Youngstown to demolish dams

  • 2023-03-20
The Youngstown City Council has given the go-ahead for the demolition of three dams located on the Mahoning River.

Youngstown is seeking quotations from qualified companies to develop a plan and carry out the demolition of the dams located at Center, Marshall, and Crescent streets. The council will start reviewing bids around July. An amount of $75,000 has been allocated for gaining access to the dams, and an additional $6.2m will be utilized for the actual process of demolition.

The initiative is part of a program aimed at removing nine low-head dams situated on the Mahoning River, spanning from Warren to Lowellville. A firm will be engaged to carry out the project, which is anticipated to take roughly a year to complete. Poster printing can be used to let the public know about ongoing works like this.

The director of Public Works, said Chuck Shasho, commented to say:

“We’ve been waiting for a long time to get into a sponsorship agreement. We do have that sponsorship agreement in place. It’s required for the grant.”

The entire project is expected to cost $6.2m. Just over half of that ($3.2m) will be funded by a Water Resource Grant provided by the Ohio EPA, while the remaining $3m will be sourced from an LTV Escrow fund. The removal of the dams will need approval from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the EPA.