Your Voice, Chester’s Future: Interscholastic Athletics Facility Forums highlight opportunity

Conversations at Chester Union Free School District’s community forums and panels about the Interscholastic Athletics Facility have been informative and open to all viewpoints, providing residents a space to share questions, concerns and ideas.

The facility would serve as a resource for Chester students, families and the broader community. Other districts continue to invest in their facilities and the future, and this project is an opportunity for Chester to do the same, was the sentiment at a recent forum.

Community members would have access to the track and field and walking paths when available, and the facility would be available for community events as well. The district has seen a rise in requests to use existing spaces. This new facility would allow more of that and provide a safe and secure location for Chester students and teams to use for a variety of athletic, physical education and other district events. Plus, it will provide amenities not offered at our home athletic events. This would further strengthen Chester’s community presence. 

This project will help build Chester pride community-wide.

Conversations about this project have led to meaningful discussions about what it means to support students, attract families to our schools and invest in and secure Chester’s future.

“This is an opportunity to invest in Chester’s future by creating amenities that attract families, strengthen our schools, and support a vibrant, connected community for all,” Superintendent Catherine O’Hara said after the meeting.

There are 4,829 registered voters in the district, but only 288 people voted in the most recent budget vote. “These numbers emphasize the importance of communication as we work to ensure our community is informed, engaged and ready to participate in the upcoming vote,” said O’Hara, urging the Chester community to talk with friends and neighbors and spread the word about how big of an impact each community member can have. 

A vote on the $26.9 million project is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 16, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Chester Academy Band Room. We encourage everyone to come out and make their voice heard.

For more information, please visit https://www.chesterufsd.org/interscholastic-athletics-facility-capital-project.