Muskogee Municipal Authority Receives $37,170,000 Loan for Wastewater System Improvements from the OWRB

OKLAHOMA CITY – Muskogee Municipal Authority (Authority) received approval for a $37,170,000 Financial Assistance Program (FAP) loan on Tuesday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve their wastewater infrastructure.

The Authority operates a sanitary sewer collection system and wastewater treatment plant originally constructed in the 1950s. Aging infrastructure, combined with damage from the May 2019 flood, has led to significant system failures and the need to restore regulatory compliance. The proposed project includes major upgrades to the treatment process, such as a new influent screening structure, rehabilitation of the raw sewage pump station, and improvements to the flow equalization basins, which help manage peak flows. Additional enhancements include updated headworks facilities, a second grit-removal unit, a new sequencing batch reactor basin, ultraviolet disinfection, solids handling facilities, and a new administration building, along with demolition of outdated structures. Due to construction bids exceeding earlier estimates, the Authority is requesting up to $37.17 million in supplemental funding to complete these essential system improvements.

According to Lori Johnson, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, the Authority’s  customers will save an estimated $11,766,000 compared to traditional financing. The loan shall be secured with a lien on the revenues of the Authority’s  water and sewer services, and a .5 cent sales tax.

Local officials attending the OWRB’s monthly meeting in support of the loan application included Muskogee Municipal Authority’s Public Works Director Mike Stewart and Assistant Director Avery Rigney. “We are very appreciative of the consideration of this loan,” said Stewart.

“We are grateful to State Senator Avery Frix and State Representatives Neil Hays and Chris Sneed for their support of our financial assistance programs,” said Julie Cunningham, Executive Director of the OWRB.

Since 1983, the Oklahoma Water Resources Board has approved over $8.3 billion in loans and grants for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements throughout Oklahoma.