Guilderland is one step closer to adding 158 homes to the town’s water system.
At the Sept. 5 meeting, the town board agreed to hire Delaware Engineering to prepare the map and report on the West End water system improvement project, and also move forward with the proposal the firm submitted to the board.
A representative for Delaware Engineering said the company recommended taking water from existing connections near Hurst Road and direct it down to Route 146 to serve residents of Weaver Road, then loop it around Route 158 and connect the system across Route 20 to serve Chandler Road.
The plan would add 60 homes along Chandler Road, 30 along Church Road, 33 along Weaver Road, 31 along Route 158 and four homes along Grant Hill Road.
The cost of the project would be $7.1 million, a price that includes all the services provided by Delaware Engineering, from planning to construction.
The water improvement project would be paid for through a 30-year bond. New customers along the line would pay an annual price of $456.20, which would be added to the average annual usage charge of approximately $118. New users would also pay a one-time connection fee of $1,750.
Existing customers of the town’s water supply would see an annual increase of $9.87 to their bill.
In choosing the new water route, town supervisor Kenneth Runion, said there were two things to settle on.
One was to serve as many existing homes as possible, and the other was to loop existing dead-end lines, said Runion.
According to Runion, dead-end lines reduce water quality, and looping them improves the quality.
`These recommended extensions take care of probably 75 percent of existing homes with substandard water,` said Runion.
Many town residents who spoke at the meeting were in support of the water system improvement plan.
`Having water on Weaver Road has been an ambition and dream for a long time,` said resident Jim Bruce, who added that he has waited 40 years to be connected to town water. `Tomorrow is my birthday, and I think it would be a very nice birthday gift.`
One concern raised by the public centered on the possibility of encouraging unwanted development by providing water to the area. Currently, the water system only serves existing residences, and any new property would have to fund an individual extension. Runion added that no significant development had occurred following the recent water extension along Depot Road.
As an additional benefit for the entire town, the improvement would provide another emergency interconnect to the town of Rotterdam along the Church Road extension. This interconnect would be the fourth for the town, joining the town of Bethlehem, village of Voorheesville and the city of Albany.
The town’s 2001 comprehensive plan made several recommendations related to the provision of water service in the town’s western end. These recommendations were to conduct a study to find rural areas in Guilderland that demonstrated a need for water, consider future extensions of water service boundaries while protecting rural character and to explore opportunities for emergency water connections between municipalities.
A town-sponsored survey of residents showed that 52 percent by phone and 40 percent by mail considered expansion of water and sewer lines a high priority.“
