The Henryetta City Council and Henryetta Municipal Authority (HMA) met Tuesday, moving forward on a full docket of financial approvals, infrastructure improvements, property abatements, emergency communications upgrades and a onetime $250 employee pay adjustment.
City Manager David Bullard delivered a comprehensive report, detailing progress on the Jim Hall Spillway, flooding mitigation, housing demolitions, water infrastructure, storm siren replacements, campground improvements, disc golf tournaments and new grant opportunities that could significantly modernize the city’s water meter system.
— Items Approved
• Item #1 – Consent Agenda Approved – Includes financial reports for October 2025, minutes of the October 2025 meeting and claims for October 2025.
• Item #2 – Payment to Bank of Oklahoma – Approved $40,023.88 monthly payment for the 2015 Note Series.
• Item #3 – Payment to AEP/PSO – Approved $30,122.44 for monthly electric services.
• Item #4 – Payment to Myers Engineering – Approved $5,062.50 Invoice No. 223132-10 for the Jim Hall Spillway Project #ARP-23-0002-DG (OWRB ARPA funds).
• Item #5 – Payment to J & S Construction – Approved $97,030.03 Contractor Application No. 5 for Jim Hall spillway improvements.
• Item #6 – Letter of Engagement with Arledge & Associates Approved Engagement for FY 2024-2025 audit services.
• Item #7 – Memorandum of Understanding with Muscogee Nation – Approved.
• Item #8 – Resolution No. 1316 (E911 Authority Grant Application) Approved.
• Item #9 – Property Abatement, 609 W. Cummings (Roy Michael Taylor) Approved for abatement
• Item #10 – Property Abatement, 311 W. Moore (Don & Jan Prahl Revocable Trust) – Tabled until January meeting (60-day extension).
• Item #11 – Property Abatement, 508 N. 7th (Don & Jan Prahl Revocable Trust) – Tabled until February meeting (90-day extension).
• Item #12 – Property Abatement, 811 W. Cummings (Thomas Allen Thompson) – Approved for abatement
• Item #13 – Property Abatement, 711 N. 1st Street (Michael & Niki Ford) – Approved for abatement
• Item #14 – One-Time Employee Pay Adjustment – Approved – $250 one-time pay adjustment at the City Manager’s discretion.
• Item #15 – City Manager’s Report Approved/Received.
• Items #16-18 – Executive Session Council entered executive session regarding:
• IAFF Local #2788 bargaining agreement
• Litigation: Muscogee (Creek) Nation v. City of Henryetta Upon returning to open session, the council approved the negotiated Firefighters Local #2788 bargaining agreement for FY 2024-2026.
City Manager David Bullard delivered an in-depth update on ongoing projects, offering long explanations and notable progress points across multiple departments.
— Jim Hall Spillway opens successfully Bullard announced the long-awaited reopening of the Jim Hall spillway, which has undergone major improvements with OWRB ARPA funds.
“The Jim Hall spillway is now open for new traffic,” Bullard said. “We walked through everything with the engineers. They’ll get their final payment at the end of the month, and while there are still a few cosmetic items and clean-up work left, the project overall checks out very well.”
He emphasized that clearing vegetation and removing two major trees has significantly improved flooding conditions: “People are noticing the difference. One of our postal carriers told me he’s never been able to see around that corner in all the years delivering out there. We’ve cleared both sides, and it’s already solved issues that used to cause major flooding. This project is working the way we hoped it would.”
— Flooding mitigation efforts continue Bullard credited city crews for their persistent work addressing long-standing drainage issues.
“We cleared underneath those big trees, did maintenance on both sides, and we’ve targeted problem areas that have flooded for years,” he said. “Our crews have been working extremely hard, and I want to emphasize that they’re the ones who really make me look good. This is a team effort across every department.”
— Water Line & Pumping Improvements
Bullard reported progress on the water pump station built in 2010 near the golf course, where aging piping was failing.
