Chester residents oppose zoning change, board approves modest tax increase
At a Nov. 12 Town Board meeting roughly thirty residents urged the board to preserve AR 3 zoning after a petition of 263 signatures raised alarms about allowing religious use in agricultural and rural districts. The board also adopted a budget that raises taxes 2.65 percent and approved investments in emergency medical equipment, moves that could affect services and taxes for local households.
Around thirty residents of the Town of Chester packed the Town Board meeting on Nov. 12 to press elected officials to preserve current zoning in AR 3 districts and to block proposed changes that would permit religious uses in agricultural and rural areas. Many speakers came from neighborhoods surrounding the Camp Monroe property, a site long used as a seasonal camp and now at the center of concern that it could be used year round for religious services.
Resident Ariel Demeza told the board 263 residents had signed a petition opposing the change and said such a move would trigger a SEQRA review and likely require the town to hire a land use attorney. Town Supervisor Brandon Holdridge said legal counsel had advised that religious use is allowed in those zones under state law and that it had been permitted in town zoning until 2017, framing the proposal as a correction to that earlier change. Residents cited past development pressures in the area and warned about traffic and quality of life impacts. As one neighbor, Peter Nicholas, put it, "Developers want to get their hands on this property."
The board moved on from zoning to adopt the town budget by a vote of three to one. The budget raises taxes 2.65 percent, coming in under the state tax cap, and allocates more than two hundred thousand dollars toward the purchase of an ambulance rig. The town expects more than five hundred thousand dollars in billing receipts over time to offset the cost and Supervisor Holdridge said the purchase was intended to help make ambulance service more affordable for taxpayers. Councilman Larry Dysinger voted against the budget, citing concerns about the ambulance purchase and questioning whether a different procurement approach could yield a better deal with the private provider Empress.
One significant revenue item in the budget was more than four hundred thousand dollars expected from the sale of the Sugar Loaf Performing Arts Center to Orange County, a sale the board said was scheduled to close on Nov. 18. Holdridge acknowledged that this is a one time revenue source and that replacing it will present a challenge for next year’s budget.
Other board actions included a split vote that resulted in the non renewal of the Senior Independence Program contract with Jewish Family Services, remitting deposits of seventeen thousand eight hundred fifty dollars to Orange County for PAC events after the sale, allowing a loosely organized men’s touch football group to use Chester Commons with insurance and a reduced fee, centralizing town social media under the Clerk’s Office, and designating twelve thousand dollars from the SLPAC reserve to a general building and maintenance reserve. The zoning matter is likely to prompt further legal and procedural steps, and residents said they will continue to press officials on protecting the character of their neighborhoods.
