Jim Munise, a first-time candidate for the Board of Selectmen, said he is running because he feels there needs to be new perspectives on the board.

“I felt I was getting ignored, not listened to, and I said well if I can’t get people to listen to me, maybe I have to put myself in a position to be listened to,” Munise said. “I felt like it was time, like there needed to be a change in the focus of what we’re doing. I think a lot of people in town feel like there needs to be a change.”

Munise retired three years ago from Bridgewater State University, where he began as a low-level employee and ended as a mid-level administrator and the elected head of three unions.

Munise expressed his frustration with the difficulty of accessing information about meeting times and agendas, which can be hard to find on the town’s website — if they are posted there at all. Some meetings are only posted at town hall, Munise said.

Munise saw the same accessibility issue with committee openings, which he said weren’t being posted or advertised in the newspaper. Munise applied for three committee openings over the past year, but didn’t receive an acknowledgement of his applications — something he thinks should be standard for any communication between residents and the town.

“We should make it easier for the residents of the town to take part in and be part of the governing process,” said Munise.

Munise also said that residents who want it should be able to easily access detailed information about the town’s budget.

“You have to fix or take care of things before you want to expand and do all bright new things,” Munise said of the town budget. “You’ve got to take care of what you have already. I would hope that the built in automatic 2.5 percent would cover the increased needs and costs.”

Proposition 2 1/2, passed in 1980, mandates that the town can not raise more than 2.5 percent of the property values in the town in property taxes without an override passed by voters. If the amount raised from taxes is less than 2.5 percent, it can only increase by 2.5 percent each year after adjusting for new growth.

Munise said that one of the biggest issues facing Wareham is a lack of affordable senior housing. He also hopes to create more places for people to visit in Wareham, like the soon-to-be upgraded Tremont Nail Factory. He also hopes to see Merchant’s Way, which runs parallel to Main Street, the train tracks, and Wareham River, cleaned up so that it can become a destination for residents and tourists.