Home Care In Chester, CT

Chester's WPCA reviewed pump costs, a $247,000 fund balance and sewer plans for Water Street and Middlesex Avenue projects.

CHESTER, CT — The Chester Water Pollution Control Authority is preparing its 2026-27 budget after reviewing higher-than-expected pump replacement costs, a fund balance of about $247,000 and plans to purchase additional backup equipment.

The authority also reviewed sewer plans for developments at 9 Water St. and 47 Middlesex Ave. during its Aug. 18 meeting. A public hearing on the proposed WPCA budget is scheduled for Sept. 15.

Chairman Ed Meehan reviewed the current WPCA budget and reported that pump replacement work and related expenses have totaled approximately $28,000.

Those expenses include the pump, electrical work, transducers, soft-start costs, engineering and system reprogramming. The capital account, originally budgeted at $10,000, has reached approximately $14,000.

Winn River also performed spring cleaning and cleaned the wet well when a T connection was installed, at a cost of about $3,500 per visit.

Find out what's happening in Essex-Chester-Deep Riverfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

The authority is questioning a separate invoice from R.H. White for re-plumbing the T connection. The original quote was $4,800, but the invoice totaled $6,200. Meehan plans to seek clarification about charges for equipment, trucks, labor and materials before the bill is paid.

Despite those expenses, operations and maintenance spending was approximately $13,000 compared with a budget of $16,440, with surpluses in several accounts available to absorb some of the pump costs.

Members also agreed it would be beneficial to purchase a spare pump and motor because the previous backup equipment has been put into service. The estimated cost is $15,000 to $16,000. Meehan plans to obtain quotes and include the purchase in next year's capital budget.

The authority reported that revenue from equivalent dwelling units, or EDUs, was approximately $3,000 above budget, while interest and investment earnings totaled about $8,000.

The WPCA's fund balance is approximately $247,000, compared with the $215,000 estimated in the 2025 budget. Members discussed maintaining the capital nonrecurring fund and noted that some budget accounts, including telephone, tax collection and information technology and data processing, may need increases.

Connecticut Water has been asked to provide usage data covering October 2025 through August 2026. That information will be used to determine EDU rates. No significant change in the number of EDUs is expected, according to the minutes.

The authority has historically spent little of the $6,000 budgeted for shared sewer capital expenses with Deep River. Pete Lewis will be asked to provide anticipated improvements over the next five years.

Meehan will prepare a draft budget for discussion at the September meeting, with the public hearing scheduled for Sept. 15.

The WPCA also reviewed sewer arrangements for a project at 9 Water St.

The development is expected to pay approximately $7,200 in Assessment of Benefit fees. The authority agreed to waive a $2,000 tie-in fee.

The developer has agreed to pay for a Y connection. If the neighboring property, identified in the minutes as the bookstore, connects to the system later, it would be required to reimburse the developer. A contractor estimated that costs associated with the connection could total several hundred thousand dollars.

The owner of 2 N. Main St. may also seek to connect to the system to facilitate converting a barn into an office or accessory dwelling unit, according to the minutes.

The authority also discussed the development at 47 Middlesex Ave. Member Sam Chorches recused himself from that portion of the meeting.

According to the minutes, the developers prevailed in court and a 20-day appeal period was still underway. The Planning and Zoning Commission previously approved a special permit subject to multiple conditions, including WPCA approval.

The WPCA has previously indicated that the project should use a force-main system rather than a gravity system.

Benesch Engineering has been working with local civil and environmental engineering consultants Jacobson & Associates to determine an appropriate system, which will have to be shown to meet applicable requirements. Authority members recommended conducting a hydraulic analysis to determine whether the existing force main can accommodate the additional flows.

The developer will be responsible for Jacobson's costs.

The minutes also note that property owners on Gilbert Hill could potentially seek connections because they are within the Green Zone and a manhole is located across from Gilbert Hill.

With the appeal period still open, however, the WPCA reported that it remains on "stand by" regarding the project.

Meehan also reported that the Planning and Zoning Commission approved a small coffee roasting shop in the Colt Building at 45-47 Main St.

The Health Department raised the question of whether the business would need a grease separator. Because the operation is not expected to produce significant fats or grease, officials determined that a separator is not currently necessary. The requirement could be reconsidered if the menu or use changes.

The WPCA budgets $4,000 annually for fats, oils and grease inspections, which is paid to Jacobson rather than the Health District.

The authority unanimously approved its July 21 meeting minutes and adjourned at 7:37 p.m.

Connecticut Water has lifted a mandatory boil water order that had been in place for several towns after finding E. coli in their water systems, officials said.

