Replacement for lead water pipes in Youngstown has been a project long overdue.

When Governor Mike DeWine announced the new H20 program on Monday, that would help alleviate this problem for local communities, Youngstown wasn't on the list.

21 News found that the city has a plan of it's own, including hiring a water quality compliance coordinator and seeking out funds.


"Overall, our plan is to secure monies through partnering with a local engineering firm to go after some of the federal dollars available for lead replacement," said Harry Johnson III, water commissioner for the city of Youngstown. "In addition to that, I requested about $1.5 million from the ARP monies," he said.


If city council makes the decision to grant this money, it would go toward replacing city service lines and hiring contractors for replacing lines on private properties.

Johnson tells 21 News the money wouldn't be enough to cover all the pipes in the city. He says completing the project would cost several million dollars to complete and could take 20 years.


"Just based on the cost associated with replacing a lead pipe, you can probably do a thousand homes with that amount of money," Johnson said.

Johnson did not request anymore money from the city for lead pipes, though, because they still need an additional $8 million dollars for other projects like large valve and water line replacements.

Johnson presented more information for lead pipes projects at a public utilities meeting Thursday evening.

His monetary request will still have to go before the American Rescue Plan money committee and recommended to city council for a vote, from there.