Town Board - Regular Meeting

order attendance please supervisor here council member becker johnson council member cassara here council member courtney here council member dipley here please stand for the pledge of allegiance

standing in a moment of silence for the family and residents that were affected by the fire in Sugarloaf last night and the firefighters and first responders that came to help them. Thank you. All right. Did everybody get a chance to review the August 12th minutes? yes yes are there any questions or debate points on them no seeing none is there a motion to uh approve the minutes i'll make the motion all those in favor aye aye all right the town will be paying bills in the amounts of 652 thousand dollars uh 652 thousand eighty four dollars and forty eight cents And we have something nice to start off the evening with. We have a proclamation.

All right.

I had the pleasure of attending an event earlier this month in Cornwall for somebody special in the Chester community. And we're going to be honoring her tonight. a proclamation honoring Virginia Badiato on her distinction as a super-ager. Whereas Virginia Badiato has been a born and raised lifelong and honorable member of the Chester community, whereas Virginia Badiato has been designated and honored by the Orange County Office of Aging as a super-ager, Whereas Virginia possesses the traits of a super-ager as she maintains an active lifestyle physically, mentally, and socially. Whereas Virginia Battagotto has been a member of the Chester Golden Age Club and having served as treasurer of this organization demonstrates her acuity. whereas Virginia continues to attend meetings, play bingo and cards, and partake in the club's events, whereas Virginia Badiato is much younger than her chronological age of 94. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the town board of Chester formally recognizes Virginia Badiato as a model representation of what it means to be a super-ager with this official proclamation. Congratulations. would you be willing to come up and take a photo?

Okay, cool.

Town board members, you wanna go down?

Hi, thank you very much. It's a great honor. and I thank the seniors at the Chester Golden Age for electing me. And it feels so funny to be 94 and have four children that are seniors too. My oldest son is 74. So I don't feel old until I, you know, I think of that. I thank you very much.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I just want to say you have one public comment, Miss Virginia. Virginia? You have one public comment. You have a congratulations from Earl Vandefover on social media.

All right, now we need to enter into executive session. Is there a motion to enter into executive session for contract negotiations and personnel?

I'll make that motion. I'll second.

All those in favor? Aye.

All right.

Is everybody good? We're good. Michelle, let me know when you're good. Is there a motion to come out of executive session? I'll make the motion.

I'll second.

All those in favor? Aye. Is there a motion to open a public hearing on the community preservation plan local law? I'll make the motion. Is there a second? Second. All those in favor? Aye. Liz, do you want to give a tee up to this?

Okay.

As the board is aware, we have been working towards implementing a community preservation both plan and fund. This was specifically authorized by state legislature. legislation back I think Governor Hochul signed it back in October of last year there are three parts to implement that we've accomplished two of them first is to create the fund so there's now a fund as well as a community preservation fund advisory committee the second is to create a tax That tax was adopted by local law last month and is on the ballot, has been sent to the Board of Elections to be on the ballot on the November 3rd general election, whether the community wants the transfer tax, the three quarters of 1% transfer tax created. And what's before you and the public this evening is the plan, which is the list of properties that are targets for use of community preservation fund dollars. It's not necessarily a we will, but it is a goal, a wish list. And this document should be revised and actually needs to be revised within the next three to five years. So if there are properties that are not necessarily on it, that doesn't mean they're precluded. they would be added at the next round you cannot spend money from that fund if the property is not listed in this plan so the plan was worked on by the advisory board as well as your planner lincoln tully with kristen o'donnell and i believe that was posted online as as part of uh part of this so i would turn it over to you for the public comment

yeah so uh everything uh liz just said you know this is our final step uh the plan has been online for quite a while now including a map that lists all of the sbls and properties it's a good plan again i want to thank the volunteers one of which we have today who came up with it with our planner And like Liz said, this is a living, breathing document. So within three to five years, it needs to be updated so we can add to the wish list and adapt to the times. So with that being said, I only have one person who wrote down for this. Ryan, do you want to step up?

Good evening. I think this plan is not controversial, and so I don't imagine it would incur the same hesitation before the unanimous vote that the tax itself did, but I still wanted to speak in support of it. I think this plan does three things well. First, it supports achieving the vision of the comprehensive plan, preserving Chester's rural character and accommodating fiscally responsible growth. The comprehensive plan itself calls for creating this fund. So you guys are doing a thing that the comprehensive plan set out to do. And I hope that other folks would understand that and hear that. It's fulfilling a commitment. Second, In case it was unclear, I wanted, again, my neighbors to understand that this does not touch landowners' autonomy. Every tool in this plan, purchasing or development rights or conservation easements are voluntary. Property owners are not required to sell or do anything. Is that all correct? Okay. I feel like it is worth saying that as many times as possible so people understand, again, that this is not controversial because it is optional. It does not remove freedoms that people have. And third, it protects the resources that I think, again, I think this should not be controversial. We cannot get back once they are gone. The black dirt farmland, once it's paved over, can't unpave it. Or maybe you can, I don't know, but probably not. The wellheads and the aquifer areas, once they are contaminated, you cannot uncontaminate them. Tom's here, maybe he would tell me different, but I feel like this is a reasonable train of thought. The cost of not fulfilling this plan is permanent. Inaction is permanent here. And so I think, again, I see no reason why this would be controversial. But in case it is, I wanted folks to understand really clearly. And one more time, just because the vote on the tax does not come until November, I just want to voice my support for it. I think it is totally reasonable that the average fee of $2,000 on an average home sale is a way to pay for the farmland and the agricultural land and the aquifers that we are protecting through this plan.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Brian. Is there anybody else in the audience that would like to speak on this?

Most people who come to a community like Chester wanted to stay that way. It's called a drawbridge effect. I'm here and I don't want anybody else to be here. come to planning board meetings, you'll see people stand up there and say, I bought my house with this beautiful view, and now you want to power housing development. Now, when you buy a house, it's expensive. No doubt about it. And my guess is that most people who say, I like the way it is, if they say, well, we have a plan for that, and it's going to cost you a little bit, he's going to say, ouch. But most likely, they're going to say, where do I sign? Because I want it to stay the way it is, and if it's gonna cost me a few bucks, I just spent a half million dollars on my house, another $2,000 is not gonna kill anything. So I support it very heavily.

