Staff photo/Ed Runyan From left, Mahoning County commissioners Anthony Traficanti and Carol Rimedio-Righetti and Purchasing Director Jim Fortunato stand in front of the Mahoning County Courthouse Nov. 26, 2019.

YOUNGSTOWN — It took about six years, but Mahoning County officials are nearly ready to proclaim the courthouse exterior cleaning and restoration project finished.

Purchasing director Jim Fortunato took an exterior tour of the 109-year-old Market Street landmark with an architect from MS Consultants earlier this week, viewing the final part of the $6 million project and conducting an overall inspection.

The final phase involved replacement of the exterior lighting fixtures with LED lights. The fixtures are on pedestals and have large, white globes on them. That phase also included new lighting that shines onto the courthouse from ground level.

MS Consultants now will prepare a report to list any final “punch list” items still needing attention. Fortunato said he doesn’t know yet whether there will need to be additional repairs made. A historical architect will look at the work also to provide input on that aspect.

Early last summer, workers cleaned bird droppings from the building’s exterior. Early in the project that started in 2013, the roof and gutters were replaced. In 2017, the copper statues were placed back on the roof after having been removed in 2010 for repairs. Broken pieces of the ornamental terracotta also were replaced, and netting was replaced to keep birds from the structure.

The restoration of the statues was honored by the Mahoning Valley Historical Society with a historic preservation award and also received reognition from the Ohio Historical Society, Commissioner Anthony Traficanti said.

The statue restoration, which cost $70,000, included realignment of bent pieces, re-soldering of joints, application of a chemical patina and installation of a new stainless-steel interior armature and anchoring system.

The improved lighting was done in an effort to make the courthouse a nighttime attraction for the downtown.

“We felt it would be a heck of a way to showcase our courthouse,” Traficanti said.

Commissioner Carol Rimedio-Righetti said the work was done to preserve “one of the oldest buildings in Youngstown and Mahoning County, bring it back to its original look and make Mahoning County proud.”

The final step will be to have a ceremony next year to place a new time capsule in the building’s northeast cornerstone.

erunyan@tribtoday.com