Oxford council approves $283,846 payment tied to water‑treatment financing; staff outline loan terms

Council adopted a resolution authorizing the city manager to submit $283,846 to the Ohio Water Development Authority to cover administrative charges tied to the cooperative loan for membrane softening improvements at the city water treatment plant.

Mister Dreisbach told council the city is borrowing to finance a new softening plant and water‑treatment facility and that financing includes principal forgiveness and a favorable interest rate. "The city is borrowing approximately $20,000,000 to provide financing for our new softening plant and water treatment facility," Dreisbach said, and he added the package includes about $4,000,000 in principal forgiveness and a blended financing rate of roughly 2.51%. The $283,846 item voted tonight is the administrative/loan origination fee to the Ohio EPA and Ohio Water Development Authority, staff said.

During announcements later in the meeting, Mister Elliott provided additional context on the overall construction contract and repayment schedule: he said the construction agreement including contingency is about $24,800,000, that the city expects to borrow just under $24,000,000 from the Ohio EPA/Ohio Water Development Authority, and that the blended interest rate for the package is 2.51% over 30 years with the first payment due Jan. 1, 2029. Elliott said the annual payment will be paid twice a year and described plans to fund debt service with current and increased water user fees. The resolution authorizing the administrative payment passed by voice vote.