Serving two terms on the Woburn City Council after retiring from a profession that brought him in contact with various local and state officials, James Dwyer touts an impressive resume in his bid to unseat State. Rep. Patrick Natale, D-Woburn.

Dwyer, who announced his candidacy for the Beacon Hill seat last March, will square off against the two-term incumbent during the primary elections in Woburn, Reading, and Stoneham on Sept. 16.

And with no republican challenger to contest the victor of that preliminary round of voting, the winner of that contest will more than likely be the 30th Middlesex District's representative on Beacon Hill for the next two-years.

The district includes portions of Reading and Stoneham as well as all but Wards 1 and 7 in Woburn.

A former Asst. Chief with the Middlesex Juvenile Court, Dwyer's responsibilities included oversight of such matters in 54 communities, including Woburn, Stoneham, and Reading.

The Wyman Street resident, who serves as Alderman for Ward 4 in Woburn, recently retired from the court post, ending a career that spanned nearly 35-years.

Dwyer, who also serves on the Woburn Boys & Girls Club Board of Incorporators and on CMARC's Board of Directors, took a few minutes recently to talk to the Daily Times Chronicle about his candidacy.

Excerpts from that interview follow.

DTC: How is the campaign going so far?

Dwyer: The campaign is going great. I'm very optimistic and very upbeat. I've probably hit about 90 percent of the homes in the three wards in Reading, the five wards in Woburn, and the district in Stoneham. The response has been great. And the organization I have is just phenomenal. I'm gratified by the amount of support I'm getting and the amount of volunteers who are helping me out.

DTC: Why did you decide to run for a seat in the legislature?

Dwyer: I think we can have better representation from our state rep. on Beacon Hill. And I've had a wealth of experience. This is a natural segway for what I've been doing all my life.

DTC: What do you think qualifies you to serve as representative of the 30th Middlesex District?

Dwyer: I started out as a probation aide in Cambridge and that segwayed into a probation [officer's job]. And then [I became] the Asst. Chief for 54 cities and towns in Massachusetts. I don't think you become Asst. Chief if you don't work well with all those communities. I've worked in the towns of Reading and Stoneham and Woburn. And with that experience, I've worked with elected officials from all those towns. I've worked with the school committees from all those towns. So I know the municipalities and I've worked diligently. That's exactly what constitutes the 30th Middlesex District. So it was a perfect fit for me. I would also say that I have a wealth of knowledge of all the local legislators in those towns through my work for the probation department.

DTC: What have you been hearing from people as you've been going door to door?

Dwyer: The response from people has been fantastic. And I've been hearing the same concerns from them: It's about local aid; it's about taxes; it's about traffic. They're all quality of life issues.

DTC: What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the people in Woburn, Reading, and Stoneham?

Dwyer: We have to have the state provide quality services and [make sure local cities and towns] have the funding to do that. That's major as far as I'm concerned, keeping our property taxes as low as possible and our level of services high. And to be perfectly honest with you, I have that municipal experience [as a City Councilor in Woburn]. My opponent, he's never served for any town.

DTC: What will be your top priority if elected to office?

Dwyer: I would like to increase local aid to cities and towns, to keep up school services and [other quality of life needs]. Naturally in Stoneham, I want to keep up the quality of education. And Stoneham and Reading, they really don't have the industrial and commercial tax base that Woburn does. So basically, it's about getting money back to cities and towns to keep the quality of services up.