Chester moves closer to enacting ward system

During the February 28 Chester Town Board meeting, residents were treated to a presentation detailing the new ward system that will be implemented in town. Chester will be separated into eight wards, or districts. The purpose of the system is to provide apt representation for communities within the town of Chester that can often feel underrepresented. For example, there are a number of neighborhoods within the town limits, whose children do not attend Chester schools.

The move has been in the works since 2018, when the board passed a law to allow for such a system to be implemented. In a conversation after the board meeting, Chester Town Supervisor Brandon Holdridge said that he’s been lobbying to implement the ward system since he first became a board member; he believes it will serve to mitigate the issue of community members feeling underrepresented or unheard.

As part of the presentation, the board displayed two possible ward maps determined by population distribution (see the slide show above for the proposed ward maps). The board’s next step will be to vote on which map to use going forward. Once approved, one representative will be elected from each ward by the residents of that district.

One resident, who moved to Chester several years ago, spoke during public comment to express his approval of the proposed ward system. He added that he has lived in other ward-based communities prior to his relocation to Chester, and that in his experience the system helps to create a more inclusive political landscape.

Building moratorium

During the public hearing, a Sugar Loaf business owner noted that the town’s building moratorium, which blocks the construction of certain buildings containing more than five dwelling units, leaves out smaller projects that are being erected in the hamlet. The speaker implored the board to consider action to mitigate the issue of landlords buying single property lots in Sugar Loaf to create shared residential/retail spaces. The speaker claimed that while these structures may not be large enough to fall under the guidelines of the moratorium, they are still negatively impacting the hamlet.

The board noted that the public hearing on the matter will remain open, at least through the March 13 town board meeting, and said that they intend to amend the local law in order to broaden the parameters of the moratorium.