Tag: Chester Borough
In 1961, Chester Township released a proposed Master Plan which was mailed to every resident. The 30-page plan mentioned the possibility of merging the Borough and Township, and limiting commercial zoning to the Borough. The combined population at that time was 2,862, and was predicted to rise to 5320 by 1975. Source: Observer-Tribune
According to the Observer-Tribune, in 1961, the Chester Borough and Township Councils held a joint meeting to discuss exceed their borrowing power to construct a new school.
Working with the WPA in 1938, Chester Borough laborers transformed Budd Avenue from a single lane road into two lanes. They accomplished the task by removing ditches that had been on both sides of the street. The workers also added a hard surface, turning it into one of the “best thoroughfares in the town.” Source: Mendham-Chester Tribune
Chester Library now offers the only location for the complete list of Chester Borough and Township elected officials. Previously, information seekers paged through old record books at the Borough and Township offices or individual PDFs of council minutes on their web sites, or visited the Library to access Observer-Tribune newspapers from 1936 forward. The online list, accessible here: https://localhistory.chesterlib.org/chester-borough-and-township-elected-officials/, extends back to 1870, the earliest records of Chester Township’s elected officials available. The new elected officials list will be useful to students, teachers, genealogical researchers, political scientists, and other researchers.
The Library’s Chester Borough and Township Elected Officials web page is easily searchable by using the Find search option in a user’s browser menu. One also can use the Control/Command + F key combination to launch the Find option in a browser. The page will be updated with future election results as they become available. “This is an invaluable resource for the residents of Chester. It’s become much more convenient for this community to consult Chester’s election information by using this tool on the Library’s web site,” said Library Director Lesley Karczewski.
Until now, a compiled list of all Chester’s elected officials was nonexistent. Local History Department volunteer Marty Groff obtained the information by first searching the Observer-Tribune newspapers at the Chester Library. However the newspaper only dates to 1936; and the Library is missing the years between 1939 and 1954. Next, Groff visited both the Borough and Township offices over a period of months to comb through Council meeting minutes books spanning 144 years. After she compiled her lists from each locality, she gave them to Local History Librarian Debra Schiff, who created the web page and made the information available and accessible to users.
The Local History Department of the Chester Library in Chester, New Jersey is a resource for reference and original materials that document Chester, Morris County, and N.J. history. The purpose of the Local History Department is to collect, preserve, describe, and make accessible these materials to the local community, as well as to visiting and online researchers.
The Chester Library serves the residents of Chester Borough and Chester Township, New Jersey. The library houses a collection of over 70,000 books, DVDs, CDs, video games, audio books and e-books. In addition, it offers a wide array of adult, teen and children’s programs, public computers, online research services and community meeting rooms.
In 1957, Chester Borough passed (on first reading) its first zoning law. Among other points, the zoning ordinance covers the amount of land designated for light industrial and commercial uses on Route 206. Source: The Mendham-Chester Tribune.
In 1959, Chester Borough began measures to limit the number and type of outdoor signage installed locally. The Council asked attorney Edwin Orr to write an ordinance regulating the size, type, location, and materials permitted. Councilman Herbert Pickell, after some research recommended “that all signs be directional in nature, no sign shall exceed a size of three feet by five feet, [and] no individual firm be allowed more than two approved signs.” Source: Observer-Tribune.
In 1956, Mrs. Percy Chubb, 2nd donated 40.74 acres of land to the West Morris Regional High School District Board of Education. The land, located on Route 24 in Chester Borough, bordered Dr. Nicholas L. Migliaccio’s property. The Chester Chamber of Commerce objected to the Board’s acceptance of the land with a heated statement published in its entirety in the July 19 issue of The Mendham-Chester Tribune.
On September 6, 1960, the Chester Township Committee moved to abolish its participation in the 12-year old Tri-Municipal court that served the Township, Chester Borough, and Mendham Township. Chester Borough Council pulled out the following night. The Chesters planned to form their own court on advice from the Police Study Commission. Source: Observer-Tribune