Thank you. Thank you.

Sir, do you want to step up?

Please state your name and address, since you're not a regular here.

Good evening. Vincent Herlihy, 8 Mary Road, Chester. I'm just uncertain. I'm not familiar with the legislation, but I'm just uncertain as to how the listed properties will be chosen and how the sensitive properties will be designated or proven to the community that they're worthy of being saved as opposed to, say, a sweetheart deal for some developer that can't get rid of his property.

So we had a committee put together of five residents, two of which are local farmers who went through all of the properties in Chester with a planner and designated, I think it's around, I want to say 25, 30 properties, which is a wishlist of properties that are designated. their subjective opinion uh you know important for the town in terms of open space in terms of farmland in terms of aquifers or natural resources historical sites etc etc um so it is a wish list um and it is subjective uh you know so when this plan is passed and if you know we get that uh fund passed in november which I hope everybody votes yes on. It will be up to the town board in conjunction with that committee to go through and say, hey, is this property on our, first of all, is it on our plan? Is it in our wishlist already? Because the funds can only be used on the properties in the wishlist. And then is that property available per the owner. Does the owner even want to do anything with it? And it's not always just an outright sale. It is also a conservation situation on the property. So a farmer can continue to farm and own his property with an easement on it.

So is the evaluations open for the public to review for each of these wish list properties?

Everything is on the website.

Okay, yeah, thank you.

So it just to add to what the supervisor said, if you look at the draft plan, For each property, it identifies a category of why it's on the list. Agricultural, watershed, aquifer protection. So it identifies a category of why it's on the list. Sometimes it's because there's a nearby trail system and it wants to provide a connecting piece. The other thing that's important for the public to know, any acquisition, whether it's purchasing development rights, conservation, easement, whatever, any acquisition, is subject to a public hearing before this board, before we can spend the dime. So the public would be aware of it and be able to come in and comment on the acquisition of a particular piece of property.

Very good, thank you. Is there anybody else in the audience that'd like to speak on it? Is there anybody online? Is there a motion to close this public hearing? I'll make the motion. Is there a second? I'll second. All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Is there any other comments or debate points from the town board on this?

Oh, I'm good.

Is there a motion to pass the oh, wait, we ought to go through language first. Let's take it away.

Yes, you do. OK. Whereas the town of Chester possesses a rich history of scenic agricultural and natural resources, the preservation of which is vital to the future economic success and quality of life for the community. To further the objective of preserving the natural, scenic, and historic treasures, the town board of the town of Chester finds it necessary to establish a dedicated fund for their conservation. Such fund has been authorized under section 64-L of the New York Town Law. Under this statute, the creation of a fund and community preservation project plan is a prerequisite to the implementation of a three-quarter percent real estate transfer tax, which is also authorized by town law section 64-L and article 31A4 of the New York tax law. The purpose of this local law is to meet the requirements of town law section 64L for a preservation project plan and thereby set the stage to continue the town's open space preservation plans. Whereas as required by town law section 64-L, the plan provides a detailed evaluation of all available land use alternatives to protect community character, including but not limited to A, fee simple acquisition, zoning regulations, including density reductions, cluster development and site plan and design requirements, transfer of development rights, the purchase of development rights, and scenic and conservation easements. That evaluation is as specific as practical to each parcel selected for inclusion in such plan. Such plan establishes the priorities for preservation and includes the preservation of farmland as its highest priority. Funds from the Community Preservation Fund may only be expended for projects which have been included in such plan. Such plan shall be updated not less than once every five years, but in no event until at least three years after the adoption of the original plan. And whereas Introductory Local Law 6 of 2026 entitled a local law to establish a community preservation project plan to Town Law 64L was introduced on July 20th, 2026, Whereas the town board declared lead agency and further declared that this action is an unlisted action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act. And whereas a duly noticed public hearing was held on August 26th, 2026. Now, therefore, be it resolved that after review of the draft community preservation plan, the recommendation of the town of Chester comprehensive plan, the public comment, the town board hereby adopts a negative declaration, incorporating the findings that have set forth in the negative declaration adopted in connection with the 2026 comprehensive plan and local law six of 2027 as the proposed community preservation plan is in furtherance of the goals and recommendations enumerated in the comprehensive plan. and be it further resolved that introductory local law six of 2026 is hereby adopted as local law seven of 2026. Be it further resolved that the town clerk shall cause said local law to be filed with the New York Secretary of State.

All right, are there any comments or debate points? No. Seeing none, is there a motion to pass the local law as read?

I'll make the motion.

Is there a second? I'll second. All those in favor? Aye. Aye. It's passed, thank you.

thank you again to the volunteers that worked on it so now that this is passed because it is more than 60 days this was a triggering threshold you have now satisfied the criteria for the tax to be on the ballot yes

So November 3rd, there will be multiple referent. Always flip over your ballot. There will be a referendum on there for the preservation fund transfer tax. I highly suggest if we want to see our community continue to thrive in the way that it has been for all this time, that you vote yes on that. All right, public comments. We first have Robert Klein on the sheet here.