“The pipes they put in 10 or 15 years ago had rusted through,” he explained. “We replaced those with stainless steel at a cost of about $16,000. This is going to help the pressure for the area, and DEQ required us to put a new flow meter out there, which is now installed and complete.” — Business Growth: Road Access for New Hardware Store Bullard discussed coordination with the new hardware store project in the Salem area.
“We’re meeting with business owners, the developer, and ODOT to figure out exactly what we need for a proper road into the business,” he said. “Construction is coming along well, and the signage going up is very professional. It’s going to look sharp. Now we’re trying to make sure the access point meets safety and state requirements.”
He noted the challenges with U.S. 75 access: “Any road coming off 75 is northbound only, and safety becomes a big issue, especially with semis,” he added.
— Dilapidated Houses: Three Removed This Month
The city continues cracking down on abandoned, unsafe structures.
“We tore down three houses this month,” Bullard said. “As soon as we get approval and it’s clear no one is living there, we take action. These properties affect safety, attract vandals and bring down property values. We are staying aggressive on this.”
— New Water Meter Grant Opportunity
Bullard announced promising news regarding water meter modernization and line replacements.
“We met with the Oklahoma Rural Water Association, and while the state said funds are tight for another year or so, we did learn about a program offering up to $2 million in loan forgiveness,” he said. “If we get this, it would allow us to replace about 1,500 water meters across town and cover replacement of bad lines we discover. It’s a big step toward modernizing our system at essentially no cost to the city.”
— Disc Golf Championship &
Tourism Gains
Bullard praised the success of the recent state disc golf championship: “We had 187 participants plus spectators,” he said. “The campgrounds were full – some with 50- or 60-foot motorhomes and motorcycle trailers. The feedback from visitors was great, and it shows these events really do benefit our local businesses and sales tax revenue.”
— Campground Improvements & RV Dump Station Plans Bullard explained planned upgrades: “We’re going to run new water and electric lines, and we’ll install a dump station,” he said. “DEQ told us we can place it along Lake Road and dump into the city sewer. We’ll gravel it, mark it, and make it easy for people coming from both lakes.”
— Street Paving Project Moving Forward Bullard reported progress but is awaiting contractor scheduling: “We’re still on track for paving 10 streets – five commercial and five residential,” he said. “The contractor is trying to work us into their schedule, and weather is always a factor, but we expect movement soon.”
— Three New Storm Sirens Planned Bullard described the project as nearly ready to launch: “We finally got the quotes we needed,” he said.
“We’ll be ordering three state-ofthe- art storm sirens at a cost of about $84,000. Because of a grant, the city will only have to cover around $5,000. These sirens will operate even without electric power, which is a major safety improvement.”
— Trash Truck Repairs Continue “Every time we fix one issue, we find another,” Bullard admitted.
“We’ve had welders reinforce areas, replaced multiple parts, and hopefully by next week we’ll know exactly what it’s going to cost to finalize repairs and move forward.”
— Water Tower Project 70% Complete Bullard said design work is well underway.
“All the surveys are done, and the engineering plans are about 70% complete,” he reported. “We’re just waiting on state review and approval before moving to the next step.”
— Henryetta Municipal Authority Meeting
• Item #1 – Consent Agenda – Approved – Includes October 2025 financial reports, October 2025 meeting minutes and October 2025 claims
• Item #2 – OWRB Monthly Payment – Approved – $37,962.14 for loan ORF-08-0015-DW.
• Item #3 – Myers Engineering Payment – Approved – $6,133.22 for Water Storage Tank project on W. Warren Road.
• Item #4 – One-Time Employee Pay Adjustment – Approved – $250 for all employees at the City Manager’s discretion (matching council action).
• Item #5 – New Business – None
• Item #6 – Adjourn – Approved — Council Comments
Councilmembers praised the ongoing improvements, noting appreciation for the pace of street work and holiday preparations.
One expressed excitement for upcoming projects: “We’re doing a great job getting a lot of things done before we move on to the next phases,” a councilmember said.
“The city workers are doing an excellent job, and we’re excited to see the road improvements coming soon.”
