STRUTHERS City, Astro team up to purchase, develop the Sheet and Tube site

Options include commercial, manufacturing and industrial uses.
STRUTHERS -- A 46.5-acre brownfield along the Mahoning River will see new life under an agreement announced by the city of Struthers and Astro Development LLC.
The former Youngstown Sheet and Tube Campbell Works coke plant property has sat dormant since the late 1970s when the steel mill shut down; the buildings there were razed a decade later.
The city and Astro Development plan to use a public-private partnership process offered through the Clean Ohio Program to apply for state grant funds for environmental assessment and cleanup.
Under the partnership, Astro would supply funds for the city to buy the property, currently owned by the Ohio Central Railroad.
Cleanup will be completed under the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's Voluntary Action Program. Once complete, the land would be conveyed back to Astro for development.
Bob Cene Jr. of Astro Development said development plans have not been finalized but that the area would be improved for commercial, manufacturing and industrial use. The city and company also plan to improve roads, railway and utility access in the area.
"We believe this project will result in new jobs and environmental improvements to the heart of Struthers and can be a catalyst for further brownfield redevelopment in the Mahoning River Corridor of Opportunity," said city council President Danny Thomas Jr., who also serves on the MRCO. "This would be the gate-opener we have been working toward."
Past projects
Struthers and Astro Shapes Inc., affiliated with the development company, have worked together for past community improvements. In 1995, they collaborated with the state to redevelop the former LTV Steel property. The city and Astro Shapes also worked together to develop the Bob Cene Park baseball complex.
City Council will hold a special meeting this evening to consider legislation imperative to the project.
Items on the agenda include an ordinance that would allow the city to create an economic redevelopment fund and a resolution transferring and appropriating $10,000 from the Struthers Revolving Loan Fund for environmental assessments.
Astro Shapes would provide money to the redevelopment fund to cover the cost of the property, Thomas said, declining to cite specific figures. Money from the revolving loan fund would be used for environmental projects that qualify for community development block grant funds.