Robert Klein, 9 North Hudson Street, Chester, New York, in the village of Chester. I wanted to comment about the upcoming item on the agenda. I'm not going to talk about the issue of privacy or the issue of people worried about the drones. because that's not my concern. This is something that the board has to evaluate. The legitimacy of a purchase of a drone by the police department hasn't even been discussed yet by the board. But I understand through the grapevine that reading the paperwork that the drone purchase is just under $8,000. Two comments regarding that. Number one, as I'm sure you all know, the prices of drones have gotten cheaper and cheaper and cheaper. 10 years ago, you could not have bought a drone for the same quality that you can buy today. Who knows what the quality is going to be a year from now or two years from now. It's going to be a lot better with the advent of AI and the ability to operate drones is beyond any of our imagination. So I do not advocate for the board to reject the proposal. However, study it, think carefully, delay the purchase long enough to get a better price and a better quality drone down the road. Number two, I just became aware that one of our county legislators has mentioned that the Orange County Sheriff's Office has several of these drones currently in service and available to all agencies within minutes. The legislator, who I do not know the name, uh fully understand the one for municipality municipalities to have their own however we have to start using our available resources to share and consolidate services this allows us to evaluate investigate investigate investigate delaying the purchase is not going to be something that's going to hurt the town and it's not an anti-police proposal, but instead it may be a wiser purchase. The other point is that I understand that the building department purchased the drone a while back, I don't know how long ago, that it's not being used. And that might be a good thing for the police department and the building department to play around with this drone to see if it can have any use for the purpose that the police department wants to use. My only point again is evaluate, investigate, the bottom line, save the town some money and think carefully. Don't jump too high as soon as we have a proposal on the floor. That's all I'm saying. Thank you.

Thank you. So the drone is... There was three... Three prices for three different drones. This drone came in at the lower price. This is being purchased through asset forfeiture, meaning that we are not spending taxpayer money on the purchase. It's not Chester residents' tax dollars that are going towards it. It's asset forfeiture. So it's from revenue that they made from whatever situations that they have come across and have been able to come and get into the police department. The drone that the building department has nowhere near the capabilities that this drone has, this is specifically made for law enforcement to allow them to do specific things when it comes to saving somebody's life or tracking somebody, et cetera, et cetera. And yeah, the final point that you made about the sheriff's office, the police department did acknowledge that the sheriff's office and other municipalities have drones, however, and we have, what's the word uh requested to use them in the past however they're not always available and even if they are the time it takes to get the drone from wherever it is in orange county to chester can be the difference according to the police department in terms of minutes or hours um and you know being able to use the drone to actually do what they need to do and those minutes and hours can count I'm going to read a statement from the police chief later on in the agenda when we get to that, but I just wanted to answer all those concerns. So moving forward, are there any other public comments today? Yes.

Hello, this is Christine Koenig for Jackie Court. I also just wanted to say a few words about the drone request. I, unlike you, do have some privacy concerns. The capabilities of this drone include facial recognition. It includes being able to, from thousands of feet away, track people by the heat of their body. It does not distinguish between my backyard and understandably in a safety concern where they're tracking someone. I would just like to understand some basic things like where's the data store? Or how safe is that data? What kind of identification is happening at things that you have listed here, like monitoring traffic and crowds during large events? Why are we monitoring people during large events? What does that mean? So whether we have the money to buy something or not is very important. But also, what is it that we're doing? How are we keeping that information safe? And under what circumstances is that, I guess, veil of privacy that technology lifts, when is that okay? And I don't know that that's been part of the discussion or if it will be part of the discussion later today, but it is certainly something that is important to me.

I'm just going to read the statement from him now, just because I want to be able to respond to you now. So just from the police department, the police chief. I believe most of the concerns expressed in this letter, which will be read later on from another concerned citizen, but basically what you just said, are addressed in our policy. Aside from being addressed in our policy, there are laws in place to protect privacy also. Our operators have been trained and understand the limitations of use and need to obtain warrants when covering area with a reasonable expectation of privacy while other agencies in the area already have this technology and it can be available to us upon request it is not always available when the five-year-old autistic child or dementia patient patient is missing in the woods in january minutes count and waiting for a drone to come from middletown could create life-threatening delays Just a few weeks ago, we worked with Blooming Grove PD to deploy a drone over Goose Pond Mountain Park. A hiker had reported passing a female hiker with a male companion and believed the female may have been in distress. We have also issued a drone in the past to monitor traffic at our fireworks event. It allowed us to see which roads were most backed up and to direct traffic accordingly. We used drones during the anti-ice facility events earlier this year to monitor parking and pedestrian traffic to allow us to deploy resources appropriately. These are only a few of the common sense uses of drones. Finally, the initial purchase of the equipment is coming from previously received asset forfeiture funds. So there's no taxpayer money being used for the purchase there is. And what he was referencing to in the beginning was a policy manual that was specifically made for drone usage that outlines everything about privacy laws and guidelines, data storage, et cetera. And I believe all of it is internal to the town of Chester and it takes a warrant for any other agency to access that data. So all of that is outlined in the manual here, which I can send to you if you'd like to read it over.

I would like to read it, my understanding, you know, be, again, with data storage, if we're in these discussions, having, you know, traffic control for an event, why is that being saved so that someone can even get it out of line, right? Like, and again, I haven't read it, and maybe that is addressed in there, how long data is stored for. It's just that there's a lot that goes into that, and understanding, or at least having a discussion, a real discussion about it,

Yeah, it takes a warrant or exigent circumstance for them to actually record using the drone. So they could use the drone to see things, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they're literally hitting the button record. So they're literally being able to play this back in the future. There is a procedure and steps that it takes to actually have them save the data somewhere. But I can send this to you. Thank you. Yeah. And that's not to say if there's something that's missing from this, I don't believe anybody on the town board would be opposed to adding to it if there's something that the police or us did not think of for the policy manual. That's definitely something that we'd be open to. All right, is there any other public comment here tonight? Yes, Vincent.

Hello again. Vincent Herlihy, Aid Mary Rochester. I have several issues. One, the cost of the drone is relatively insignificant considering the number of households. It would probably be about a dollar a household. The real issue is you have to pay for somebody to monitor that drone. I don't know There's stated uses in the manual. I would hope that they would be conducive to not having the community feel like it's being monitored.

So I just want to, I just, I'm sorry to interrupt. I just want to clarify, there's no added costs for having our trained police officers who know how to operate the drones, having to pay them an extra stipend or anything for them.

