Despite attempts by state and local elected officials to keep the Sparrows Point steel mill in operation, the buyer of the property has announced intention to sell off the mill's cold mill equipment for spare parts. Steelworkers Union Local 9477 said this decision pretty much guarantees the facility will not reopen in its former capacity because the mill will be nothing more than a shell.
This, according to county executives, brings an end to nearly a century of steelmaking in Baltimore County. More than 2,000 steel workers will be out of jobs as a result. County elected officials are now urging those whose jobs were displaced to apply for federal financial assistance.