YOUNGSTOWN — The city’s board of control approved two six-figure change orders for projects — one that reduces the cost of Mahoning Avenue street work by $687,795 and the other that increases the neighborhood paving program price by $420,298.

The board of control, whose members are the mayor, law director and finance director, approved both change orders Thursday.

The Mahoning Avenue project’s expense was reduced largely because there was about $345,000 built into the cost for pavement repair work, and none was needed, said Charles Shasho, deputy director of public works.

Shelly & Sands Inc., with an office in Youngstown, was hired to do the work for $4,020,491. But with the change order, the cost was reduced to $3,332,696.

The city received a $2.6 million federal grant through the state for the project with $350,000 of the city’s American Rescue Plan funds set aside for it. The rest came from the city’s auto license fee budget.

The work on Mahoning Avenue, the main corridor on the city’s West Side, went from Meridian Road to the Interstate 680 interchange.

The work included road resurfacing, drainage improvements, new curbs, sidewalk work, medians and larger street signs.

The city had to increase the cost of its annual neighborhood street resurfacing program by $420,298 because waterline and sewer breaks were discovered and in need of repair during the project, Shasho said.

The contract with R.T. Vernal Paving & Excavating of North Lima increased from $1,827,315 to $2,247,613.

The neighborhood resurfacing project typically doesn’t increase by this much, Shasho said, but “we had a number of waterline breaks and sewer breaks with damage to the streets so we repaved it.”

Also Thursday, the board voted to increase a $25,000 payment to Bricker Graydon LLP’s Cleveland law office for work associated with a failed redevelopment effort to the city-owned 20 Federal Place downtown building to $49,500.

City council on Sept. 17 authorized the increase.

The firm was hired April 24 to guide the city through a proposed public-private partnership financial structure for the vacant building at 20 W. Federal St.

City officials announced Aug. 12 that it ended its relationship with Bluelofts Inc., a Dallas company, to potentially develop 20 Federal Place and that $24 million in state and federal historic tax credits for the building wouldn’t be used.

The city has “mothballed” the building until it decides what to do with the building, said Finance Director Kyle Miasek.

The building has been vacant for about three years. The city purchased the building in November 2004 after Phar-Mor, a national store company, went out of business.