YOUNGSTOWN — The city’s board of control will pay a $651,976 bill today for the emergency replacement of melted sewer lines on Wick Avenue, with the city considering a lawsuit against SOBE Thermal Energy Systems LLC, which it blames for the damage.

Among the more than 250 items the board will consider today is paying the six-figure bill to Marucci & Gaffney Excavating Co. of Youngstown for the emergency replacement of 265 feet of 24-inch sanitary sewer lines, 30 feet of 15-inch sanitary sewer lines, 115 feet of 6-inch sanitary sewer lines and the replacement of a new manhole.

The project closed Wick Avenue, between Wood Street and Rayen Avenue, for about two months starting in early October.

It was initially estimated to be closed for about two weeks.

But that was before the city discovered the destruction of the sewer lines that were installed in 2017 as part of a major improvement project to Wick Avenue, said Charles Shasho, deputy director of public works.

“We had reports of lost city water there and we learned it was caused by the sewer line melting,” Shasho said.

The plastic pipe melted because of a leak in a parallel steam line owned by SOBE, Shasho said.

“Steam was coming out and it was very, very hot,” he said. “It melted over 400 feet of lines.”

Shasho said he is in discussions with the city’s law department about suing SOBE for the $651,976 bill.

Reg Martin, the court-appointed receiver of the troubled downtown utility, didn’t respond Wednesday to requests to comment from The Vindicator.

Because of the steam issue, the city couldn’t install plastic piping in that area again because of the risk it would melt, Shasho said. Instead, it had the choice between clay or iron pipe, which is significantly more expensive — and chose clay, Shasho said.

Because of the extensive damage, Shasho said the project was “time-consuming.” We didn’t anticipate paying that much. But when we saw it was melted and what caused the problem, we didn’t have a choice. We have to pay this bill. This is a main line to the entire North Side.”

Adding to the bill was the need for a bypass pump to go around the work site when the project occurred and pipes connecting to customers on the line, Shasho said.

If the city decides to sue SOBE, it has to consider whether the beleaguered utility company can pay.

In just the past few months, SOBE has lost a couple of court cases by default judgment in which it owes more than $800,000 to two companies.

SOBE didn’t defend itself in either case.

In December, a Mahoning County Common Pleas Court judge awarded a $424,458 default judgment against SOBE by Alcon Mechanical Piping Inc. because the utility company never responded to a July 19 lawsuit. The lawsuit stated that then-SOBE CEO David Ferro gave Alcon a bad check for $400,000 on Sept. 20, 2024, that was returned for insufficient funds.

A rented steam plant that provided heat and hot water services for SOBE’s customers – 28 buildings in downtown Youngstown – was repossessed Sept. 30 because SOBE owes $383,214 in back payments to the 800-horsepower boiler’s owner, Wabash Power Equipment Co. of Wheeling, Illinois.

Martin was appointed SOBE receiver Sept. 26 at the request of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio as the company was about to go out of business.

At an Oct. 22 public meeting, Martin said SOBE is “insolvent” with no assets besides its building and a few pieces of equipment while owing about $4 million to creditors.

“SOBE is history,” Martin said at the meeting. “I have to run it. We’re never going to have enough revenue to build a system that’s bigger and better.”

Martin was able to rent a smaller, 650-horsepower steam plant a few days after the old 800-horsepower boiler was repossessed. But it took 10 days for it to operate.

That boiler from Power Mechanical Inc. of Newport News, Virginia, costs $19,750 a month to rent.

As part of a Dec. 1 Enbridge Gas Ohio settlement of the Realty Tower explosion with the PUCO, the company gave $750,000 to Martin to lease or purchase a much-needed 250-horsepower backup boiler.

Martin had previously said the backup boiler would cost about $12,500 a month to rent.

In a Dec. 9 filing in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, Kenneth R. Goldberg, Martin’s court-appointed attorney, wrote the $750,000 “will put SOBE in a much stronger position to assure the Youngstown community has uninterrupted steam heat and hot water service during the winter months and beyond. However, even with this generous contribution, a permanent resolution to the economic and operational circumstances of SOBE will require significant additional capital, and the receiver continues to seek additional funding options in order to find a permanent solution.”