The Village of Spencerport has completed the first phase of a five-year, $1 million maintenance and performance improvement plan for its water system, and officials say the improvement made to water pressure in the Village Pines subdivision has received mixed reviews from residents.

"These results are what we expected," said Mayor Theodore Walker. "This is the best we can get. We got our objectives met."

Homes in the Village Pines subdivision have experienced an increase in static water pressure of 10 pounds per square inch, which equals only about five to six additional psi when the water is flowing, according to Village Administrator Alan R. Scheg.

While Scheg said he has received positive feedback from at least one resident, Superintendent of Public Works Thomas M. West said one Luther Jacobs Way resident told him homeowners there are still not receiving the water pressure they would like.

When village officials first designed the improvement plan in 1998, they were addressing not only complaints about water pressure from residents, but a drop in fire safety rating from a four, to five (one is the best rating on a scale of one to nine). Then-Mayor Robert Kincaid said the poorer rating is a concern not only due to increased insurance premiums, but, more importantly, for the safety of the village in the event of a fire.

At that time, Village Engineer Tom Pavone told board members that many problems with water pressure are inherent in the geography of the village, and the principles of hydraulics. Water pressure into the home is roughly determined by the elevation of the home in relation to the elevation of the water storage tank minus the amount of pressure lost to friction in the pipe. The small size, and the condition of build-up inside the old cast-iron pipes, and the distance the pipe travels to reach the home will increase friction, decreasing pressure.

Areas such as the Village Pines development, at a relatively high elevation, experience very low water pressure. Other areas in the village with high elevation, or at a section of dead-end piping without the flow-through to help pressure, also experience low pressure.

Village Pines is located on the southwest edge of the village off Route 31, west of the intersection of Route 31 and Route 259.

Pavone advised the Village Board that the five-year plan would help most, but not all of these areas. Some areas are limited by their geography, and aside from raising the water tank at a cost of $1.5 to $2 million, would never have really high pressure.

"Luther Jacobs Way is the highest point in the village," West told board members at last week's meeting - "even higher than the water tower." He said while the village has done all it can, some residents there are considering installing pumps in their homes to further increase pressure.

Phase 2 of the original 1998 plan includes replacing the line on Lyell Avenue out to the Spencerport schools. Much of the pipe in the village is now either four or six-inch and cast iron, sub-standard today. It would be replaced by 12-inch plastic or concrete-lined iron piping. Other areas of dead-end piping would be looped back into the system.

Phase 3 includes more conversion to 12-inch piping to strengthen the feed from the water storage tank, what Pavone called the "backbone of the system." It also includes maintenance and replacement of some valves and hydrants in the system.

Board members unanimously passed a resolution at the January 2 meeting to solicit bids for the next project - improvements to the water main serving the Prospect Street and Maplewood Avenue area of the village.

In other news, Scheg told trustees the village's new web site should be up and running in the next month or two. He asked trustees to authorize obtaining a contract for web site hosting not to exceed $1,000 per year. He said he expected the cost to be more like $300 to $500 per year. The resolution was passed unanimously.

"It's coming out nicely," said Scheg of the website, which is being designed by a WE-MO-CO student. He said the site will contain a community calendar, a calendar of meetings for the village, zoning and planning boards along with minutes, an opening dialogue, information from the building inspector about local requirements, and links to the chamber of commerce, the Town of Ogden, the County of Monroe and the City of Rochester.

Trustee Theodore Rauber asked whether the website would contain a forum to advertise local business. "If I was traveling on the canal, and got online and saw that the village of Spencerport has a grocery store, restaurants, pump-out, no fee docking ... it may entice a boater to stop here," he said.

"Right now the site revolves around village government," said Scheg. He said other than a link to the local chamber of commerce, there are no plans to allow businesses to advertise. One possible problem with any plan would be fairness, and how to filter out undesirable advertisers, he said.

Trustee Steve Russell asked Scheg to look at selling sponsorship or piggybacking on town or county websites as a way to save on hosting fees. Scheg agreed all avenues would be explored.