Perkins authorizes PWA to pursue up to $5M in OWRB financing; Baker Group outlines loan-forgiveness windows

The City of Perkins on Dec. 9 authorized its Public Works Authority to apply for financing from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) and to engage financial adviser Baker Group and bond counsel for related drinking-water and wastewater projects, with the total aggregate principal not to exceed $5,000,000. The resolution was presented as a first-step authorization to file loan applications; taking the loans (if approved) would require later, separate acceptance actions.

Representatives from Baker Group outlined a multi-loan approach intended to maximize loan forgiveness and principal reduction where eligible. Baker Group’s representative (identified in the record alternately as “Charles DeCun” and later introduced as “Charles Lacoon”) described three potential borrowing tracks: an automated metering/SCADA project (the group estimated pockets of forgiveness that could total up to about $800,000–$1,000,000 if approved by the OWRB by June), a lead-service-line replacement program (which, if approved by the June window, could be largely forgiven except for application/fee costs), and a third category for water-distribution or line projects (roughly described as a $600,000-scale project) that might allow some sewer items to be incorporated.

Baker Group advised pushing quickly to meet program timing: “my preference, if we can, is to try to move fast enough so that the loan gets approved by the OWRB by June,” the adviser said, noting some forgiveness pockets are limited and deadlines change. The adviser also discussed structuring multiple loans and wrapping repayment schedules around the city’s existing loan maturing in 2030 to reduce near-term repayment pressure.

City staff and the adviser discussed the specifics and limits of program coverage: automated-meter projects generally involve limited environmental review and can move faster; lead-service-line replacement funding is a newer category the OWRB is piloting and may require match or application fees; mains generally are not covered by the forgiveness programs but could be added to a repayable loan. Baker Group noted an application fee for OWRB of $500 and also discussed the adviser’s fee structure; the transcript included references to application fees “to 500 depending on on which loan” and other figures that staff said would be clarified at application.

The commission approved the resolution to authorize filing loan applications and to engage Baker Group and bond counsel; a separate PWA action will follow to finalize any loans that are offered. Staff noted this authorization does not itself incur debt but gives staff the ability to apply and seek funding that could include principal forgiveness if awarded.

Article provenance: topic introduced at SEG 670 and continued through the Baker Group presentation and the approving motion through SEG 1110–SEG 1138.