The order “in place for the Chester and Guilford water systems has been lifted. Repeat water samples have confirmed that the water meets all state and federal safe drinking water guidelines and does not present a risk of E. coli contamination. Customers may return to normal use of their tap water,” a spokesman for Connecticut Water said.

“We know that this incident was impactful to our customers’ lives, especially as residents of thriving shoreline communities during the summer,” the spokesman said.

Customers in Deep River, Essex, Haddam, Chester, Old Saybrook, Westbrook, Clinton, Madison and Guilford had been under a mandatory boil water order after one routine water sample detected the presence of E. coli, according to company officials.

“While there was no indication of a widespread issue, it is important to us to follow public health guidelines and the direction of the Department of Public Health and issue a boil water notice while we re-tested the water,” the spokesman said. “The results of those additional tests showed that this was an isolated incident and was specific to a localized issue at one tap in Essex.

“While this boil notice was a great inconvenience, we prioritized the health and safety of our customers, and we believe that was the right thing to do,” the spokesman said. “We’d like to thank our customers for your patience and understanding during this situation. ”

The company has earlier noted, “We understand that this situation, while created out of an abundance of caution, is frustrating and is likely causing disruption to our customers’ weekend plans. We conduct over 120,000 routine water quality tests each year. This boil water order adheres to Department of Public Health mandate that we require you to boil your tap water while we re-test the water,” Connecticut Water said in a statement Saturday.

The bacteria was found at one sample point in Essex on Friday, the water company said. The order affects customers served by the Chester water system and the Guilford water system. The boil water order was put in place on Friday and that order had continued into this weekend.

The water company had earlier said it had water tankers with free water available at John Winthrop Middle School in Deep River, the Westbrook Fire Department, and the I-95 commuter lot in Madison.

The water issue had caused the company to state, “Please continue to boil your tap water for one minute prior to drinking. Bring your tap water to a boil for one minute, and then let it cool before consuming it, using it in food preparation, making ice, brushing teeth, or washing dishes. You can continue to use your tap water normally for all other uses such as laundry and bathing.”

The E. coli bacteria can potentially make you ill, according to health officials with the state’s Department of Public Health. The bacteria can pose a special health risk for infants, young children, some elderly, and people with severely compromised immune systems.

Until further notice, officials had said earlier, anyone in the affected towns should bring tap water to a boil for one minute, and then let it cool before drinking it, using it in food preparation, making ice, brushing teeth, or washing dishes.

Stephen Underwood can be reached at [email protected]

Some Connecticut towns are worth a whole trip on the strength of a single thing they do better than anywhere else in the state. A few keep a working maritime tradition alive instead of putting it in a display case. Others build their entire late-summer identity around one weekend on the fairgrounds. The towns on this list earn the "can't-miss" label not because they check every box, but because each one commits fully to what it is best at. That focus is what makes a day in any of these seven feel like the point of the trip rather than a stop along the way.

Where Connecticut's Small-Town Charm Really Lives

Westport

Every year around Memorial Day weekend, Westport turns its downtown over to the Westport Fine Arts Festival. Main Street and Elm Street fill with juried work from more than 150 painters, photographers, sculptors, and glass and ceramic artists, and the pieces are there to buy. The festival is free, and many of the artists stand with their own booths, so a conversation about a painting often happens with the person who made it.

The town keeps its arts calendar going the rest of the year too. The Westport Country Playhouse, running since 1931, stages a season that mixes drama and comedy. In the warm months, the Levitt Pavilion runs an outdoor series of live music, dance, and theater along the Saugatuck River, much of it free to the public.

Madison

Madison sits on the Long Island Sound shoreline within easy reach of Hartford, and its centerpiece is Hammonasset Beach State Park. This is the state's largest shoreline park, with two miles of sand, a boat launch, and more than 550 campsites for anyone who wants to stay the night. Inside the park, the Meigs Point Nature Center runs a saltwater touch tank and live animal programs where children can meet the local reptiles and shore birds up close.

A few minutes inland, RJ Julia Booksellers has anchored downtown for decades and ranks among New England's best-known independent bookstores. The shelves run deep across fiction, children's books, and local writing, and the shop hosts a steady schedule of author events. It is an easy place to lose an hour before or after the beach.

Essex

Essex grew up on shipbuilding and the railroad, and it still trades on both. Sitting on the banks of the Connecticut River, the town runs the Essex Steam Train and Riverboat, which pairs a vintage rail trip with a cruise on the river so you see the valley by land and by water on one ticket. Back in the village, the Connecticut River Museum walks through the region's shipbuilding and maritime past, including a replica of the first American submarine.

