Village adds motorcycle to police fleet with grant approval

The Village of Chester Board of Trustees voted four to one to accept a state grant for new police equipment, including a motorcycle — an item that the board had opposed in the past due to liability concerns.

The $175,000 grant also included a UTV, trailer, firearms, more cameras, and dash cams for police vehicles. Accepting the grant also allowed the police to apply for a second grant that could reap them a new patrol vehicle.

Deputy Mayor Elizabeth Reilly voted against the grant because she did not want a motorcycle added to the village’s fleet of vehicles. Reilly expressed her discomfort with the fact the police revealed they asked for a motorcycle only after the grant process had been completed, as the board had in the past rejected police requests for a motorcycle.

Mayor Christopher Battiato also said he was unhappy that the police department sought the motorcycle without consent of the board, but he still voted to approve the grant. The police department representative said that going forward the department would run all grant requests by the board before the application process.

Short-term rentals

The village board also passed the long-discussed short-term rental law 5-0. The new regulation will prohibit short-term rentals like Airbnbs in residential areas and create a registry for all rental properties in the village.

Ambulance district

The board also voted to join a small portion of the village to the Goshen ambulance district. The mayor told The Chronicle the he anticipates the town of Chester and the town of Goshen will make an agreement to transfer the small portion of Chester village under Goshen’s control to the new Chester ambulance district.