YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – Two weeks ago the Ohio Senate passed bill that could one day have a profound effect on some of the old manufacturing space in the Youngstown area.
Trees now grow where the old Republic Hose Factory on Albert Street in Youngstown once worked.
RG Steel once had its big mill behind the fence along Pine Avenue in Warren.
Both are among the 10,000 brownfield locations in Ohio, which are former manufacturing facilities that need to be cleaned and reused.
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“We noticed a lot of confusion about brownfields. The state of Ohio doesn’t really have a strong game plan, ”said Youngstown Area Senator Michael Rulli.
To change the game plan, Rulli wants to conduct a survey of all brownfield locations in Ohio.
“There is no standard. There is no procedure or list of requirements that you would put into this category, ”said Rulli.
His bill calling for the poll passed the Senate. It’s currently in the House of Representatives, and Rulli said the governor appears to be okay with it.
“There’s really not a lot of money going on redevelopment,” said Julie Green of the Trumbull County Planning Commission, which deals with brownfields.
Green said she would love to clean up the old Copperweld location in Champion and she will accept any help she can get.
“You know, we have more resources to clean up these sites and provide new opportunities for businesses to settle here,” said Green.
Once the survey is complete, Rulli plans to use excess alcohol tax money to pay for the cleanup. These can range from $ 28 to $ 67 million per year.
The communities then recommend three to five properties that they would like to have cleaned.
“We assume that with the money already allocated for the alcohol tax, we can probably do between 20 and 50 projects a year,” said Rulli.
Rulli said he was only there to beautify Ohio, but that’s not what these bills are for. He said they should clean up old industrial properties and make them usable again for companies.
