Peter Talbot was elected chair of the Town of Cheshire council and took the gavel at the council’s organizational meeting on Dec. 1, 2025. The council also elected Jim Jenks as vice chair and approved a schedule of regular meetings for 2026.

Talbot, speaking after the vote, thanked colleagues and residents and emphasized broad participation in the election. “Nearly 50% of registered voters exercised their civil duty, 1 of the highest turnouts in recent memory for a municipal election,” he said. He added that his goal as chair will be inclusive deliberation: “My role as chair is to ensure that all 9 of us, regardless of party, have an equal voice.”

The council approved a slate of committee chairs and members. Announced assignments included Audit (chair: Miss Manky; members: Mister Tedisco and Mister Velleber), Budget (chair: Miss Pearson; members Miss Manky and Mister Walsh), Ordinance Review (chair: Mister Tedisco; staffed by Mister Jinx and Mister Velleber), Personnel (chair: Miss Kramer; Miss Pearson and Mister Walsh), Planning (chair: Mister Wolf; Miss Cramer and Mister Velleber), and Sustainability (chair: Mister Jinx; staffed by Mister Wolf and Mister Walsh). Council liaisons to town boards and commissions (for example, Board of Education, Planning & Zoning, Historic District, Housing Authority, Library, and WPCA) were announced by name.

The council took up and passed Resolution No. 120125-1 to adopt the 2026 regular-meeting calendar, with meetings set for the second Tuesday of most months (the dates read into the record included Jan. 13, Feb. 10, Mar. 10, Apr. 14, May 12, Jun. 9, Jul. 14, Aug. 11, Sep. 8, Oct. 13, Nov. 10, Dec. 8, and Jan. 12, 2027). The motion to adopt the calendar was seconded and approved “unanimously by those present;” individual roll-call votes were not read into the record.

The meeting concluded with brief procedural reminders about council rules and an adjournment motion that passed unanimously.

The council will formally review rules and procedures at the Jan. 13, 2026 meeting.