Stormwater Study Moving Forward In Norman

A stormwater study will soon get underway in Norman to determine the utility fee's priorities and rates.

The project faced some pushback when the city council approved it. Two councilmen voted against it, citing the study's $54,000 price tag as their primary concern. From 2014 to 2016, the city spent about $847,000 on studies. The latest stormwater studies bring that total to nearly $1 million over the last four years.

Trey Shanks, stormwater manager at Freese and Nichols, Inc., said the $54,000 study will produce a powerful modeling tool that will help the city's citizen stormwater committee as they work to craft a new stormwater utility fee.

Opponents also said they believed Norman residents would help guide the citizen stormwater committee toward a plan voters would support.