US Steel has restarted a blast furnace at its Granite City Works -- thanks to increased demand.
It's been more than two years since molten slabs rolled through the plant.
Granite City Mayor Mike Parkinson tells KMOX's Total Information AM it's the best news possible, but his optimism is guarded. "We just hope this isn't a short lived period in Granite City's history."
Granite City Works is only protected from being further idled, closed or sold until June 2027.
"We're very hopeful that the new ownership will see what we do here and what these men and women do at this plant and the great steel that we produce, which we believe is the best in the world," Parkinson says.
Parkinson tells KMOX the city is looking at other industries -- including data centers -- but says they have to have the correct zoning and protections in place. Parkinson says city officials need to consider ordinances for potential data centers that would govern setbacks... pollution... and water runoff -- just to name a few.
Mayor Mike Parkinson
Brad Choat
