight, I wish I could have anticipated what great mischief it was, and I’ll bet I’m not the only one who feels that way.

Now we have a Town Council-approved giveaway of nearly half a million dollars that only benefits the Westerly YMCA, the Charlestown Land Trust and Mayor Joanne and her nonresident constituents in Greater Sonquipaugia.

We have the precedent of the Council openly and deliberately looking for ways to subvert the Town Charter and Open Meetings Law.

And we have the additional expense of defending the Town from a lawsuit that Dr. Donoghue brought to challenge the Town Council’s misconduct.

The Sun editorial says that they approve of the purchase of the Y camp but think the Town Council’s actions don’t pass the “smell test.” I also think the purchase of the Y Camp is a good idea, except not with taxpayer money. Since the Charlestown Land Trust wants it, and Sonquipaug will be the principal beneficiary, let them buy it.