Chester’s Walton Lake Estates water system gets $130,000 grant for overhaul.

Town of Chester water administrator Tom Becker asked Senator James Skoufis for assistance with getting a grant to address contamination in the Walton Lake Estates water system last year, according to Emma Fuentes, Skoufis’s communications director. Last week Skoufis provided a $130,000 check for the grant provided by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York. The check was handed to Becker and Town of Chester Councilman Brandon Holdridge, who assisted with the application. Skoufis had notified DASNY of the funding need and facilitated the application process, ensuring that the necessary materials were provided and the funding would be properly directed, Fuentes said.

The funding will cover the full cost of water infrastructure to serve over 100 households, eliminating local sodium contamination issues without raising local property taxes, Skoufis said.

“One of my most important responsibilities is to ensure local tax dollars are coming right back into the district to improve quality of life for local residents,” he said. “I was delighted to work with town water administrator and former councilman Tom Becker, and current councilman Brandon Holdridge, to get this grant across the finish line. Chester’s families deserve clean water.”

Skoufis’s ‘emerging contaminants’ legislation was recently signed into law, requiring statewide testing for 43 known water contaminants to help keep families safe.