CHESTER, Vt. – The Chester Selectboard’s first order of business at their Dec. 4 meeting was to adopt a Vision Zero resolution proposed by the Mount Ascutney Regional Commission (MARC). Logan Nicoll of MARC was present at the meeting, explaining that adoption of the resolution opened up the possibility for the Town of Chester to take advantage of federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant money, which would fund projects that improve road safety. This could include projects such as bike lanes, guard rails, and other projects which reduce the risk to pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and all other users of Chester’s roads. The grants, Nicoll said, typically require 10-40% matching funds, but there is no obligation to the town simply by adopting the resolution.
The board then heard a request for a highway access permit from Kevin Longo, representing Longo Properties, the owner of 116 Main Street, also known as the Henry Office Building. Longo told the board he has had a longstanding issue with his neighbor over an easement which allows access and parking on his neighbor’s lot next door. Due to the nature of the disagreements, Longo sought approval from the board for a curb cut, which would enable him to construct a driveway on the opposite side of the building, eliminating the need to take advantage of the easement and, Longo hoped, effectively solve his issues with the neighbor.
Longo detailed some of the issues he has faced with his neighbor over the years, which he claimed included dissuading of contractors and deliveries, blocking access with physical barriers, and snow plowing so as to block cars from exiting or block entrances to his building. When Longo has hired his own plows, he alleges his neighbor has threatened to call the police, and to revoke the easement. Tenants have been harassed, Longo said, while entering or exiting the building, resulting in verbal altercations. He also claimed that a change of use at the neighbor’s property, involving the sale and transportation of sheds from the lot in question, has created a danger to tenants and pedestrians needing to use the lot for access and parking.
The situation is complicated by the layout of the property, which was created long before modern zoning or setback requirements were established. As a result, the property line on the side of the building opposite the problematic neighbor, on which the proposed driveway is to be built, passes within inches of a residential home owned by Lauren Fierman, who was present at the meeting. Fierman, although “completely sympathetic” with Longo’s issue, was concerned about the driveway’s potential impacts on drainage, and the possibility of snow being plowed against her home and ground-level windows in the winter. “Because of setback requirements,” Fierman told the board, she had assumed “nothing would really change” when she purchased the home. “I want to know that our property isn’t going to be damaged as a result of this,” she said.
Longo was willing to work with Fierman to create assurances for her, but the board was less convinced about allowing the exception to the highway access rules. Several asked if all legal avenues had been exhausted. “Is there some instrument of the law that could hold your neighbor accountable?” asked board member Tim Roper. Longo replied that such attempts had been ineffective due to a lack of enforcement.
“Sometimes I wish you had taken the route of the courts a little further than you have,” said Board Chair Arne Jonynas. Board member Peter Hudkins stressed that the recommendations and standards for access permits exist for a reason, and felt that creating an exception due to conflict with a neighbor set a bad precedent.
The board was also concerned with potential impacts to Fierman’s property value or integrity created by allowing an exception to the highway access rules, and what liability would fall to the town for any such issues.
Ultimately, the board felt that it would be best to consult with the town’s attorney on the matter, and wanted to see a concrete agreement for mitigation of any impacts between Longo and Fierman before issuing a final decision.
Moving on, the board also granted a request for economic development funds for Phase 2 of the electrical upgrades to the town hall auditorium, to bring in three-phase power, among other improvements. The total for both phases amounts to $31,000, though town manager Julie Hance believed that grants could be used to cover much of the cost. The auditorium has seen increased use for music and other performances recently, as a local group called Upstairs at Town Hall works to bring cultural events to Chester.
The board also set the dates of their January meetings for Jan. 2 and 15, due to the first Wednesday falling on New Year’s Day.
The Chester Selectboard will next meet on Wednesday, Dec. 18, at 6:30 p.m., at the Chester Town Hall.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated in several places that the proposed driveway would not conform with setback requirements. In fact, it is not setback rules that the board would be allowing an exception to, but highway access rules. According to Chester’s Unified Development Bylaws, driveways do not count against side yard setbacks.