But they have to use their time. They have to be on the clock to monitor the drone. right yes right so we're using police officers or police assistants and we're paying them salary to monitor this drone rather than be in the field while they're in the field they would use the drone so they would already be there using the drone i see so it's it's not from the police station itself okay all right so i apologize for that misunderstanding the other thing was uh you know in addition to the expense of having the police officers using their time to monitor this thing rather than moving around through the community themselves. There's the issue of, say, the ICE demonstration, which I was at. And I saw the drone, and it wasn't monitoring traffic, it was monitoring the crowd where the speeches were taking place. I saw it on a number of occasions throughout the demonstration. And it's kind of intimidating. You don't know what the reason it's there for, why it's monitoring the crowd. It was basically 30 feet above the crowd, moving around, don't know how, you know, why the data is being collected. The data in the past has been used for political reasons, the data of this type. We don't want to be a community that feels that, you know, it can be discouraged from coming out and expressing its First Amendment rights. So I think that if the board was to approve this, that they should put some restrictions on how this equipment should be used. That it should be used solely for traffic, solely for emergency situations that are designated clearly as emergencies. The privacy issues are real, and you know, the monitoring can be abused. The Thruway Authority, I think, was basically adjudicated that they couldn't use their, what is it, photo data for vehicles getting on and getting off the Thruway to send, what is it, speeding tickets. So I'm not certain what the restrictions are in terms of how this will be used or how it would be designated to be used, but I think it's important that the council put an assurance to the community that it won't be abused.

Yeah, I believe it's all outlined here in the policy manual of which I can send to you as well. I appreciate that. And I just, I do want to clarify one other thing. They did, the police department did admit to monitoring traffic and pedestrian traffic for the larger gatherings. So that's what they were trying to be able to deploy their resources accordingly to that.

And what board oversight will there be with respect to how the police are using this data? through the reasons that they're using through the policy manual and of which like i said christine that's not oversight that's basically you know a statement now will there be annual oversight of anything like that just so we can review they're in compliance we can review policies yeah we can review and uh change it at any time so you know it can be done not the policy i'm saying that the way the police are using the equipment

I believe that is outlined in the policy manual. And again, if there's something that's there that you would suggest that should be there, I believe everybody up here would be open to hearing that out and adding to it. Is there anybody here that would like to speak? Is there anybody online? Okay, we'll move forward to reports. We'll start with Councilman Cassara.

I have no report to that.

Councilman Courtney.

I have nothing tonight.

Councilman Diffley.

Also I have nothing tonight. Wow.

It's all on you. You're making me nervous, guys. So the biggest thing that I have is I put something out about it on social media. We have completed phase one of our improvements to Carpenter Park, which is the $95,500 walkway, ADA walkway that extends around the left ball field area. you know, through through the snack shack around the ball field, connecting to all the bleachers around there and the playground, the swing set, the ball field and wrapping around back to the parking lot. So I'm very happy about that. The project was done and literally it felt like the blink of an eye, which I'm not used to with other projects that we've had here in Chester. So it's wonderful. I've already started getting compliments from parents who use the park, especially for Little League, that are very happy about it. So I'm happy that people are happy about it. Phase two will be the $175,000 grant that we were awarded last year for renovated ADA bathrooms at Carpenter Park and extra lighting around that area with the bathrooms and the snack shack. um so that will be done next year around the same time august and september and right now we are applying for a grant uh for phase three which will be to repave the whole uh parking lot there um and add more lighting to the parking lot itself so it's ada compliant handicap spaces uh everything like that um now you might be asking why are we getting all this grant money specifically for this park unfortunately due to the census track which is what uh the cdbg grant program uses to determine what uh areas are eligible for this specific grant program unfortunately the only place in all of chester that is eligible is carpenter community park So that is where we can get the money for us. That's where I'm going to make the money to get. So that's all we can use it for us. Yeah, that's that's what we're going to continue to do further phases. I mentioned the video is trying to work with a private community organization to have them raise funds like they did in Moorwick to do a community build over at Carpenter Park to do a new playground. I am also going to be looking at the basketball court to see if that should get repaved and get new hoops for that. And we are currently out for a, we currently submitted for a grant application to pay for half of the repair costs for the lights at the ball fields. So right now, as many of you out there who are invested with their kids know, the lights are out. We have a grant that will pay for half of it, which is about $20,000. So all in all, it's about a $39,000 repair job. Thank you. We would like to wait to see if we can get that grant award. It's tempting to spend the money that we have here now in our budget to fix the lights in time for fall ball. However, I believe, and I believe the town board believes it's more prudent to wait for the $20,000 that we may get from this grant program so we do not have to use the parkland funds. All of what we have left, we have about $40,000 left in our parkland funds. So if we use it all for this repair job, we're out of parkland funds until it replenishes with more applications to the planning board. So I believe it's prudent to wait for this $20,000 that we may get in order to get the get the repair done uh which unfortunately does not we do not know if we get awarded until december um so uh this this fall ball season will probably go without the lights so i've already spoken to the little league about that so they're already prepared for it but i just wanted to make it publicly stated out here just in case anybody wasn't uninformed um and uh there was one more thing with that but now i'm forgetting It'll come back to me. Besides that, we have some announcements of which I'm particularly proud of one, which is the field day. Our second annual family fun day or field day is going to be September 19th. What time is that? 12 to three on September 19th. Uh, so for those of you who already know, and for those of you who do not know, um, 12 to three on September 19th, it's basically a field day, which your kids or you may have experienced in elementary school. Um, it's going to be, there's going to be a petting zoo, hot dogs, ice cream, face painting, balloon twist, cotton candy, and much more, uh, flag football, uh, games connect for, and other giant sports or, uh, activities, uh, Did I say face painting? Yes, I did. So yeah, please RSVP by September 14, so we can kind of plan for the correct amount of people and kids to come. Last year was a gigantic success, hundreds of kids and their family members. And this is kind of geared for that elementary to middle school age, 5 to 12. That's what it's geared for. Everybody's welcome. I'm certainly going to have fun again, but it's geared for that age. So did I get everything for that, Michelle? Okay. It is at the Chester Commons Park. So that's off of the road near the police station and the senior center, senior rec center.

It's not on that flyer, so we should update that.

No, it is not. We'll update it. Chester Commons Park, just like last year. Right. Any other announcements?

I believe we have something coming up in Chivalo. Oh, we have a picnic. It'll be on your agenda a little bit ahead of that. It's their community annual picnic as well, August 29th, 4 to 9 p.m.

