CHESTER, Vt. – Chester residents began their 2025 Town Meeting by hearing from their elected representatives in the state legislature. Rep. Tom Charlton spoke first, addressing the House’s legislative priorities for the session, which he identified as education, health care costs, and housing. “I do think we can make progress on [education finance reform] this year,” Charlton told the meeting attendees, though he was more hesitant on school district mergers, which he felt would take more planning than was possible in a single legislative session.
Sens. Alison Clarkson and Joe Major largely echoed Charlton’s assessment of the legislative priorities, with Clarkson adding that the Senate was working to address the uncertainty of federal funding in the coming year. One-third of Vermont’s state budget, Clarkson said, comes from the federal government. Given the possibility of decreased federal money flowing into the state, Clarkson said that the treasurer had set up a task force to identify vulnerabilities in the budget where the state may need to “be careful about saving money.”
Prior to voting from the floor on Articles 5-22, those in attendance heard presentations on several ballot articles to be voted on the following day. Article 3 asks voters to approve funding for replacement of sewer force mains along Depot Street, as well as the First Avenue pump station, in the amount of $2,982,900. Naomi Johnson, of Dufresne Group, gave a presentation similar to the one given to the selectboard at their previous meeting, explaining that several pipes were cracked or had reduced capacity due to blockages, and that the pump station was located below the waterline of a 100-year flood. During the reconstruction, the pump station will be elevated above the water line of a 500-year flood, in accordance with new federal regulations. The total cost to water and sewer users would amount to $12.52 per user per month, Johnson said. The town is also applying for Hazard Mitigation Grant funds, which could further reduce the overall cost of the project to the town.
Selectboard member Tim Roper then presented to those gathered on Article 4, the town’s proposal to purchase a solar field along Route 103. Again, echoing his discussion at the previous board meeting, Roper told the crowd that the solar field is currently owned by GLC Chester Community Solar, an “LLC subsidiary of a company called Greenbacker.” Roper told the crowd that the town estimates that the money generated by ownership of the solar field will be enough to fully cover the 10-year bond payments, after which the solar field will generate nearly $150,000 for the town yearly. The total amount of the bond is $1.14 million, and the estimated return on investment for the town is 10.25%. While the estimates were only projected to the 25-year warranty period of the panels from the construction of the solar field, which began operating in 2015, Roper said in response to a question from a voter that, in his experience in the solar industry, “There are solar panels that have been producing for 40, 45 years.”
Voters then approved Article 5, the purchase of a new police cruiser for the Chester Police Department, at a cost of $70,000, before hearing town manager Julie Hance break down the town’s budget. Hance noted that the town is not anticipating adding any new programs or positions. The operations budget had increased by 3.89%, “which is approximately the rate of inflation,” according to Hance, and the second half of the principal payment for the public safety building, totaling $88,000, accounted for another 2% increase. This meant a total increase of 5.89%, and a total budget of $4,225,000. After some discussion, Article 6, approving the town budget, passed.
Article 7, setting up a housing reserve fund, also passed, with Hance explaining that the money for the fund would come from short-term rental (STR) registration fees, as well as potentially other sources the town determines will not affect the taxpayers. The anticipated total generated by STR registration fees is $24,000. The fund will be used to pay for expenses related to creating affordable housing in Chester.
Articles 8-10, exempting the Gassetts Grange, Chester Rod & Gun Club, and Green Mountain Softball Inc. from municipal and education taxes for a period of five years, also passed, as did Articles 11-22, allocating funding to organizations providing health care, senior living, mental health, and other social services.
Chester will vote on Articles 1-4 on Tuesday, March 4, by Australian ballot. The results will be posted in the next edition of The Vermont Journal.
The Chester Selectboard will hold their regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, March 5, at 6 p.m., at the Chester Town Hall.