Youngstown council approves legislation to get water tanks repaired

YOUNGSTOWN — A month after the water commissioner urged council to act quickly to let the board of control hire a company to manage and repair the city’s water tanks, council members authorized the legislation tonight.

The board of control is expected to hire Utility Service Group, an Atlanta-based company with a local office, at a meeting later this month.

The ordinance allows the board to hire a company at an annual cost between $450,000 and $750,000 to manage, maintain, repair, clean the interiors and paint the exteriors of the seven water tanks owed by the city.

Also, council voted to have the board of control enter into a settlement agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regarding a May 4, 2015, leak of about 500 gallons of liquid chlorine at its wastewater treatment facility on Poland Avenue.

The city will pay a $20,415 fine, and will spend up to $120,000 to expand the plant’s chlorine and sulfur-dioxide detection system and install fiber-optic cables for an alarm system to alert those inside the plant when emergencies happen.

For the complete story, read Thursday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com