Chester Township, New Jersey

Chester Township is a township in southwestern Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 7,713, The township's name is derived from Chester in England.

Periodically recognized as part of the Somerset Hills, Chester Township is located in the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. It is known as the "doughnut" around Chester Borough since it completely surrounds it, making it part of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another.

Located about west of New York City, Chester Township is a semi-rural residential community known for its agricultural and equestrian farms along with its country estates. The township is characterized by undeveloped, residentially zoned areas that largely contain vast amounts of open space comprised of farmland — much of which is preserved — in addition to public parks.

The township has been one of the state's highest-income communities. Based on data from the 2014–2018 American Community Survey, the township residents had a median household income of $160,625, more than double the statewide median of $79,363.

History

The earliest records of individuals settling in the area date back to deeds dated in 1713, for properties located near a point where two Lenape Native American trails crossed at an area called Black River. With the arrival of the Rogerenes in 1730, the area developed as an agricultural community, producing applejack, flax and wool, as well as raising cattle. The Township was created from portions of Roxbury Township and Washington Township on April 1, 1799, following a local referendum. Additional territories were acquired from Randolph Township (in 1806) and Washington Township (1840 and 1853). Portions of the township were taken on April 3, 1930, to form Chester Borough, a separate municipality surrounded entirely by Chester Township.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 29.22 square miles (75.67 km2), including 29.13 square miles (75.45 km2) of land and 0.09 square miles (0.22 km2) of water (0.29%).

The township completely surrounds Chester Borough, making it part of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another.

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 7,838 people, 2,592 households, and 2,201 families in the township. The population density was . There were 2,697 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 93.31% (7,314) White, 1.05% (82) Black or African American, 0.03% (2) Native American, 3.50% (274) Asian, 0.01% (1) Pacific Islander, 0.54% (42) from other races, and 1.57% (123) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.35% (341) of the population.

Based on data from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey, Chester Township had a per capita income of $77,787 (ranked 16th in the state), compared to per capita income in Morris County of $47,342 and statewide of $34,858.

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census

Of the 2,323 households, 46.0% feature children under the age of 18, 79.6% were married couples living together, 4.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.3% were non-families. Of all households, 10.3% were made up of individuals, and 3.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.05 and the average family size was 3.29.|width=45%

Chester has been described as a rural environment that caters to "agritourism." The township has developed this reputation by preserving farmland through public investment in open spaces.

Tiger Brook Park: Purchased with the assistance of the New Jersey Green Acres Program in 1980, this preserve contains a reservoir. The governing body is comprised of the mayor and four councilmembers, all elected at-large for three-year terms on a staggered basis as part of the November general election, with two seats coming up for election in consecutive years followed by the mayoral seat in the third year of the cycle. The candidates run on a partisan basis at regular primary and general election times. Independent candidates, having declared their intentions at primary time, run only in the general election.

Chester Township's form of government features a strong mayor, who acts as the township's executive, overseeing the creation of a budget, preparing an annual financial report and the enforcement of state and local laws, and is responsible for hiring most township officials (with approval of the council). The council, which is the township's legislative body, selects one of its members to serve as president to preside when the mayor is not present. The mayor participates and votes in Council sessions and makes committee assignments to Councilmembers. The mayor and a member of the Council serve on the Planning Board.

The Mayor of Chester Township is Republican Timothy Drag. Members of the Chester Township Council are Joseph DiPaolo (R, 2023), Tara Schellhorn (R, 2023), Timothy Russell (R, 2024) and Veronica Heinlein Wood (R, 2024).

Merger discussion with Chester Borough

In 2007, New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine created incentives for municipalities with less than 10,000 inhabitants to combine with other communities. The goal was to reduce the overall cost of government and thereby offer some tax relief. "New Jersey has 21 counties, 566 municipalities and 616 school districts, and property taxes average $6,800 per homeowner, or twice the national average."

Chester Borough split from Chester Township in 1930 over the creation of sewer and water infrastructure in the more densely settled center of the municipality. The residents of the rural portions of the Township did not wish to financially support the construction and maintenance of a public sewer or water utility. Since that time rural Chester Township has relied upon individual private wells for water and septic systems for wastewater treatment while the Borough is primarily, although not entirely, served by public sewer and water. Concerns over the extension of utilities into the more rural Township with the resultant potential for large scale growth served as an impediment to consolidation. The prohibition of utility extensions supported by the NJ State Plan and codified in the Highlands Water Protection Act, along with the development restrictions contained in the Highlands Act have lessened those concerns. Additionally, an aggressive land conservation program in the Township has resulted in over 40% of the Township being placed into permanent preservation, further lessening worries about potential overdevelopment. The two municipalities currently share a common K–8 school district, volunteer fire department, library, first aid squad and other municipal services.

Governor Corzine's plan to reduce or eliminate state aid had residents considering recombining towns. The two mayors publicly endorsed a cost/benefit analysis of a merger.