Very good. Sorry?

Oh, and September 22nd at 11 a.m., I believe, Michelle, right? 11? Yes.

11 a.m is the uh third annual senior picnic that we so first of all the family fun day is uh funded by a 5 000 grant from the county uh so that is more grant money for the town of chester and then the senior picnic which is on september 22nd um at 11 a.m at the uh carpenter community park Carpenter Community Park is in conjunction with the town of Warwick and Senator Skoufis' office, who for three years in a row have given us $10,000 each year to throw this nice picnic for seniors in Chester and Warwick. So please, I believe there is an RSVP system for that as well, right? michelle there is so please email or call into the chester um parks and rec office so you can rsvp for that so we can plan uh for the correct amount of lunches and ice cream uh for the seniors um plus one ice cream for me since i have ice cream i'm sorry the emergency We have an emergency preparedness meeting by the Department of Homeland Security on September 9th at the Senior Center at what time? 10 a.m. 10 a.m. Please, please RSVP to the Parks and Rec Department September 9th, 10 a.m. for an emergency preparedness meeting where I don't believe there will be any ice cream, unfortunately. It's never too early for ice cream. Never too early. All right, are there any other grants? I'm sorry, reports or announcements? I'd like more grants, but no, none right now. All right, police department drone requests. So this is a $7,849 DJI Matrice 4T drone from B&H Photo and Video. I've read the statement from the police. Chief, I was asked to read a statement from a resident. If I can find it. You have a printed copy. So this is from Chris Maurer. I write to urge you to reject the police department's proposed purchase of the drone, a compact but highly capable multi-sensor aircraft. It features three 48 megapixel visual cameras, including a telephoto lens with up to 112 times hybrid zoom and can capture fine detail from significant distances. a 640 by 512 thermal thermal camera with super resolution options that detects heat signatures in complete darkness or through light obscurance, a laser rangefinder with a range of up to 1800 meters, AI power detection and tracking of people and vehicles near infrared illumination for night operations and flight times approaching 49 minutes. This device would place continuous aerial observation capability in the hands of local law enforcement, high resolution cameras, thermal sensors, and other onboard technology can capture images and data over private yards, homes, streets, and public spaces, often without knowledge or consent of those being observed. Such capabilities undermines the reasonable expectation of privacy that residents of this community currently enjoy. Beyond individual privacy, the technology invites broader routine surveillance. Tools acquired for limited purposes, search and rescue, major event monitoring, and officer safety rarely remain limited. Over time, they tend to expand into everyday patrols, traffic enforcement, observation of gatherings, and general data collection. The result is a shift toward treating ordinary residents as subjects of ongoing aerial scrutiny. That shift curtails the simple freedom to go out in daily life without feeling watched from above. Additional concerns reinforce the case against acquisition. Ongoing costs for equipment, training, maintenance, software, data storage, and future upgrades divert resources from community-oriented policing. Public debated limits enacted before purchase on data retention, facial recognition, sharing with outside agencies, and use at protests. Mission creep is almost inevitable. Policies written afterward usually accommodate the technology rather than restrain it. stored video and sensor data create security risks potential for misuse or error and long-term records of private activity public trust is just restrained when residents perceive that surveillance is expanding faster than accountability practice issues uh noise cat crap i'm sorry crash risk airspace conflicts and liability add further complications While legitimate public safety needs exist, they do not require permanent local ownership of aerial surveillance platforms. Mutual aid arrangements, targeted warrant based tools and stronger community partnerships can address genuine emergencies without normalizing overhead monitoring of the entire town. I asked the council to vote against the drone purchase. So like the police chief said earlier, he believes that a lot of the concerns there are addressed in the policy manual. And like I said earlier, I believe this town board would not be opposed to adding more to it to ensure that as many people are as comfortable as is possible. I myself have conflicting thoughts about the use of drones and cameras, et cetera, et cetera. But I do believe the overall benefit to this, as long as it's carefully regulated, which I do believe the policy manual does do, is a benefit to the health and well-being of the community. I don't know. That's kind of where I'm at on it. Are there any other debate points or thoughts for or against the drone?

I think based on resident concerns right now with the data storage, and I'd like to review the policy manual because I haven't looked at it. I'm asking if we could just table this for the moment.

I would actually prefer to see the manual before I vote on it as well.

All right, that's fine. Is there a motion to table?

I'll make that motion.

Is there a second?

I'll second.

All those in favor? Aye. Aye. All right. Events requests. Michelle Deschler and Kristen Palmer requesting to attend the senior luncheon on October 19th for $45 each. Are there any questions or debate points? Is there a motion to accept the request?

I'll make the motion. I'll second.

All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Budget amendments, various in the General Fund and Lake Hill Farms Water District. Did everybody get a chance to review this?

Yes.

Are there any questions or debate points?

No.

Is there a motion to accept the budget amendments?

I'll make the motion. I'll second.

All those in favor? Aye. Aye. resolution to a set public hearing and annual prepare preparation of special district assessment roles on september 23rd um so this is an annual situation that we have to do for all of our special districts um like the garbage and drainage and etc etc um i'm sorry ambulance yes etc um annual non-controversial are there any comments or debate points on this no no Is there a motion to set the public hearing for the September 23rd? I'll make the motion.

I'll second.

All those in favor?

Aye.

Aye. Introductory local law number seven, 100% disabled veteran tax exemption. So this is an introduction of local law and setting public hearing for September 23rd as well. So it's basically exactly what it sounds like. The state has granted local municipalities the ability to opt in to a further exemptions for veterans, specifically 100 percent disabled veterans, which is determined by the VA. So they would get a large tax exemption for if they fall into that category. And I believe everybody on this town board would like to see our veterans get more tax exemptions. In addition to this, we are looking into further tax exemptions for veterans who may not be 100% disabled. And I believe seniors as well. We're currently researching that. And then there is yet another tax exemption that we'll be tackling for the spouses of fallen law enforcement officials that we are that also just got passed by the state legislator this year that I want to be able to pass as soon as possible as well. So we will be tackling that as well. But for now, this is the first that we can introduce. I believe, Liz, do we have something written on this or OK? Yeah. All right.

