Michael Frates is running to be a public servant in the truest sense of the phrase. He said that in his bid for Selectman, he would welcome public input on any and all issues before casting his own vote.

"The job of a Selectman is to vote in a way that your constituents put you in," Frates said.

Frates ran an unsuccessful bid for one of the two Selectmen seats up for election last year, losing out to the two incumbents, Peter Teitelbaum and Judith Whiteside. With 562 votes, he finished 275 votes behind Whiteside and 306 behind Teitelbaum, so he decided to run again this year.

"I believe that no candidate should run unopposed," Frates said. "Any office in our town deserves a debate and noteworthy attention."

Frates said that increased public input, transparency in government, restoration of town services and promoting green energy are some of the priorities of his candidacy.

If elected, he wants to reach out to the public with weekly online updates on websites like YouTube and Facebook about his thoughts on town matters. He would also seek public input about any issue in town.

"I'll listen to any argument," he said. "You will get a vote that listens to the people every single time, without exception."

Frates, a longtime resident of Wareham, has never held elected office before, though he said he was active in some town committees when he lived in Weymouth. He has more than 20 years of experience working with rail companies, such as Amtrak and commuter rail, in labor relations. Frates retired in 2004 after an accident on the job.

Frates views attracting residents to the town as a more important and viable source of revenue than attracting businesses. He said that he doesn’t see small businesses bringing in much revenue to the town and that big businesses like Wal-Mart should be required to provide a set number of full-time jobs with benefits when they come into the community.

Frates said to attract new residents to town and to keep those already here, the town needs to restore services that have been lost from years of budget cuts.

He suggested two methods to restore services. One would be the consolidation of buildings in town. He said there is an abundance of dilapidated infrastructure in town and certain departments could be better utilized sharing space.

Frates said he has a vision of a centrally located public emergency services building in town that would house Wareham Police, Fire and EMS. He added that the building would have to be environmentally sustainable, which is his other cost-saving method to restore revenues to the town.

“I’m very familiar with solar energy and how it can be used without major infrastructure expenses,” he said. “It’s the way of the future.”

Frates added that he would increase government transparency and make public records available online whenever possible, citing his own difficulties with trying to obtain hard copies of public records at Town Hall.

“With me, you get a vote that is informed and is open,” he said.

“I will treat people with respect and I will be informed about any vote I make and that’s the most important thing you can ask about any Selectman,” he said.