Orange County to allocate $2 million to modernize former Chester High School

Orange County will allocate $2 million to modernize the Maple Avenue building, the structure that formerly housed Chester High School, county officials announced. The funding will support the county's plan to convert and upgrade the property within the Village and Town of Chester.

The allocation, announced Feb. 25, 2026, directs a fixed $2,000,000 toward conversion and upgrade work at the Maple Avenue site. The county described the building as the former Chester High School, signaling a reuse of a long-standing local facility rather than demolition or sale of the parcel.

The decision places Orange County squarely in the lead role for the Maple Avenue project, transferring a county-level capital commitment into the Village of Chester footprint. County control of the $2 million shapes which approvals, procurement rules, and contracting frameworks will govern design and construction work on the former high school building.

Modernizing the Maple Avenue building will require interaction with municipal land-use processes in both the Village and Town of Chester. The property's historical identity as Chester High School establishes community expectations about access, preservation of the structure's exterior and interior elements, and the project's timeline for visible work on Maple Avenue.

The $2 million allocation also raises fiscal and political choices for Orange County's budget cycle. Committing $2,000,000 to a single reuse project in Chester will be weighed against other county capital priorities during upcoming budget reviews, and it will be subject to county procurement and oversight mechanisms for capital projects.

For local institutions, the allocation creates a path for reuse that could affect municipal services tied to the Maple Avenue site. County-led conversion and upgrade work will determine short-term construction impacts on Maple Avenue traffic patterns and parking, and longer-term operational implications for Village and Town of Chester municipal planning.

Next steps will be the production of specific project plans, permitting filings, and construction schedules tied to the county's $2,000,000 commitment to the Maple Avenue former Chester High School. The allocation sets a firm funding floor for the conversion and upgrade work and positions Orange County as the primary funder and coordinator for the property's next phase.