Whereas the New York State Legislature through the adoption of Section 458-A11 of the Real Property Tax Law has authorized municipalities to adopt a local law providing that the primary residents of any seriously disabled veteran shall be fully exempt from taxation and special district charges, assessments, and special ad valorem levies provided such veteran meets all of the other requirements of RPTL Section 458-A11. Whereas the town of Chester town board desires to authorize such exemption to the limited number of disabled veterans with primary residence in the town of Chester. And now therefore be it resolved that the town board of the town of Chester hereby introduces introductory local law seven of 2026, a local law amending article five veterans tax exemptions of chapter 87 taxation of the town of Chester town code to provide for an additional exemption for the primary residents of disabled veterans. And be it further resolved that a copy of the aforesaid introductory local law be laid upon the desk of each member of the board. And be it further resolved that the proposed law is not an action subject to the State Environmental Quality Review Act. be it further resolved that a public hearing shall be held on September 23rd, 2026 at 6.45 PM, or as soon thereafter as may be heard at Town of Chester Town Hall, 1786 Kings Highway, Chester, New York 10918. The town clerk shall cause to be published public notice in the official newspaper as is required by law.

Are there any questions or debate points on that? All right, seeing none, is there a motion to introduce the local law and set the public hearing for September 23rd? September 23rd. I'll make the motion.

I'll second.

All those in favor? Aye.

Aye.

I'm just going to give Linda a second to come back. Okay.

No pressure. We're waiting on you, Linda.

We did. Yes. How do you mean?

No.

No. No.

Oh, yeah. No, we don't get anything back. They basically put it in our laps if we decide to allow us to make the decision if we want to forego that tax revenue or not. Yeah, it's definitely something to think about. You know, every I'm sorry.

Yes.

Yeah. I'm yeah well yeah i know it's it's it's always a give and take do we want to give these people more tax exemptions with the knowledge knowing that every tax exemption you get is less revenue that you get that needs to be put on everybody else um i i believe personally um yes that's yeah exactly um all right Moving forward, public assembly permit request, Sugarloaf Community Foundation Picnic on August 29th, which we talked about a little bit earlier. Are there any questions or debate points on it?

No.

Seeing none, is there a motion to accept the permit request?

I'll make the motion. I'll second it.

All those in favor?

Aye.

Aye. Thank you. No problem. I'm sorry I can't be there. I hope it goes well.

Thank you.

She has your permit up here. That's your tax dollars at work for your town clerk, everybody.

Yes, I forwarded it to her.

3 p.m. to 8 p.m. for the picnic in Sugarloaf. I just want to, since we're talking about it, I just want to thank the Community Foundation and anybody else, perhaps the Chamber of Commerce, that's helping to put on all these amazing events that we're having in Sugarloaf these days. In the last couple of years, we have seen a beautiful renaissance in Sugarloaf, and it's thanks to everybody that puts them on. So thank you.

Yeah, and I'll actually be on the grill cooking hot dogs that afternoon. Good.

2026 to 2027 SRO agreements with Chester Union Free School District. I got one or two comments about this. We are not paying them, they are paying us. I just wanna make that very clear. $126,000 for the services that we are providing to them. It's a school resource officer, which every school now these days have. So I just wanna make that clear. Everybody got a chance to review the agreement? yep are there any questions or debate points nope this is an annual agreement we've done it i don't know how many how many years in a row running these days a long time um that many years all right so is there a motion to uh approve the agreement uh with the chester union free school district i'll make the motion a second all those in favor aye aye right resignation of jackie elfer is as planning board interim chairwoman and from the planning board entirely um so uh jackie unfortunately has a little bit too much going on in her life right now and she can no longer uh sir feels that she can serve on the uh planning board as chair or just as a regular member um try to convince her to stay but uh no she's very busy so um I want to first thank Jackie. She has been as well as previous members and chair people and institution on the board. Her resignation letter reads as follows. Please accept this letter as my formal resignation from the chairman of, as chairman of the planning board effective August 17th Thank you for the opportunity to serve in this role. It has been a rewarding experience and I am grateful for the trust that was placed in me. I believe we have accomplished several important objectives over the past year that will continue, excuse me, to benefit the planning board and the town. One of my primary goals was to establish a strong, well-rounded planning board. And I'm proud that we have assembled a board whose members bring valuable experience from various aspects of planning. They are engaged, thoughtful, committed to continuing their education and have a genuine vested interest in the future development of our community. With the support of the town board, we also acquired a Munich lab to streamline the site plan review process. Melissa has been instrumental as lead, communicating the needs and specifications of our department to customize the platform. Consequently, the system is nearly complete. The training process will begin shortly, and I'm confident it will greatly improve efficiency and organization moving forward. Additionally, we've established a productive working relationship with the finance department under Tanya's guidance, expertise, and patience. Through that collaboration, Tanya and Melissa developed a running financial document that has enabled the planning board to remain current with outstanding invoices. Building on that success, the planning department also created an internal financial tracking document for every applicant file. by placing financial information at the forefront of each file and incorporating it into munich lab finances have become an integrated and transparent part of the review process i'm sincerely thankful for the opportunity to serve and i leave knowing the that meaningful progress has been made as the board considers its next chairman i respectfully recommend mike mallon mike is an intelligent knowledgeable committed to continuing education in planning and has demonstrated strong leadership qualities. As a retiree, he also has the flexibility to dedicate the time and attention the position requires. I believe he will serve the board and the town exceptionally well. Thank you again for the opportunity to serve this community. I wish the planning board and the town continued success in the years ahead. Respectfully, Jackie Elfers. So like I said, I cannot thank Jackie enough for her diligence and leadership and experience and time that she put in to the position. And I couldn't agree more with her recommendation for her successor. But with that being said, are there any comments or debate points about the resignation letter?

Nope.

Is there a motion to accept the resignation of Jackie Elfers?

I'll make that motion. I'll second.

All those in favor?

Aye.

