Building from Youngstown Steel’s glory days partially demolished

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – Part of one of the last remaining buildings from the glory days of Youngstown Steel making has been demolished — in an effort to prepare the property for further development.

It’s the former Republic Steel building at the corner of Poland Avenue and the Center Street Bridge. Half of it has been demolished. The remaining half will stay since two — and soon to be three tenants — occupy it.

The building is owned by Lisbon’s Pipe Barn Beaver Company which buys and repurposes former industrial sites. The owner, Ben Dickey, says the building was too big and it needed opened up to be more accessible and user-friendly.

Local steel historian Rick Rowlands says the demolition is significant.

“Well I mean, it’s just another one of the buildings going away. We don’t have many landmarks left from the steel industry. Every year it seems like a few more go away. It is good that a portion of the plant is going to remain and be repurposed for other uses,” Rowlands said.

Rowlands said the building housed Republic’s 16-14 rolling mill. It operated from the early 1900’s to the late 1970’s — at which time all the equipment was scrapped.

Youngstown’s Generation X Contractors is handling the demolition.

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