Land transfer is hot topic in Chili

A tiny parcel of land, locked within a subdivision in Chili, has been the topic of conversation among town residents this spring. The property in dispute is a small 4.4 acre town park adjacent to Ranchmar subdivision in the center of town. This section of land, which had been gifted to the town in 1954 by builder Joe Entress, has received only minimal attention in recent years, partly because there is no provision for parking.

At times, the land would be flooded for ice skating but basically the residents of the area have in the past complained of drunken partying, vandalism, garbage, noise and fighting. Also the lack of parking space has created an unauthorized and unsafe parking situation on the residential streets. Ruth Hoyler of Laredo Drive at the entrance to the park, spoke at the May 8 town information meeting. "My husband and I try to pick up after the drug users, gathering bottles and other junk left by couples." Her neighbor, Jim Lyon, related how some of the picnic tables were broken up and used for firewood. Dave Easton of nearby Sequoia Drive stated, "There must be a better use of the land than what exists there today. I'm in favor of some sort of developed recreational use there but without access through our subdivision."

Enter St. Pius Church. Present at the May 8 meeting were four representatives from the church who had petitioned the town months earlier about purchasing the land which is directly to the west of church property on Chili Avenue and serves as a land bridge to the subdivision. Mike Wagner, chairman of the long-range planning committee of the church, explained that St. Pius was facing a shortage of land as they seek to expand. One solution was to use one of their soccer fields for parking which they are reluctant to do. It was then they inquired about the land the town owned.

Approaching Chili Supervisor Stephen Hendershott, they laid out a plan to buy, develop and maintain the land for two soccer fields. Mark Ricigliano, a member of the church's committee, further stated that, "We want to build these fields not just for our parish but also for the town. In a way, it would be our gift to the town."

That offer may be very much needed. Usually each year, Chili uses 36 soccer fields, some of them in Gates, Riga and on the campus of Roberts Wesleyan College. At this time, there are only nine town-owned fields and several private fields available due to construction in those other places. Eric Bacon, director of Chili Recreation, explained that Chili has 1,600 children ready to play soccer as he and Thom Stevens, president of the Chili Soccer, are scrambling for adequate playing areas.

After the church requested the land, the town board consulted with the town attorney, Richard Stowe, and passed a resolution on March 20 granting the lot transfer even though the church was willing to purchase the property for current market value. Joe Carr, commissioner of Pubic Works and Parks, said the town would actually save money by turning the park over to the church because it would cost about $27,000 if the town were to develop the fields. Robert Hunter of North Chili said, "This transfer of town property strikes me as an imaginative solution to the best use of a difficult situation. A town lemon could easily become lemonade with new soccer fields."

However, on the night of the information meeting, opposition to the resolution was expressed by some speakers. In fact, a resident of Rochester, Douglas Fisher, made references to the recent troubles within the Catholic Church and suggested that the land transfer was not appropriate at this time. Other dissidents expressed the fear that the St. Pius parish might eventually use the land for other purposes, or sell the property, make a profit and use the proceeds to pay off church obligations. A few residents, who included Florence Goodwin and Irene Brixner, objected to the town giving away valuable land. Hendershott said that the land has not been used for over 30 years and has very little value, as is. Some made passing references to the separation of church and state.

Prior to the meeting, the dissidents, objecting to any transfer, had filed a petition thereby forcing a town referendum vote on the issue. According to the supervisor, that vote will take place on June 18.