Aye. Next is the appointment of Michael Mallon as Planning Board Chairman. I've spoken with Michael. He is willing to do it. Had to twist his arm just a little bit, but he is a humble, humble human being. He was one of my first appointments as supervisor, actually, and I'm very proud of that appointment. I believe Councilman Courtney was on the board as well at the time. And from everything that I've seen from the meetings of those that I've watched and everything that I've heard from both members of the public and members like Jackie on the planning board, I really I truly agree with Jackie that he is the right person to to fill her shoes and hopefully expand on all the progress that has been made. Are there any other comments or debate points about this?

No.

All right. With that being said, is there a motion to appoint Michael Mallon as planning board chairman? I'll make the motion.

I'll second it.

All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Congratulations, Michael, and good luck. Congratulations, Michael. all right new business introductory local law number eight uh annual tax cap override authorization in case the town board needs to override the tax cap for 2027 budget for the 2027 budget so exactly what i said this is an annual thing every town does to give us the latitude if we need it uh to uh to override the tax It is not done every year. As we saw last year, we did not need to go over the tax cap, but we need the ability to do so if we need to do so. So with that being said, are there any, oh, we have something written. Yes. Let's read that first.

Whereas the town board wishes to have the ability to override the tax cap in order to meet the financial needs of the town. Now therefore be it resolved that the town board of the town of Chester introduces introductory local law eight of 2026 entitled the local law to override the tax levy limit established in general municipal law section three C is hereby introduced. Be it further resolved that copies of the aforesaid introductory local law be laid upon the desk of each member of the board and be it further resolved that the town board hereby declares lead agency and further declares this action as a type two action under the state environmental quality review act and no further environmental review is required. be it further resolved that a public hearing shall be held on September 23rd, 2026 at seven, that's from last year, 6.45 p.m., or soon thereafter as may be heard in Town Hall, 1786 Kings Highway, Chester, New York, be it further resolved that the town clerk shall cause to be published public notice in the official newspaper as is required by law.

Any other questions on this? Nope. Seeing none, is there a motion to introduce the local law?

I'll make the motion.

Second. All those in favor? Aye. Is there a motion to set a public hearing for the, oh, we did do that, sorry. All right, so you can strike that on the second one there. Authorize Town Clerk Cipolla to put out notices for the Planning Board, Zoning Board, and Comp Plan Action Committee open seats. So part of the comp plan was to create a committee to... to help the town board see through all the goals from the conference plan. So I would like to put out a notice to see who's interested in that. Also, we now have two vacant seats on the planning board and do we have a vacancy on the ZBA still? We still have a vacancy on the ZBA. So I'd like to put out another notice to see if we can get some people interested in joining these boards and committees. Five. Are there any comments or debate points on any of this? Nope. Nope. Steve? No. Is there a motion to authorize the town clerk to put out the notice? I'll make the motion.

I'll second it.

All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Is there any other new business?

Yeah, I'd like to bring something up. there's been a lot of opposition with the camera in front of town hall facing kings highway uh the board really needs to start discussing possibly relocating that camera possibly on the property uh if we're concerned about capturing any safety concerns or anything on the property but being an eyesore in the front by king's highway gets is getting a lot of dislikes and i'm in favor of relocating that camera

I'm also in favor of relocating the camera, as I've told the board members a couple times. I also, I actually did try to look into grant money to pay for the relocation, just so there was no concern about needing to spend money to relocate it. I'm waiting to hear back on that.

The only recommendation I would make to everybody, because I'm not in favor of moving it, but I'm only one vote on this board, is this kind of stuff, you have to go to the experts, and I think you have to go to the police chief and just get his thought on it, because that's what I did, and I came away with a different thought on it after I spoke with him. as i use the word aesthetically pleasing um because it does it's an eyesore i get that but there is very good reason for that but i would ask the board members if you know i would go ask and talk to him because it did change my thought on it so um i did have the i mean the police chief i believe did send out a um let me see

yeah he sent out a memo to us about his thoughts on it on uh July 8th um where he did go through you know what his opinion was on that so I would recommend that the board go and read that again um to see his opinions on it if they would like to he basically went through what it would take to move it um and the pros of keeping it where it is. So, you know, that is out there. I will forward it to everybody again. So it's on the top of their mailbox.

If I remember correctly, you discussed the costs of, you know, Wi-Fi and all that. Yeah, using another network. Basically, the cost is nothing right now, if I remember correctly, because it's using our existing network. and it's on our property, so it's not like we've got to

know rent space on pole or however that works yes you're correct right now because of where it is we are not paying anything for the uh for the wi-fi uh in the memo it says if we can no longer utilize the wi-fi service from town hall we will also need to purchase a communication box for 1390 uh 1300 i'm sorry 1 395 and spent about 25 a month for cellular service The total estimated cost to move the camera to a utility pole is $6,794 plus an additional cost for electric and telecommunication services of $900 annually. So that is, and then he caps it off. There's a much longer memo, but basically he caps it off. Although we have had these cameras for less than a year, we've already used them to provide evidence for several different investigations throughout town. This particular camera provided valuable evidence in damage caused by an alleged intoxicated driver striking another vehicle in the parking lot of town hall slash library on April 3rd. So I would ask that the town board review that memo again and discuss amongst yourselves if you would like to see it. I know I would like to see it removed anyway, based on the concerns that we've received from the residents on it.

But the course- Would it still surveil town hall? I would like to- Because I think that's a security-

I would like to see if the police department feels that there needs to be one in this area and it's beneficial, I would personally like to see it across the road on the telephone pole where it's more out of sight and out of mind and less of an eyesore and less of an unwelcoming, you know, figure in our town hall um even with the added cost personally um or relocated somewhere else uh where it's less unwelcoming um that's just off the top of my head so are are the concerns from the residents strictly aesthetics no no i mean there there's concerns for privacy about privacy like what was said about the drone um similar to what was said about the drone

So regardless of where the cameras move to, that concern would not be addressed.

