Army Corps holds virtual meeting on Lordstown project because of coronavirus concerns

The Army Corps of Engineers scrapped plans to hold a public meeting in Lordstown, Ohio, to discuss a proposed multibillion development project there because of coronavirus concerns.

Instead, the corps held a virtual meeting Thursday using a webinar application. People were able to submit public comments electronically.

“With everything going the way it is (with coronavirus), we thought it would be the safest option,” said Scott Hans, regulatory branch chief of the Army Corps’ Pittsburgh District.

The meeting was related to a proposal from General Motors and GigaPower LLC of South Korea to build a $2.3 billion electric battery assembly plant in Lordstown. GM, which closed its Lordstown auto manufacturing plant last year, hopes to begin work on battery-making plant later this year.

The Corps is in the process of reviewing a permit for the proposed project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Pittsburgh and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency initially set the public meeting to be held in Lordstown, but the EPA pulled out and the Army Corps decided to take the meeting virtual, according to Hans.

“We evaluated our options and we determined we could try to host at least a virtual public meeting and still provide outreach to the public,” Hans said.

Hans said the Army Corps holds informational public meetings on a number of projects. It will decide whether to hold future ones in person or virtually on a case-by-case basis, Hans said.