El Reno Municipal Authority Receives $1,500,000 Loan with 100% Principal Forgiveness from the OWRB for Improving Stormwater Management

OKLAHOMA CITY – The El Reno Municipal Authority (Authority) received approval for a $1,500,000 loan with 100% principal forgiveness Tuesday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the Authority’s stormwater management infrastructure.  Construction of upgrades and improvements will be financed by the Oklahoma Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF).

The Authority is addressing aging and inadequate stormwater management systems throughout the City of El Reno. The city’s current drainage infrastructure, which includes natural creeks, channels, roadside ditches, and culverts, has led to severe flooding in multiple areas. The proposed project will develop a comprehensive Drainage Master Plan aimed at identifying system deficiencies, assessing critical drainage areas, and designing solutions. This initiative represents a crucial step toward enhancing stormwater management, improving erosion control, and reducing flood risks for the community.

Lori Johnson, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the Authority’s  customers will save an estimated $1,925,900 compared to traditional financing.

“We are grateful to Oklahoma Legislators from the El Reno area for their continued support of our financial assistance programs,” said Julie Cunningham, Executive Director of the OWRB.

The CWSRF program is administered by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board with partial funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  The CWSRF program has provided approximately $2.7 billion in water quality loans to provide communities the resources necessary to maintain and improve the infrastructure that protects our valuable water resources statewide.

Since 1983, the Oklahoma Water Resources Board has approved over $7.5 billion in loans and grants for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements throughout Oklahoma.