By Charles Stannard

CHESTER— Republican First Selectman Tom Marsh is defending his four-year record against sometimes sharp criticism from Democratic challenger Chuck Della Rocco in the Nov. 3 town election contest.

Marsh, 50, was first elected in 2005, defeating six-term incumbent Democrat Martin Heft by 30 votes. He was re-elected in 2007 on an 858-493 vote over Democrat Justin Good. Marsh had run unsuccessfully against Heft in 2001. The owner of a cleaning services company, Marsh is a married father of three has lived in Chester for the past 20 years.

Della Rocco, 41, is an Old Saybrook native who became a police officer in that town after serving previously as a military policeman in the U.S. Army, including service during the 1989 Panama Intervention. He left the Old Saybrook force in 2007 and currently works as a police officer for the state Judicial Branch, providing security at the State Library/Supreme Court building in Hartford. The married father of two elementary school children has lived Chester since 2002.

Della Rocco, who said his opponent “means well,” has questioned several of Marsh’s policy decisions. Marsh said Della Rocco has “not offered one new idea and has not done his homework,” during the campaign.

Della Rocco said economic development and building the town’s commercial and industrial tax base would be the major issue facing Chester over the next two years. He criticized Marsh for transferring a $500,000 state Small Town Economic Assistance Program grant that was awarded to help fund construction of a Route 148 public water line to the Inspiration Lane Industrial Park to help pay for the sewer expansion project that was completed last year. “Taking care of the sewer project is fine but he has not tried to get money for the water service that is needed at the industrial park,” Della Rocco said.

Marsh said the $500,000 in state funds would not have covered the entire cost of the water main project, which is on hold because property owners at the industrial park are currently unwilling to contribute to help fund the full cost of the project.

Della Rocco said Marsh made no effort to locate a regional probate court that is scheduled to open in 2011 at the Chester Town Hall. “You’re just giving it away,” he said, rejecting Marsh’s position that there is not space for a nine-town court in the Route 154 town hall building. Marsh said first selectmen from the nine towns that would be included in the regional court, including the larger towns of Clinton, Old Saybrook, and Westbrook, favored locating the court in Old Saybrook, where the town has offered rent-free space. Marsh said the Chester Town Hall would have been “overwhelmed” by the activity generated by a nine-town court.

Marsh said controlling and reducing town budget expenditures has been the major accomplishment of his two terms, noting the current town budget is lower than the spending plan he inherited in 2005. Della Rocco maintains Marsh has “moved money around,” to reduce the budget total, particulartly by shifting money budgeted for road projects to a capital projects fund.

Della Rocco has also criticized Marsh over maintenance at the Chester Community Center Building on Route 154. Marsh said the community center is used much less since the new town hall opened in 2003, and suggests the building may eventually be demolished to make room for a new community center that could be linked to the Chester Public Library.

“We pay attention to it but we don’t want to spend any more money on it than we have to at this time,” Marsh said. Della Rocco said the town should consider closing the community center if it is not planning to maintain the building.

Della Rocco said he remains undecided on the proposed town purchase of 4.6-acres of riverfront land on Parker’s Point Road that goes to the voters in a Nov. 10 bonding referendum. While agreeing the parcel is “a beautiful piece of property,” Della Rocco said the $948,000 purchase price is too high and suggests delaying the referendum in an effort to negotiate a lower price.

Marsh, who supports the open space acquisition, said the owners are not willing to lower the price. Marsh added the net expense for the town, now at about $400,000 plus bonding expenses, would not be a changed by a lower price because state grant funding, now at $484,520, would be reduced if the sale price was lowered.

The make-up of the three-member board of selectmen will change, regardless of the outcome of the contest between Marsh and Della Rocco. Both Democrat Heft, who has served on the board since losing the top job in 2005, and six-term Republican Selectman Bruce Watrous are stepping aside this year. Marsh is running with Tom Englert, a Whelen Engineering employee who serves on the water pollution control authority and the zoning board of appeals. Della Rocco is running with Lawrence Sypher, the owner of a local internet technology business who serves on the planning and zoning commission.