In June, Essex hosts the Connecticut Sea Music Festival, a family-friendly weekend of traditional maritime music spread across the town green, local churches, and the river museum. Daytime workshops and concerts are free, with ticketed evening shows and sails on the Connecticut River rounding out the schedule.

Chester

At the end of August, Chester throws one of the area's biggest weekends with the Chester Fair, a late-summer agricultural fair packed with livestock competitions, tractor pulls, midway rides, and food booths. It is a fixture of the local calendar and a last hurrah for kids before school starts. The town lies just north of Essex along Route 148.

Outside fair weekend, Chester stays busy. The Terris Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals' second stage, develops and premieres new musicals a short walk from the village center. And a couple of miles out on Turkey Hill Road, Chakana Sky Alpacas opens its small herd to visitors by appointment, so families can book a guided farm tour and meet the animals.

Mystic

Mystic has held onto its seafaring identity better than almost anywhere on the coast. At the Mystic Seaport Museum, you can board preserved 19th-century ships and walk through a recreated coastal village staffed by costumed interpreters. Just up the road, the Mystic Aquarium keeps the region's only beluga whales, alongside sand tiger sharks, African penguins, and a saltwater touch pool.

Shopping in Mystic has a period feel of its own at Olde Mistick Village. The open-air center is laid out to resemble a 1720s New England town, and its walkways are lined with boutiques and specialty shops where you can pick up a souvenir from the visit.

Washington

Washington is the town where Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino stayed when she dreamed up the fictional Stars Hollow, and fans still make the trip to see the place that sparked the show. The real draw, though, is the landscape. Steep Rock Preserve carries hikers across a suspension bridge and through an old rail tunnel on trails that turn brilliant in autumn when the fall foliage comes in. For a quieter kind of green, the Hollister House Garden lays out formal hedges and flower borders along winding paths.

Downtown rewards a slow browse as well. The Hickory Stick Bookshop has served Washington Depot readers for decades, and its deep, well-curated shelves make it easy to walk out with an armful, Rory Gilmore style.

Woodstock

Up in the Quiet Corner, Woodstock spreads across rolling farmland dotted with vineyards and historic homes. Taylor Brooke Winery pours its estate-grown wines from a tasting room and covered pavilion overlooking the vines on a 44-acre farm, with a sister brewery just down the hill. For a walk in the open air, Roseland Park runs paths along Roseland Lake, with a playground for children and a gazebo set out over the water.

Woodstock also caps the summer with the Woodstock Fair, one of the oldest and largest agricultural fairs in the state. Held over Labor Day weekend, it fills the fairgrounds with livestock shows, concerts, a midway, and competitions that draw crowds from across northeastern Connecticut and beyond.

Main Streets Still Doing the Job They Were Built For

Seven Sides of Connecticut Worth a Day Trip

What ties these towns together is how differently each one spends a visitor's afternoon. Essex and Mystic lean on the water and the maritime trades that built them, Chester and Woodstock save their biggest energy for the late-summer fairs, and Washington and Westport turn toward gardens, theater, and the arts. Madison sits comfortably between the two, part shoreline, part bookshop town. Pick the one that matches the day you want, and the rest keep well for the next trip.

ESSEX, Conn. (WFSB) - The mandatory boil water order was lifted for all customers on the shoreline around 4:15 p.m. on Saturday after E. coli was detected during routine testing, according to Connecticut Water.

New water testing confirmed the water meets all state and federal drinking standards and is safe to use. Officials said residents may return to normal use of their tap water.

The bacteria was found at one sample point in Essex on Friday. Connecticut Water said the results of additional testing found this was an isolated incident localized to one tap in Essex.

The boil water order affected customers served by two Connecticut Water systems: the Chester System and the Guilford Water System. The affected towns included Deep River, Essex, Haddam, Chester, Old Saybrook, Westbrook, Clinton, Madison and Guilford.

While the advisory was in place, customers were asked to bring tap water to a rolling boil for one minute and allow it to cool before drinking it, using it in food preparation, making ice, brushing teeth or washing dishes.

Connecticut Water said E. coli could pose a special health risk for infants, young children, some elderly individuals and people with compromised immune systems.

The announcement caused dozens of restaurants and business to close. Residents said common grocery stores were quickly cleared out of bottled water. Lines were wrapped around grocery stores late Friday night.

“My sister and I are senior citizens so we better stockpile some of our paper supplies, some plasticware for eating and some cups for drinking the water. Get some more water supplies so we won’t have to use our tap water. Fortunately, I did all my dishwasher dishes today so I know they’ve all been sanitized,” said Richard of Old Saybrook.