GM LORDSTOWN | Ryan said he's not giving up hope

LORDSTOWN — Asked about the impending closing of the Lordstown General Motors plant, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan said it’s “been through a brutal few months for everyone in the community because everyone is connected to a worker there.”

But Ryan of Howland, D-13th, isn’t giving up hope of getting an electric vehicle at the facility.

“We’re talking about getting [federal] money to convert old factories into state-of-the-art [facilities] to do something like electric vehicles or fuel-efficient vehicles,” he said.

Electric vehicles are the cars of the future, Ryan said, and the Lordstown facility is the ideal location for one.

“It can be a great opportunity to convert Lordstown over to electric for General Motors,” he said.

Ryan said the area wants to be part of GM’s future.

But “if General Motors is not going to use that facility, let’s find another electric vehicle company to come in there and help us transform the Valley,” he said.