Democrat Lauren Gister is seeking a fourth term as the first selectman for the Town of Chester in the upcoming municipal election on Nov. 2. She is running unopposed.

Gister served in the United States Marine Corps for 25 years, from 1977 to 2002. She earned a juris doctor degree from Hamline University School of Law in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 1996.

She founded her own non-litigation law firm in 1997, with a focus on real estate transactions and estate planning and administration, as well as mediation. She is now an associate for the general practice law firm, Hudson, Kilby & McCauley, LLC, which is based in Essex.

Gister currently serves as vice chair of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Council of Governments (RiverCOG) and chair of the Lower Connecticut River Land Trust. She is the former vice president of the Board of Directors for Congregation Beth Shalom Rodfe Zedek.

A resident of Chester since 1996, Gister said, “I love this town. I’m very proud to live in this town. We have the most amazing community. We don’t always agree on everything, but we talk to each other, and I think that is extremely valuable.”

Asked why she’s running for office again, Gister said, “I feel like this is my opportunity to serve my community…There is still work to do that I think needs to be done and I can help with.”

One example is expanding on the town’s emergency operations plan for things like flooding, bridge washouts, or other impacts from hurricanes or storms.

“I feel that the way we handled these things and the recovery that we have done has been wonderful and comprehensive for that [particular] event, but I also think we need to really, really think through our plans for sustainability and resiliency long term,” said Gister, pointing to the increasing severity of weather-related events.

“We need to start thinking about, what kind of a plan do we have to put into place so that we can basically turn on a dime when we need to and manage an emergency,” she said. “We’re part way there, but we have some more work to do.”

She also is currently working to digitize town files, “particularly our land use files so the public can have access to them even when we don’t have someone in the office,” Gister said.

With the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority plant, which handles Chester’s municipal solid waste, closing next year, Gister said she’s also been meeting with other selectmen and mayors on ways to alleviate the increasing cost burden of municipal garbage disposal.

“We don’t want to go backward, we have to think of some solutions,” she said.

She also plans to reinstate the town’s small cities home rehabilitation loan program for low-income residents, and is documenting environmentally and socially conscious activities for the town to gain certification with Sustainable CT.

Other projects include finishing the Wi-Fi installation downtown, the funds for which were received through the state’s STEAP grant program and working with RiverCOG on the regional housing needs study.

“One of the really big priorities, I know for myself and for [incumbent Democrat] Charlene [Janecek] in the next two years is to do really detailed housing planning,” said Gister. “We need a better diversity of housing. We need to benefit everybody.

“…We have some challenges because the town doesn’t own any land that we can do this on, but we have a number of either un-utilized or under-utilized properties that are all privately owned, but I think we could partner with owners and with other developers to utilize these properties better to benefit Chester and also to inspire good economic development,” she continued.

Two major projects that Gister has seen to completion during her tenure are the multi-million-dollar Main Street project and the $800,00 revitalization of the Cherry Hill low-income housing complex. The improvements at the Cherry Hill complex were made possible through the state’s Small Cities grant program.

“I’m particularly proud of the work that’s been done for the Main Street project,” said Gister. “At least part of the work was able to get done when a lot of our merchants weren’t operating full time” due to statewide restrictions for businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gister has also worked on projects including the online tax payment system for residents and the redesign of the walkway to the Maple Street parking lot.

She said that the town is on solid financial footing overall.

“We have done a lot to save money in this town and it shows. Our emergency bank account is really in good shape,” said Gister. “…We’ve tried to keep taxes as low as possible and not strain our residents and our taxpayers any more than is absolutely necessary.”

A part of her approach to financial decision making, she said, is striking a balance between making improvements and using taxpayer dollars wisely.

“We want it [any type of improvement] to be the best use of our taxpayer’s money to give them the services and the kind of town that they love and expect to continue to have,” said Gister. “And I think we’ve done a really good job at that.”