Wewoka Public Works Authority receives $1,000,000 grant for dam improvements
OKLAHOMA CITY –The Wewoka Public Works Authority (Authority) received approval for $1,000,000 in funding Tuesday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the Authority’s infrastructure. Improvements to the dam will be financed by the Oklahoma American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant program along with undetermined alternate funding sources.
The Authority owns and operates Wewoka Lake dam, which forms Wewoka Lake. The lake is the sole water supply source for the City of Wewoka, with over 1,500 customers. The dam is in need of repair to the concrete primary and emergency spillway structures. The proposed project includes the planning, design, and construction to repair or replace the concrete spillway based on the results of detailed engineering analysis and investigation. The estimated total cost of the project is $6,000,000 which will be partially funded by the ARPA grant of $1,000,000. Additional funding sources are being pursued for the remaining $5,000,000.
Joe Freeman, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the Authority’s customers will save an estimated $1,553,200 compared to traditional financing.
The ARPA grant program is administered by the OWRB with funding from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and appropriated through the Water and Wastewater American Rescue Plan Act grants program. This OWRB program has been structured to provide communities and other eligible entities with the financial resources necessary to address water and wastewater infrastructure needs within their systems. Since 1983 the Water Resources Board has approved over $7.3 billion in loans and grants for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements throughout Oklahoma.
“We are grateful to State Senator Grant Green and State Representative Danny Williams for their continued support of our financial assistance programs,” said Julie Cunningham, Executive Director of the OWRB.
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Contact:
Yohanes Sugeng
Oklahoma Water Resources Board
(405) 530-8800
yohanes.sugeng@owrb.ok.gov
