Concerns raised over proposed zoning changes

Thirty or so residents of the Town of Chester turned out to the Nov. 12 meeting of the town board to express their concern over proposed zoning changes that would allow religious use of property in “agricultural and rural” (AR-3) zones.

Resident Ariel Demeza said 263 residents had signed a petition asking the board to preserve its current zoning in AR-3 districts. He said any changes would require a SEQRA review and the town hiring a land use attorney.

The residents were from areas surrounding the Camp Monroe property, which has been traditionally a seasonal camp. There is concern they would like to be used year-round for religious services.

Supervisor Brandon Holdridge said his advice from legal counsel is that religious use is allowed in such zones according to the law and that it had been allowed in the town’s zoning until 2017. He characterized the proposed change as being a correction to the 2017 zoning change.

Residents expressed concern about the future use of the property. Peter Nicholas said, “Developers want to get their hands on this property,” and recalled an effort over a decade ago to build over 100 homes in the area.

Town Supervisor Brandon Holdridge said he hoped to resolve the quality of life concerns of the residents while following the law regarding religious use of property.

In other news, the board passed the town’s budget 3-1. The budget raises taxes 2.65 percent, which is under the state tax cap. Councilman Antonio Ardisana was absent and Councilman Larry Dysinger voted against the budget, citing disagreement with the town’s decision to buy an ambulance rig as the reason for his vote.

The town invested over $200,000 in the budget toward the purchase of an ambulance rig, with the expected return to come in over $500,000 in billing receipts. Holdridge said he hoped to make the ambulance service more affordable for taxpayers. Dysinger questioned the type of ambulance being purchased and said he believed a better deal could be negotiated with Empress without the town being on the hook for a rig.

The budget is also funded with over $400,000 from the sale of the Sugar Loaf PAC to the county. Holdridge acknowledged that this is a one-time revenue source and the town will be challenged to replace it in next year’s budget. He said he hoped the money saved from not having to operate the PAC will help make up the difference.

Also, it was announced at the meeting that the PAC sale was scheduled to be closed on Tuesday, Nov. 18.

The contract for the Senior Independence Program provided by Jewish Family Services was not renewed. The board voted 2-2 on the matter with Councilman Dysinger and Councilman Tom Becker voting against it and Supervisor Holdridge and Councilman Bob Courtenay voting for it.

The town board voted to remit deposits in the amount of $17,850 to Orange County pending the closing of the sale of the PAC. The money is for deposits on events scheduled at the PAC after the date of the sale to the county.

The board voted also to allow a loosely organized group of men to use the practice field at Chester Commons to play touch football. The group will provide insurance and the town will charge them half the normal rate to use the field.

The board opened a discussion about the policy for town social media pages. Currently Chester recreation and police departments host their own pages on privately held accounts. Going forward the board intends for all accounts to be managed through the Clerk’s Office. The town attorney advised that committees should not have their own social media pages, but should use the town page when they have an announcement they wish to make.

Lastly, the board voted to designate $12,000 in the SLPAC reserve fund to a general building and maintenance reserve.