YOUNGSTOWN — FirstEnergy, which had a request to place a high-tension power line through downtown Youngstown rejected last May, is proposing changes that would largely place the line on wood poles at much lower heights.

FirstEnergy officials unveiled the proposal Tuesday at a city council public utilities committee meeting, with several council members saying it is a significant improvement from the one rejected 11 months ago by the Ohio Power Siting Board.

This 6-mile, 138-kilovolt transmission line would still connect the Riverbend and Lincoln Park substations, going through parts of Youngstown and Campbell, and expand the Riverbend substation to install new equipment.

But the upgrade to help provide more reliable electricity would largely be located along existing power lines with new poles, said Scott Humphreys, FirstEnergy’s supervisor of transmission siting.

There would need to be one metal power line on either side of the South Avenue bridge, but the rest of the route would be wooden poles on Woodland Avenue, across Market Street, to Oak Hill Avenue, said Troy Rhoades, FirstEnergy’s regional external affairs representative.

More than 300 local residents had voiced their opposition to the state board about the high-tension project.

American Transmission Systems Inc., a FirstEnergy subsidiary, proposed a 5.2-mile, $23.1 million project.

The main objection was that line would be parallel to the north side of the Mahoning River, going behind the Youngstown Amphitheatre, through Wean Park, over the Market Street Bridge and behind the Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown.

There were going to be five to seven utility towers with the two tallest being 140 feet and adjacent to the Market Street Bridge. The others would have been about 100 to 115 feet tall.

Construction on that project was to start in November 2022 and be finished around December of this year.

Those opposing that project said it would destroy the investments made to restore downtown.

There was an alternate route of 6.2 miles on the south side of the river and cost $23.9 million that FirstEnergy didn’t support.

A cost for the new line wasn’t discussed Tuesday.

The poles would be about 70 to 80 feet high, Rhoades said. The metal poles on either side of the South Avenue bridge would be about 100 feet high, he said.

FirstEnergy plans to have a public information meeting about the project in May or June and see if adjustments are needed before submitting it to the siting board, Humphreys said. He anticipated the siting board would approve the project in the third quarter of 2024 with construction starting in the second half of 2025 and being complete by the end of 2026.

Councilman Julius Oliver, who lives on East Woodland Avenue where the new line would be located, said: “This route is better than the route that ran through Wean Park, but I still have concerns.”

Oliver, D-1st Ward, asked if the line could be more aesthetically pleasing and Rhoades said walking trails or bike paths could be installed along those lines.

“It’s still not going to be well received,” Oliver said.

He asked that FirstEnergy be respectful of residents and others with the lines.

“They came back with a better route,” Oliver said after the meeting, adding: “We’ll see what happens.”

Councilman Mike Ray, D-4th Ward and the committee’s chairman, said: “This is a good start to alternative routes. I look forward to see what’s next.”

Councilwoman Samantha Turner, D-3rd Ward and the committee’s vice chairwoman, said: “They made strategic changes and they’re being mindful of the community. They came back with a better plan.