That concern definitely won't be addressed, regardless of where the cameras move. I subscribe to, if it's more out of sight, out of mind, at the very least, people will feel a little less, like they've said, intimidated or unwelcomed at town hall. I think that's worth it. I think that's an okay middle ground, personally. Or have it move somewhere else entirely. I'm not sure what the answer is. But no one in this scenario, I believe, is going to be completely happy or unhappy. That's where we are.

Well, I disagree with that. And only because I'm in this building every day, sometimes late at night. And I do believe that it does give us a sense of security here. So maybe, and I agree also, it's unfortunate it's location. It's really aesthetically unpleasing and it would be nice if it were relocated, but whether or not it's worth the expense to do that just for the aesthetics, because you're not changing the fact that there is surveillance. But I think, honestly, I think it is warranted at this location.

I agree that Town Hall needs to have a security. problem if it was put somewhere else on the property so long as it it would be able to view the same areas or all the areas that our police department uh feels it that it needs to i would have no problem with moving it if it's you know again i'd rather not have to pay for it but if we could put it somewhere on our own property and still serve the exact same purpose i would have no problem

correct and i'm sure relocating on the property is going to be a lesser cost than moving it to a utility pole across the road yeah especially since it wouldn't be on the way so now so now you're

Now you're delegitimizing everybody who said that's an eyesore. It's literally right outside, right next to the town hall sign. It's in a big white pole. It's very hard to miss.

It's in line with the flagpole.

Yeah, it's perpendicular to the flagpole.

It makes sense.

Yeah, I think that would... I don't know.

Yeah. Yeah. Like Steve and Giuseppe said, and I have been saying this the whole time, if it can be relocated somewhere on the property, and like Steve said, serve the same purpose, I'm with that. Because I do agree with Linda about the benefits of having it here, and the police department about the benefits of having it here. So... okay so we'll you know town board please review the memo again and um i might i will go back to the police uh chief and see if there is somewhere else on the property without having to incur extra costs uh to to move it um to keep it moved not there will be a cost in moving it but hopefully there is a place that we can put it where there is no recurring costs like across the like across the street

to the members so that they can read.

All right, are there any other new business? Is there any public comment? Yes.

We were talking about repairs to the parks, sidewalks and things like that, lights and all kinds of other things. Why are we putting lights in the parks that close at dusk? so uh in the parking lot you know sometimes dusk goes a little bit uh yeah but you put it earlier on the ball field so when there are games that happen close according to what you tell me the parks closes i requested a light in the dog park and a light there because people do bring the dogs As the days get shorter, you can't use the park because you get home at five o'clock. It's dark. You can't take your dog for a walk. I see people park their cars with the headlights on so they can use the park.

Through the parks and rec department, Michelle, correct me if I'm wrong, you can get permission to use the park after dusk when they're safe.

But why do you need to do that? We pay for the park. And if you can use part of the parks at night and specifically use taxpayer money to light the park and pay for them, Why can't we have a light fixture in the dog park? Other communities do.

So I understand where you're coming from that. The answer before was in twofold. One, the parks are, in general, supposed to close at dusk, which can be a conversation, but also the cost of running the light out there for the utility.

It's not that expensive.

I'm not saying it's subjective whether it's expensive or not. I'm just saying the answer before, the town board was not interested at the time to do that.

Can we change that interest?

Absolutely. Please do. If you would like, you can write to the town board.

You don't really need to write to the town board. I'm talking to them.

Or you can talk about it right now.

I'm talking about it right now because we spent a lot of effort to put that park in, and people can't use it. because they get home, it's dark. They can't do anything with their dog. The dog's at home all day. They'd like to run the dog. They can't. But they're going in there, legally or not, and doing something that's unsafe because there's not enough light from co-ed lights. Wouldn't it be better just to put a light there, like other communities do, so that you can serve the community that why we put the dog far from the place? I'm asking you to reconsider that.

Okay.

Is there any other public comment?

I hate to partially rebut your comment, but just to let the board know that daylight saving time is now permanent so that it may not always be dark at five o'clock anymore in the wintertime.

I don't think that legislation has been signed, sir. That hasn't passed Congress or been signed by the president at this time.

My understanding is that is now permanent. Not permanent? No. So I may be correct.

Supervisor, just a thought. We're going to look into that. I don't know what polls were over there, but possibly Orange and Rockland could put up a light. We've had them put up lights in different parts of the town, and maybe we can get them to do that.

Like Richard said, we did research that at the time, and it was not an option. It wasn't an option. You're reminding me, we were hoping that Orange and Rockland would be able to do it at a... They can.

Yeah, they can. There's two polls. One of the polls support a light.

I remember the answer from the Parks and Rec department being that that was not an option.

Well, Parks and Rec do Parks and Rec. I do lighting. Sorry.

That's true. I understand.

And I'm also the one, for the people who don't know that, re-evaluated the entire Chesed lighting system during two previous administrations. And it's the one that re-laid out the parts of the lighting in Sugarloaf so that we have proper lighting. And re-laid out some of the other light fixtures within the town. so that you had better streamlining. So I have some experience with that.

Okay, I can reach out to O&R again about it, but I remember for whatever reason the answer was no at the time. So, sure.

There's a redevelopment in Tuxedo. They're using solar panels.

okay we will I'm making a note of that all right is there any other comment tonight online Brookside and Kings Highway.

What was the comment?

What about Brookside and Kings Highway intersection? The peanut thing.

The roundabout. Oh. There is no update with the Route 17 into I-86 plan as of right now. The last update is that it has been delayed and there are no current plans to move past the environmental review process at this time. We believe, according to DOT, that the environmental review process will be concluded at the end of this year or the beginning of next year, but they are very iffy about the schedule for that. So any changes to exit 126, I'm sorry, 127, or the intersection at 17M and Kings Highway, or if you want to call it Berkside Ave, that nothing is happening there at this time. Over here, Frank.

Yes.

For the relocation of the camera.

Ah, okay. For the relocation of the camera, yes, that's... It would be, that intersection is technically within the village of Chester, I believe, most, if not all. So that would not be a viable option to move our camera into. Anything else, Michelle? Is there anything from the town board? Seeing none, is there a motion to adjourn the meeting?

I'll make the motion.

Is there a second? All those in favor? Aye.