Federal, state and county representation

Chester Township is located in the 7th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 24th state legislative district.

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 5,435 registered voters in Chester Township, of which 807 (14.8%) were registered as Democrats, 2,608 (48.0%) were registered as Republicans and 2,018 (37.1%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 2 voters registered as either Libertarians or Greens.

In the 2012 presidential election, Republican Mitt Romney received 67.2% of the vote (2,579 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 32.2% (1,235 votes), and other candidates with 0.7% (25 votes), among the 3,854 ballots cast by the township's 5,757 registered voters (15 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 66.9%. In the 2008 presidential election, Republican John McCain received 62.7% of the vote (2,821 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 36.1% (1,623 votes) and other candidates with 0.9% (39 votes), among the 4,499 ballots cast by the township's 5,748 registered voters, for a turnout of 78.3%. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican George W. Bush received 65.5% of the vote (2,840 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat John Kerry with 33.3% (1,445 votes) and other candidates with 0.7% (37 votes), among the 4,336 ballots cast by the township's 5,654 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 76.7.

In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 81.2% of the vote (2,280 cast), ahead of Democrat Barbara Buono with 17.4% (488 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (41 votes), among the 2,848 ballots cast by the township's 5,714 registered voters (39 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 49.8%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 72.1% of the vote (2,381 ballots cast), ahead of Democrat Jon Corzine with 19.0% (628 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 8.0% (264 votes) and other candidates with 0.3% (10 votes), among the 3,302 ballots cast by the township's 5,601 registered voters, yielding a 59.0% turnout.

Education

Students in public school for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade attend the Chester School District, together with children from Chester Borough. As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 1,047 students and 106.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 9.9:1. Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are

Dickerson Elementary School with 317 students in grades PreK–2, Bragg Elementary School with 325 students in grades 3–5 and Black River Middle School with 402 students in grades 6–8. Dickerson and Bragg Schools are located on County Route 510, east of Chester Borough; Black River Middle School is on County Route 513 (North Road), north of Chester Borough.

Students in public school for ninth through twelfth grades in both communities attend West Morris Mendham High School, which serves students from the surrounding Morris County school districts of Chester Borough, Chester Township, Mendham Borough and Mendham Township. The high school is part of the West Morris Regional High School District, which also serves students from Washington Township, who attend West Morris Central High School. As of the 2020–21 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 1,142 students and 91.9 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.4:1. The district's board of education is comprised of nine members who are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis. The nine seats on the board of education are allocated based on the populations of the constituent municipalities, with two seats assigned to Chester Township.

Gill St. Bernard's School, established in 1900, is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory day school, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, located on a campus along the Somerset-Morris county line between Peapack-Gladstone and Chester Township.

Transportation

thumb|right|[[U.S. Route 206 northbound in Chester Township]]

Roads and highways

, the borough had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Morris County and by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

U.S. Route 206 and CR 513 (otherwise known as Old Route 24 or North Road depending on the area) are the main north–south roads through the township while CR 510 (usually referred to as Old Route 24) acts as the east–west road.

No limited access roads run through Chester, but they are accessible in neighboring communities, such as Interstate 80 in Roxbury and Mount Olive, and both Interstate 287 and Interstate 78 in Bedminster.

Public transportation

NJ Transit local bus service was provided on the MCM4 and MCM5 routes until June 2010, when NJ Transit pulled the subsidy.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Chester Township include:

Ralph Barkman (1907–1998), American football player who played in the NFL for the Orange Tornadoes
Jim Breuer (born 1967), comedian who resided in the town from 2005 to 2021
Alex Buzbee (born 1985), defensive end for the Washington Redskins of the NFL
Robert L. Clifford (1924–2014), associate justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court
Nathan A. Cooper (1802–1879), landowner and businessman, owner of the Nathan Cooper Gristmill and the General Nathan Cooper Mansion
John J. Degnan (born 1944), former Attorney General of New Jersey who became Chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in 2014
Louise Fatio (1904–1993), writer of children's books, best known for her picture book The Happy Lion, with her illustrator husband Roger Duvoisin
James Gandolfini (1961–2013), actor
Martha Brookes Hutcheson (1871–1959), landscape architect, lecturer and author
Dave Levey, finalist on Hell's Kitchen
Rick Porcello (born 1988), pitcher who played for the New York Mets
William Segal (1904–2000), magazine publisher and self-taught artist whose work often reflected his interest in Eastern philosophies and religions
Peter Stroud (born 2002), professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Major League Soccer club New York Red Bulls
Michael Yamashita (born 1949), National Geographic photographer and documentary filmmaker

References

External links

Chester School District
School Data for the Chester Township Public School District, National Center for Education Statistics
West Morris Regional High School District
West Morris Mendham High School
Daily Record, area newspaper
Photographic montage of Chester Township
Chester Game Association