YOUNGSTOWN — Nearly four years after rejecting a plan from a FirstEnergy subsidiary to build a power line in Youngstown and Campbell, the Ohio Power Siting Board will consider Thursday a revised proposal for approval.

More than 300 local residents and elected officials opposed the initial proposal from American Transmission Systems Inc., the FirstEnergy subsidiary, that was rejected in May 2022 by the state board because of high-tension lines going through downtown Youngstown. The new plan has received very little opposition.

“By working with the community, we developed a solution that strengthens the local electric grid, supports local growth and respects the needs of residents and businesses,” said Lauren Siburkis, FirstEnergy’s program manager of transmission communications.

The updated 6.25-mile, 138-kilovolt project would connect the Riverbend and Lincoln Park substations, going through sections of Youngstown and Campbell, and expand the Riverbend substation, near downtown Youngstown, to install new equipment.

The project would serve as a backup power source for the Riverbend substation, which serves 5,000 customers, and the Lincoln Park substation, which serves 10,000 customers, Siburkis said. The backup source “will help reduce outages and speed up repairs,” she said.

Construction of the $27 million project, if approved Thursday, is expected to begin in November 2027 and be in service by December 2028, Siburkis said.

The project includes about 100 poles. The steel poles will be about 70 to 85 feet tall with a few about 100 feet tall where needed, such as on either side of the Peace Officers Memorial Bridge on South Avenue that crosses the Mahoning River, Siburkis said.

The main objection to the first proposal was the 5.2-mile line – which would have included high-tension power lines – would have been parallel to the north side of the Mahoning River, going behind the Youngstown Foundation 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.

Siburkis said: “This work is vital to the local community because it will help keep the lights on for more than 15,000 homes and businesses in and around Youngstown. This project will bring real economic value to the Mahoning Valley because it will make room for new jobs, new business and future growth.”

The steel poles would be installed along Youngstown roads including Poland Avenue and Center Street to the city’s East Side before ending at the Lincoln Park substation in Campbell.

Lincoln and Wean parks are located within the vicinity of the project area, but are not crossed by the power lines, according to a Dec. 3 siting board staff report.

The project will provide “stronger support for important places like St. Elizabeth Hospital, Youngstown State University, the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre and hundreds of homes and businesses,” Siburkis said.

During construction, the project will create 23 temporary jobs in 2027 and 56 temporary jobs in 2028, she said.

Once the project is finished, Siburkis said ATSI “will continue contributing to the community through yearly property tax payments. In the first year alone, the project is expected to generate about $4.1 million in local taxes – money that will directly support Mahoning County, Youngstown city and Youngstown city schools, as well as the city of Campbell and Campbell city schools. This investment strengthens the local economy today while building a foundation for long-term growth.”

The Ohio Power Siting Board staff on Dec. 3 recommended the board approve the project – as it did when the board rejected the initial project in 2022.

During a Dec. 8 public meeting at the Michael Kusalaba Branch of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, five people spoke about the project.

One opposed it because the line is to go across the front of his property, two others didn’t want the line going through the parking lot of their church on the city’s East Side, another was concerned about the impact the lines would have on nature and said the project wasn’t necessary while a fifth person wanted to look at the project’s map.

ATSI held public meetings in Youngstown on June 12, 2024, and June 4, 2025, to answer questions about the project with interested parties and submitted a formal application with the siting board on Aug. 25, 2025. The board issued a letter of compliance on Oct. 10 regarding the application.