YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Members of City Council will consider three ordinances aimed at advancing the removal of three low-head dams on the Mahoning River when they meet next week.
According to one of the ordinances on the agenda for the Wednesday meeting, which would authorize the city’s Board of Control to advertise for proposals and to enter into all necessary agreements for removal of the three dams – at Center Street, Marshal Street and Crescent Street – the cost is not to exceed $6,125,000.
Another ordinance, if approved, would authorize the board to enter into a Water Resource Restoration Sponsor Program sponsorship agreement with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency for up to $3.5 million. The third would authorize entering into agreements for temporary access, permanent easements, property acquisition or rights of entry related to the projects.
The city also plans to apply for Ohio Water Pollution Control Loan Fund funding for the projects, according to one of the ordinances.
The projects should take up to 2½ years, said Justin Mondoc, director of planning and development with Eastgate Regional Council of Governments. Eastgate has been operating in an advisory capacity with the Mahoning River communities that are removing the dams within their borders, in some cases more directly participating by holding the funding for the projects and working with stakeholders.
“We’re kind of at the beginning of the process for the design and getting the ball rolling for all of the engineering work that has to go into planning the [Youngstown] projects out,” Mondoc said. “For a handful of years now, the city has been working through some right-of-way and land acquisition related to the projects needing site access to the dams themselves and laying down areas for the sediment work that would occur during the actual deconstruction.”
A total of nine dams are coming down along the waterway, which runs through Mahoning and Trumbull counties. So far, dams at Lowellville, Struthers, Summit Street in Warren and Leavittsburg have been removed. Along with the three Youngstown dams, Warren’s Main Street dam is going through the process, and Eastgate is working with the U.S. Army Corps of engineers and the Ohio EPA to complete a feasibility study to advance the removal of Girard’s low-head dam.
Charles Shasho, Youngstown’s deputy director of public works, did not respond to requests to comment on the projects by time of publication.