Chester is a lovely town nestled in the beautiful Hudson Valley, where residents are committed to preserving and protecting its natural beauty. Part of the tradition of living in Chester is the unwritten social contract to contribute to a peaceful and high quality of life by treating one another with neighborliness and care. Like the residents of all communities, we most certainly have differences of opinion about many things, but we agree to sort them out kindly and with mutual respect.
Recently, The Chronicle published a letter from Mr. Jay Westerveld, which does not live up to those standards. It was rather malicious, and quite mean-spirited. Further, it makes accusations that are simply not correct. Mr. Westerveld has attended at most four meetings of the Chester Conservation Advisory Council (CCAC). His presence has been met with respect and goodwill in response to his offers to share information and expertise during our meetings.
In the published letter and online comments, he distorted the context of meeting discussions, which is disappointing. At the time we believed his participation in our meetings was intended to bolster the capacity of the CCAC to address environmental issues. The exaggerations in his letter make clear that he was not interested in the real work of the CCAC but rather in creating an alternate assemblage of counterpoints to damage public faith in our efforts.
The Council is happy to discuss any substantive questions or concerns Mr. Westerveld may have about our work, but at the same time, we also request that he not engage in further malicious attacks, as they reflect poorly on him and on our town. We will understand if he no longer intends to support our meetings but remind Mr. Westerveld that speaking respectfully to and of his neighbors is really a prerequisite of good citizenship.
Chester Conservation Advisory Council
Chester