Village of Chester applies for CDBG grant

The Village of Chester Board of Trustees voted to submit an application for the annual Orange County CDBG grant at their May 11 meeting. They are seeking up to $225,000 for sidewalk improvements. The board first held a public hearing on the matter in which nobody from the public spoke.

It was a relatively quiet board meeting overall. The board discussed whether they wanted to sell the 99-year lease on a T-Mobile cell tower. The village was offered over $1 million in a lump sum for the transaction but would lose the decades of revenue promised. The board rejected the idea unanimously.

Chief McGuire announced the new regulations on e-bikes. The law is you have to be 16-years-old to ride an e-bike, they cannot drive on sidewalks and can only drive on roads with a 30 mile per hour or less speed limit.

The mayor swore in a new police officer – Jake Harford. A $750,000 BYRNE JAG grant application for police equipment was approved.

The board appointed a new court clerk – Kalilah Anderson, effective June 1. Deputy Mayor Elizabeth Reilly noted, “She’s very pleasant.”

The board also re-hired summer clerk Jaciel Foss. Trustee Anthony Laspina was absent from the meeting.