CHESTER, Vt. – The 2024 Chester Town Meeting began with residents hearing from Sen. Alison Clarkson and Rep. Heather Chase, both of whom represent Chester in the Vermont State Senate and House of Representatives, respectively. Clarkson and Chase outlined the legislative priorities for this year’s legislative session, touching on familiar subjects such as housing, property taxes, and the affordability of living in Vermont. This was to be Chase’s last meeting as a member of the Chester Selectboard, on which she had served for nine years, as she was not seeking reelection.
Articles 1-4 will be voted on by Australian ballot on Tuesday, March 5, so voting at Monday’s Town Meeting began with Article 5, the general fund budget. Chester resident Jurene Slivinsky questioned the proposed 7% increase, saying that when she and her husband had decided to retire to Vermont from Connecticut, property taxes in Vermont were substantially lower. Since then, Vermont’s taxes have superseded those of Connecticut, and are continuing to increase. Slivinsky also felt that the percentage increase “should be on the ballot,” referring to the fact that only a raw budget number, and not the proposed change from the previous year, is shown on the Town Meeting warning.
Town manager Julie Hance presented the town’s budget proposal, totaling $3,975,784, to those gathered, going over details of each town department and any projects, hires, or other changes which would cause their budgets to increase. Hance also noted that material costs are increasing across the board, affecting municipal budgets as well as household budgets. “We really tried our best to keep this budget as low as possible,” Hance said, adding that, “If we are keeping services in Chester at what they are now, this is what it takes.”
When taken to a vote, Article 5 passed, with several audible “nay” votes.
Articles 6-17, largely contributing funding to local organizations that provide various services to residents of Chester and surrounding towns, passed with minimal discussion.
Article 18, the final article on the warning, did generate some interest, as it proposed to “authorize an annual community appropriation of $4,070 to endorse the Mountain Town Connector, a service providing free transportation to residents of Chester.” Nicole Wengerd, executive director of Neighborhood Connections in Londonderry, was present, and answered several questions about the service. Wengerd explained that the Mountain Town Connector had, for the last three years, been receiving pilot grant funding, which was about to expire. Wengerd hoped to continue to operate the service through municipal funding provided by the towns the Connector serves. The Mountain Town Connector, Wengerd explained, provides rides to those who need, for any reason, to be driven somewhere, prioritizing medical appointments. Chester, she said, made up 15% of the 1,500 rides the service provided in 2023, second only to Londonderry, which accounted for 60%. Of those rides in Chester, 45% were rides for medical appointments. There is no income or age criteria, and drivers will stay with riders “door through door,” even taking them to multiple consecutive appointments, errands, or other stops.
When put to a vote, Article 18 passed, and shortly thereafter, the meeting was adjourned. Results of Tuesday’s ballot articles will be posted in next week’s edition of The Vermont Journal.