In what might be a record, the Luther Public Works Authority board in a Special Meeting on Wednesday night took less than two minutes to conduct its business (broadcast by Luther Register on Periscope). The business involved signing off on seeking a $100,000 Rural Economic Action Plan grant to help fix the town’s water problems.
RESOLUTION
Whereas, The water system needs improvements, and
Whereas, the Luther Public Works Authority is financially incapable of remedying the situation which threatens the public health and welfare of the people of the Town of Luther, and
Whereas, is is in the best interest of the citizens of The Town of Luther to expedite the preparation and submission of an application for financial assistance from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, in the form of a grant.
Now therefore, be it resolved that a situation is hereby recognized and declared to exist in the Town of Luther and by reason thereof, the Chairperson of the Board ofTrustees, is hereby authorized and directed to sign an application and related documents necessary to file and process a grant application wit the Oklahoma Water Resources Board on behalf of the Luther Public Works Authority.
The resolution passed unanimously.
LPWA Board Member Andy McDaniels emphasized to The Luther Register, and a recent report from the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality confirms, that the water QUALITY is not an issue. He said the town water is safe. The issue involves fire hydrants and pipes of the aging system, particularly around the area of the schools.
The application for this grant will be handled by Infrastructure Solutions Group. The quick action of the LPWA board was to meet a September 1, 2016, grant application deadline.
Coincidentally, during the meeting, the town was experiencing a water line break so residents and businesses experienced some outages and the hydrants ran to reduce water pressure while the town’s maintenance crew quickly worked to fix the break.
Asked what the cause of the line break might be, and the speculation is the recent earthquakes in the area. Speculation could also include recognizing that Luther has an ever-aging system and the Town admittedly says it doesn’t have the money to fix. There’s something to follow up on.
Well good, much needed work and this is what the town council should be focusing on. My daughter lives near the elementary school. I hope this will help with the low water pressure.