Trust ratifies FEMA HHPD grants to advance Overholser Dam design work

The Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust on Jan. 13 approved a resolution authorizing staff to receive and administer two FEMA High Hazard Potential Dam (HHPD) grants routed through the Oklahoma Water Resources Board for design work on the Overholser Dam.

Vanessa Aguilar, presenting the item, said the trust received “approximately $552,000” from the FY21 HHPD grant, which staff attributed to 30% design services for the Overholser Dam structural stability project. She said the trust also received proceeds from the FY22 HHPD program of “approximately $509,000” to support later-stage (60–90%) engineering design work on the same project and that staff expect most grant proceeds to be drawn down by a tentative schedule of June 2026 with closeout thereafter.

The item was framed as a ratification of the general manager’s prior actions and a directive for the deputy director to accept and administer the awards. Trustees asked no substantive questions and the chairman called for a motion; the resolution was adopted.

The resolution authorizes the trust to continue grant administration, carry the grants to final drawdown, and complete administrative closeout steps. The trust did not provide a line-item budget for the FY21/FY22 grant proceeds during the presentation.

What happens next: staff will continue grant administration and proceed to draw down eligible grant funds under the timeline presented; the trust did not set any additional conditions or amendments when it approved the resolution.