The Triunfo Sanitation District can begin construction of a longawaited water tank in Oak Park thanks to a $7.75-million loan the district recently received from Bank of America.

The district announced at its January meeting that the bank is committed to lending the money. Triunfo will pay 4.68 percent interest on the 20-year loan. The board approved the Bof A financing plan at its meeting on Monday and expects to receive the funding within days.

Mike Paule, Triunfo chairman, looks forward to starting the work. The district struggled for several years with financing the new tank, which will be constructed in the hills above Oak Canyon Park and double the potable water reserves for the older Oak Park neighborhoods.

Triunfo currently uses reservoirs on Conifer Court, Deerhill Road and Savoy and Kilburn courts. The new 2.1-million gallon tank will replace the aging tank at Conifer.

Costs to complete the project were estimated at $9-million last year, but recent bids were about $2 million less.

Triunfo still need to review contracts with its partner agency, Calleguas Municipal Water District and address easement issues with a neighboring homeowner association before the work can begin. Paule said construction could start in about six months if all goes well. Most of the work will take place along Lindero Canyon and Kanan roads, east of Golden Eagle Drive.

McReynolds said the new tank is imperative because the existing one is on a slope vulnerable to landslides and could easily be destroyed in an earthquake