The city of Youngstown hosted a meeting Monday to fill the public in on the status of major sewer improvements for Mill Creek Park.

It's been a process decades in the making that'll take another two years to complete.

The plan is to replace 8000 to 9000 feet of linear sewer in order to mitigate an issue with the waste water system that causes runoff to flow into Mill Creek Park.

The runoff contaminates the water with E. coli from fecal matter.

"It's federally mandated and it's for the betterment of the park," Mike Ray, Youngstown 4th ward councilman said. "Ultimately we're eliminating a large amount of untreated sewage that goes into our water ways, so it's a great initiative to get the park cleaned up," he said.

It also means areas like Calvary Run Trail, Slippery Rock Trail, Old Tree Trail, One Way Drive Trail and Lake Glacier, among others, will not be accessible to the public for the duration of the project.

"That's where the recreation is, that's where the lily pond is, that's where the paddle boats were when they were operational, fishing, so it's a long time to be taking out the very things that make Mill Creek Park enjoyable," Tracy Randall, Youngstown resident said.

Other residents in attendance raised questions and participated in break-out sessions to gain knowledge on what the project entails and how it will affect them.

"A lot of people use the park and this is going to impact the way people use the park so really that's the community engagement portion of this that we're engaging the public in to discuss," Ray said.

This is an estimated $40 million project that needed attention years ago and city officials say they're happy to see it come together.

"It's pretty overwhelming to think we're going to be the generation that's gonna solve these combined sewers emptying into the water course for a hundred years or so," Chuck Shasho, deputy director of public works, said. "Right now we're in phases one and two. One and two will be built together and then three and four will be built together. We're enlarging the sewers to eliminate the overflow," he said.

The project will begin in January 2026 and is slated to be complete by May 2028.

However, Shasho said they're anticipating to finish ahead of schedule.

The money to complete the project needed to be voted on and approved by city council but was stalled due to councilwoman Samantha Turner voting no.

It will go before council again on August 26th.